The 2018 FIFA World Cup is right around the corner. In just about three days, the greatest soccer players on the planet will take center stage in Russia. The tournament returns to Europe for the first time since it was held in Germany in 2006, and there's no shortage of storylines. Is this the year that Lionel Messi finally wins the only major trophy missing in his list of career achievements? It's been a 32-year drought for Argentina. Like Messi, who was not born the last time the Albiceleste lifted the World Cup trophy, the window may be closing for Cristiano Ronaldo, who will try to power Portugal, the 2016 Euro winners, to another title. What about Neymar, who is recovering from a broken foot? Will he be fit to lead a promising Brazil team to its sixth World Cup title?
The hosts will get the party underway on June 14 against Saudi Arabia, and on July 15 a new world champion will be crowned.
Fox and Telemundo have the TV rights for this edition of the World Cup, which means games will air on Fox, Fox Sports 1 in English and on Telemundo and NBC Universo in Spanish. You can stream all World Cup games in English or Spanish on fuboTV (Try for free).
Below you'll find the complete schedule, scores and TV listings for this summer's tournament:
When: June 14 through July 15
June 14 through July 15 English-speaking TV: Fox and Fox Sports 1
Fox and Fox Sports 1 Spanish-speaking TV: Telemundo and NBC Universo
Telemundo and NBC Universo Stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
fuboTV (Try for free) Follow: CBS Sports App
Thursday, June 14
Russia vs. Saudi Arabia 11 a.m. ET Moscow Fox
Friday, June 15
Egypt vs. Uruguay 8 a.m. ET Yekaterinburg FS1 Morocco vs. Iran 11 a.m. ET Saint Petersburg Fox Portugal vs. Spain 2 p.m. ET Sochi Fox
Saturday, June 16
France vs. Australia 6 a.m. ET Kazan FS1 Argentina vs. Iceland 10 a.m. ET Moscow Fox Peru vs. Denmark 12 p.m. ET Saransk FS1 Croatia vs. Nigeria 3 p.m. ET Kaliningrad FS1
Sunday, June 17
Costa Rica vs. Serbia 8 a.m. ET Samara Fox Germany vs. Mexico 11 a.m. ET Moscow FS1 Brazil vs. Switzerland 2 p.m. ET Rostov FS1
Monday, June 18
Sweden vs. South Korea 8 a.m. ET Nizhny Novgorod FS1 Belgium vs. Panama 11 a.m. ET Sochi FS1 Tunisia vs. England 2 p.m. ET Volgograd FS1
Tuesday, June 19
Poland vs. Senegal 8 a.m. ET Moscow FS1 Colombia vs. Japan 11 a.m. ET Saransk Fox Russia vs. Egypt 2 p.m. ET Saint Petersburg Fox
Wednesday, June 20
Portugal vs. Morocco 8 a.m. ET Moscow FS1 Uruguay vs. Saudi Arabia 11 a.m. ET Rostov Fox Iran vs. Spain 2 p.m. ET Kazan Fox
Thursday, June 21
France vs. Peru 8 a.m. ET Yekaterinburg FS1 Denmark vs. Australia 11 a.m. ET Samara Fox Argentina vs. Croatia 2 p.m. ET Nizhny Novgorod Fox
Friday, June 22
Brazil vs. Costa Rica 8 a.m. ET Saint Petersburg FS1 Nigeria vs. Iceland 11 a.m. ET Volgograd Fox Serbia vs. Switzerland 2 p.m. ET Kaliningrad Fox
Saturday, June 23
Belgium vs. Tunisia 8 a.m. ET Moscow Fox Germany vs. Sweden 11 a.m. ET Sochi Fox South Korea vs. Mexico 2 p.m. ET Rostov Fox
Sunday, June 24
England vs. Panama 8 a.m. ET Nizhny Novgorod FS1 Japan vs. Senegal 11 a.m. ET Yekaterinburg Fox Poland vs. Colombia 2 p.m. ET Kazan Fox
Monday, June 25
Saudi Arabia vs. Egypt 10 a.m. ET Volgograd Fox/FS1 Uruguay vs. Russia 10 a.m. ET Samara Fox/FS1 Iran vs. Portugal 2 p.m. ET Saransk Fox/FS1 Spain vs. Morocco 2 p.m. ET Kaliningrad Fox/FS1
Tuesday, June 26
Australia vs. Peru 10 a.m. ET Sochi Fox/FS1 Denmark vs. France 10 a.m. ET Moscow Fox/FS1 Iceland vs. Croatia 2 p.m. ET Rostov Fox/FS1 Nigeria vs. Argentina 2 p.m. ET Saint Petersburg Fox/FS1
Wednesday, June 27
South Korea vs. Germany 10 a.m. ET Kazan Fox/FS1 Mexico vs. Sweden 10 a.m. ET Yekaterinburg Fox/FS1 Switzerland vs. Costa Rica 2 p.m. ET Nizhny Novgorod Fox/FS1 Serbia vs. Brazil 2 p.m. ET Saint Petersburg Fox/FS1
