Group K opened with Portugal held to a 1-1 draw by DR Congo - the kind of upset that reshapes a group. Colombia's 3-1 win over Uzbekistan put them top. Group K's 3rd-placer, most likely DR Congo, has a 69.4% chance at best-third qualification.
Where Group K stands now
| Pos | Team | Pts | GD | Played |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colombia | 3 | +2 | 3-1 vs Uzbekistan |
| 2 | Portugal | 1 | 0 | 1-1 vs DR Congo |
| 3 | DR Congo | 1 | 0 | 1-1 vs Portugal |
| 4 | Uzbekistan | 0 | -2 | 1-3 vs Colombia |
Matchday 2 (June 23): Portugal vs Uzbekistan in Houston, Colombia vs DR Congo in Guadalajara. Matchday 3 (June 27): Colombia vs Portugal in Miami, DR Congo vs Uzbekistan in Atlanta.
DR Congo's path to 3rd
DR Congo on 1 point need 3 more to seriously compete for best-third. Beating Uzbekistan on matchday 3 is the most likely route to 4 points. The question is whether they can avoid a heavy defeat to Colombia in matchday 2 - that game is at altitude in Guadalajara and Colombia will be heavy favourites.
Portugal are favoured to recover and finish at least 2nd, but a Portugal-Colombia winner-take-all in matchday 3 could leave one of them slipping to 3rd if Portugal lose and DR Congo win.
R32 path: Match 87 vs ???
FIFA's Annex C allocates Group K's third-placer to Match 87, normally pairing them with the winner of Group K - which is impossible (intra-group rematch). In practice FIFA reshuffles so that K3 plays a different group winner. Most common reshuffle: Group K's third-placer ends up at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami, on Friday July 3 at 6:00 PM ET against the winner of a neighbouring group's path - typically Group L's England in shuffle scenarios.
Projected R32 fixture: **DR Congo vs England (or Portugal-equivalent) at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami, on Friday July 3 at 6:00 PM ET**.
What to watch
- •Colombia vs DR Congo on June 23 - DR Congo need to not be embarrassed.
- •Portugal vs Uzbekistan on June 23 - Portugal must win to stay in 2K race.
- •Colombia vs Portugal on June 27 - winner-take-all for 1K.
Bigger picture on the best third-placed teams pillar.