Scotland's World Cup 2026 fixtures, schedule, plus routes to knockout stage and beyond! Can Steve Clarke's side make history?
Ecuador's shock 2-1 win over Germany has left Steve Clarke's side down in eighth place in the current table of the best third-placed teams hoping to progress to the last 32; only the top eight sides in the 12-team table will make the knockout stages
Saturday 27 June 2026 19:19, UK
Scotland's World Cup dreams and hopes of progressing to the last 32 are hanging by a thread after Ecuador's shock 2-1 win over Germany on Thursday night.
After finishing their group on three points behind both Brazil and Morocco, Scotland can only progress to the last 32 as one of the top eight third-placed sides.
Prior to kick-off against Brazil, Scotland had been in second place in the third-place table.
- Scotland 0-3 Brazil - Match report
- Scotland's hopes of progressing to the last 32 hanging by a thread
- 2026 World Cup: Who could play who in the last 32?
- World Cup 2026 schedule, dates and venues
But the three-goal defeat to Brazil saw Scotland plunge to seventh in the table - and Ecuador's shock 2-1 win over Germany on Thursday saw them drop to eighth, leaving them in severe danger of being knocked out altogether once the group stage is completed.
"I think we are going home," conceded Scotland boss Steve Clarke after the Brazil game.
"We have given ourselves a more difficult chance," said captain John McGinn. "It's unlikely now but we will see.
"It's not the way you want to go out either. We'll probably hurt tonight, hurt tomorrow and then just keep our fingers crossed.
"If we go into the last 32, if we get a miracle, we'll need to be better, we know that.
It's unlikely now but we will see. We need a lot to go our way, we will hope.
"It leaves us in the worst possible position from this morning. We gave ourselves a good platform to go and qualify and tonight we've made that very difficult. There's no hiding from that.
"We need a lot to go our way, we will hope, but what we do need to be if we manage to get through is be a lot better."
A frustrated Andy Robertson said: "If you ask me now, I don't think it is enough. Time will tell. The next couple of days will be horrible," while midfielder Kenny McLean added: "Unfortunately we can't control [our destiny] now.
"We're going to be hoping results go our way, it's not what you want to do."
When the teams below Scotland play...
Scotland could do with a few favours with the way things stand right now...
- Senegal vs Iraq - Friday, 8pm
- Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia - Saturday, 1am
- New Zealand vs Belgium - Saturday, 4am
- DR Congo vs Uzbekistan - Sunday, 12.30am
