South Africa vs. Canada Top Storylines, Odds, Live Stream for World Cup 2026

South Africa and Canada will contest the first knockout-round game of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Sunday in Los Angeles.

Canada, one of the three co-hosts, will not play on home soil after it failed to win Group B. The Group B winner was sent to Vancouver, but as the runner-up, Canada was dropped into a matchup at Sofi Stadium.

South Africa was one of the surprises of the group stage. The Bafana Bafana battled back from an opening defeat to Mexico to place second in Group A.

Sunday's game will be historic for either side. It will be the first time either South Africa or Canada wins a knockout-round game in men's World Cup history.

South Africa vs. Canada Info

Date: Sunday, June 28

Start Time: 3 p.m. ET

TV: Fox

Live Stream: Fox One or FoxSports.com

Odds (via FanDuel Sportsbook):

90-Minute Money Line: Canada (-145; bet $145 to win $100); South Africa (+460; bet $100 to win $460); Draw (+260)

To Advance to Next Round: Canada (-330), South Africa (+250)

Canada comes into Sunday's game as the favorite to advance to the round of 16.

Jesse Marsch's team didn't expect to be in this position, though, for a multitude of reasons.

First, Canada thought it had a good chance of winning Group B, getting a few extra days off and playing in Vancouver. Switzerland beat Canada for the top spot on Matchday 3.

Canada then thought it would face South Korea, who many people believed was the second-best team in Group A. South Africa upset South Korea on Matchday 3 to claim the runner-up spot in Group A and be paired with Canada in the round of 32.

The Canucks will be expected to hold the majority of the possession and create the bulk of the chances between Jonathan David and Cyle Larin.

David and Larin wreaked havoc on the Qatar defense on Matchday 2. Qatar and South Africa are only separated by six spots in the FIFA men's world rankings.

South Africa displayed much more defensive resolve in Group A compared to Qatar's 10-goal concession across three Group B games.

However, it does serve as a good comparison in terms of the talent mismatch and how it could be represented on the field at Sofi Stadium.

South Africa goalkeeper Ronwen Williams will be busy. He's going to have to turn in a Man of the Match performance to at least force extra time.

Chicago Fire center-back Mbekezeli Mbokazi needs to be massive at the back as well for the Group A runner-up.

Mbokazi is one of the more promising defenders in the world at 20. He's already on the fast track to Europe, but if he performs well in a knockout-round game, he could add to the case that he should be moved this summer.

Most of South Africa's attacking success will come on the counter attack. It had 30 shots in its final two group-stage contests with South Korea and Czechia, but only managed three shots versus Mexico.

A shot total somewhere in the middle of those numbers is the expectation for South Africa, but the Bafana Bafana do not have the level of attackers that Canada possesses.

Canada should put the game away through either David, Larin or both in 90 minutes.

The only real concern about Canada is how it will meet the moment. Canada looked a bit overwhelmed against an experienced Switzerland side on Matchday 3.

Canada can't play scared in any capacity against an underdog with nothing to lose.

The pressure is all on Canada to advance. The winner of Sunday's contest will undoubtedly be the underdog in the round of 16 against the Netherlands-Morocco winner.