Thursday, June 28
Japan vs. Poland 10 a.m. ET Volgograd Fox/FS1 Senegal vs. Colombia 10 a.m. ET Samara Fox/FS1 England vs. Belgium 2 p.m. ET Kaliningrad Fox/FS1 Panama vs. Tunisia 2 p.m. ET Saransk Fox/FS1
Saturday, June 30
Round of 16: Match 50: Group C winner vs. Group D runner-up 10 a.m. ET Kazan Fox/FS1 Round of 16: Match 49: Group A winner vs. Group B runner-up 2 p.m. ET Sochi Fox/FS1
Sunday, July 1
Round of 16: Match 51: Group B winner vs. Group A runner-up 10 a.m. ET Moscow Fox/FS1 Round of 16: Match 52: Group D winner vs. Group C runner-up 2 p.m. ET Nizhny Novgorod Fox/FS1
Monday, July 2
Round of 16: Match 53: Group E winner vs. Group F runner-up 10 a.m. ET Samara Fox/FS1 Round of 16: Match 54: Group G winner vs. Group H runner-up 2 p.m. ET Rostov Fox/FS1
Tuesday, July 3
Round of 16: Match 55 (Group F winner vs. Group E runner-up) 10 a.m. ET Saint Petersburg Fox/FS1 Round of 16: Match 56 (Group H winner vs. Group G runner-up) 2 p.m. ET Rostov Fox/FS1
Friday, July 6
Quarterfinal: Match 57 (Match 49 winner vs. Match 50 winner) 10 a.m. ET Nizhny Novgorod FS1 Quarterfinal: Match 58 (Match 53 winner vs. Match 54 winner) 2 p.m. ET Kazan FS1
Saturday, July 7
Quarterfinal: Match 60 (Match 55 winner vs. Match 66 winner) 10 a.m. ET Samara Fox Quarterfinal: Match 59 (Match 51 winner vs. Match 52 winner) 2 p.m. ET Sochi Fox
Tuesday, July 10
Semifinal: Match 61 (Match 57 winner vs. Match 58 winner) 2 p.m. ET Saint Petersburg Fox
Wednesday, July 11
Semifinal: Match 62 (Match 59 winner vs. Match 60 winner) 2 p.m. ET Moscow Fox
Saturday, July 14
Third-place match: Match 63 (Match 61 loser vs. Match 62 loser) 10 a.m. ET Saint Petersburg Fox
Sunday, July 15
Final: Match 64 (Match 61 winner vs. Match 62 winner) 11 a.m. ET Moscow Fox
For a complete calendar of World Cup matches in Spanish, visit our sister site, CNET.com.
The 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia starts Thursday, so it's time to start thinking about the future before the end of the group stage on June 28. Who has the easiest path to the knockout stage? Is it Lionel Messi and Argentina, with Iceland, Croatia and Nigeria in their group? What about Neymar and Brazil, paired with Serbia, Poland and Costa Rica? Nobody knows for sure, but that's why it is always fun to guess.
So who makes a deep run at the 2018 World Cup? And which nation lifts the trophy? Visit SportsLine now to get the complete optimal bracket for the World Cup, and see which favorites fail to advance past the quarterfinals, all from the model that's returned an 1800 percent profit on bookmakers' closing odds.
Below you'll find the standings and schedule broken down by each group:
Group A
GP W D L GD PTS Russia 0 0 0 0 0 0 Saudi Arabia 0 0 0 0 0 0 Egypt 0 0 0 0 0 0 Uruguay 0 0 0 0 0 0
Thursday, June 14: Russia vs. Saudi Arabia, 11 a.m. ET, Fox
Friday, June 15: Egypt vs. Uruguay, 8 a.m. ET, FS1
Tuesday, June 19: Russia vs. Egypt, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Wednesday, June 20: Uruguay vs. Saudi Arabia, 11 a.m. ET, Fox
Monday, June 25: Saudi Arabia vs. Egypt, 10 a.m. ET, FS1
Monday, June 25: Uruguay vs. Russia, 10 a.m. ET, Fox
Group B
GP W D L GD PTS Portugal 0 0 0 0 0 0 Spain 0 0 0 0 0 0 Morocco 0 0 0 0 0 0 Iran 0 0 0 0 0 0
Friday, June 15: Morocco vs. Iran, 11 a.m. ET, Fox
Friday, June 15: Portugal vs. Spain, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Wednesday, June 20: Portugal vs. Morocco, 8 a.m. ET, FS1
Wednesday, June 20: Iran vs. Spain, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Monday, June 25: Iran vs. Portugal, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Monday, June 25: Spain vs. Morocco, 2 p.m. ET, FS1
Group C
GP W D L GD PTS France 0 0 0 0 0 0 Australia 0 0 0 0 0 0 Peru 0 0 0 0 0 0 Denmark 0 0 0 0 0 0
