ELIMINATEDR16ROUND OF 16R32ROUND OF 32D3Group D, finished 3rdGROUP D · 3RDBEST 3RD · #7
IN OUR BEST THIRDS RANKING
#22OUR RANK
5PTS
-3GD
3GF
Paraguay is out of the 2026 World Cup, eliminated after the Round of 16 (1/8 finals).
Paraguay's 2026 World Cup opened with a 1-4 loss to the USA, 24 places higher in the world ranking, before a battling 1-0 win over Türkiye, 19 places higher in the world ranking, turned things around on matchday 2. A goalless draw with Australia, 14 places higher in the world ranking, followed on matchday 3. Four points and a goal difference of minus 2 were enough to scrape through as one of the eight best third-placed teams.
Paraguay were the story of the Round of 32, holding Germany to a 1-1 draw and winning 4-3 on penalties to dump out the tenth-ranked side. The last 16 proved a step too far, a 0-1 loss to France ending a fine run for one of the best third-placed teams.
This tracker exists for exactly this race. Third in their group, Paraguay finished as the 7th-best third-placed team of twelve, outside the top eight that advance.
How hard was Paraguay’s road at this World Cup?
Every team’s road through the tournament, on one chart. Each line shows
how hard each stage is. The base is the gap in FIFA world ranking between
the two sides; on top of that, current form (each team’s last three matches, and how
convincingly they were won against how strong an opponent) nudges the step: a hot opponent makes it
taller, a team’s own hot form makes its own steps shorter. Higher means a tougher road. In the group stage the opponents are known, so each match sits at a
fixed height; each knockout round shows the average difficulty across every opponent still left in that round. Paraguay’s road is highlighted, along with every team it played. Hover or tap any team to compare, or pick one from the legend.