Saturday, June 16: France vs. Australia, 6 a.m. ET, FS1
Saturday, June 16: Peru vs. Denmark, 12 p.m. ET, FS1
Thursday, June 21: Denmark vs. Australia, 8 a.m. ET, FS1
Thursday, June 21: France vs. Peru, 11 a.m. ET, Fox
Tuesday, June 26: Australia vs. Peru, 10 a.m. ET, FS1
Tuesday, June 26: Denmark vs. France, 10 a.m. ET, Fox
Group D
GP W D L GD PTS Argentina 0 0 0 0 0 0 Iceland 0 0 0 0 0 0 Croatia 0 0 0 0 0 0 Nigeria 0 0 0 0 0 0
Saturday, June 16: Argentina vs. Iceland, 9 a.m. ET, Fox
Saturday, June 16: Croatia vs. Nigeria, 3 p.m. ET, FS1
Thursday, June 21: Argentina vs. Croatia, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Friday, June 22: Nigeria vs. Iceland, 11 a.m. ET, Fox
Tuesday, June 26: Iceland vs. Croatia, 2 p.m. ET, FS1
Tuesday, June 26: Nigeria vs. Argentina, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Group E
GP W D L GD PTS Brazil 0 0 0 0 0 0 Switzerland 0 0 0 0 0 0 Costa Rica 0 0 0 0 0 0 Serbia 0 0 0 0 0 0
Sunday, June 17: Costa Rica vs. Serbia, 8 a.m. ET, Fox
Sunday, June 17: Brazil vs. Switzerland, 2 p.m. ET, FS1
Friday, June 22: Brazil vs. Costa Rica, 8 a.m. ET, FS1
Friday, June 22: Serbia vs. Switzerland, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Wednesday, June 27: Serbia vs. Brazil, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Wednesday, June 27: Switzerland vs. Costa Rica, 2 p.m. ET, FS1
Group F
GP W D L GD PTS Germany 0 0 0 0 0 0 Mexico 0 0 0 0 0 0 Sweden 0 0 0 0 0 0 South Korea 0 0 0 0 0 0
Sunday, June 17: Germany vs. Mexico, 11 a.m. ET, FS1
Monday, June 18: Sweden vs. South Korea, 8 a.m. ET, FS1
Saturday, June 23: Germany vs. Sweden, 11 a.m. ET, Fox
Saturday, June 23: South Korea vs. Mexico, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Wednesday, June 27: South Korea vs. Germany, 10 a.m. ET, FS1
Wednesday, June 27: Mexico vs. Sweden, 10 a.m. ET, Fox
Group G
GP W D L GD PTS Belgium 0 0 0 0 0 0 Panama 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tunisia 0 0 0 0 0 0 England 0 0 0 0 0 0
Monday, June 18: Belgium vs. Panama, 11 a.m. ET, FS1
Monday, June 18: Tunisia vs. England, 2 p.m. ET, FS1
Saturday, June 23: Belgium vs. Tunisia, 8 a.m. ET, Fox
Sunday, June 24: England vs. Panama, 8 a.m. ET, FS1
Thursday, June 28: England vs. Belgium, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Thursday, June 28: Panama vs. Tunisia, 2 p.m. ET, FS1
Group H
GP W D L GD PTS Poland 0 0 0 0 0 0 Senegal 0 0 0 0 0 0 Colombia 0 0 0 0 0 0 Japan 0 0 0 0 0 0
Tuesday, June 19: Poland vs. Senegal, 8 a.m. ET, FS1
Tuesday, June 19: Colombia vs. Japan, 11 a.m. ET, Fox
Sunday, June 24: Japan vs. Senegal, 11 a.m. ET, Fox
Sunday, June 24: Poland vs. Colombia, 2 p.m. ET, Fox
Thursday, June 28: Japan vs. Poland, 10 a.m. ET, FS1
Thursday, June 28: Senegal vs. Colombia, 10 a.m. ET, Fox
Round of 16
Saturday, June 30
Match 50: Group C winner vs. Group D runner-up 10 a.m. ET Kazan Fox Match 49: Group A winner vs. Group B runner-up 2 p.m. ET Sochi Fox
Sunday, July 1
Match 51: Group B winner vs. Group A runner-up 10 a.m. ET Moscow Fox Match 52: Group D winner vs. Group C runner-up 2 p.m. ET Nizhny Novgorod Fox
Monday, July 2
Match 53: Group E winner vs. Group F runner-up 10 a.m. ET Samara FS1 Match 54: Group G winner vs. Group H runner-up 2 p.m. ET Rostov Fox
Tuesday, July 3
Match 55: Group F winner vs. Group E runner-up 10 a.m. ET Saint Petersburg FS1 Match 56: Group H winner vs. Group G runner-up 2 p.m. ET Rostov Fox
Quarterfinals
Friday, July 6
Match 57: Match 49 winner vs. Match 50 winner 9 a.m. ET Nizhny Novgorod FS1 Match 58: Match 53 winner vs. Match 54 winner 1 p.m. ET Kazan FS1
Saturday, July 7
Match 60: Match 55 winner vs. Match 66 winner 9 a.m. ET Samara Fox Match 59: Match 51 winner vs. Match 52 winner 1 p.m. ET Sochi Fox
Semifinals
Tuesday, July 10
Match 61: Match 57 winner vs. Match 58 winner 1 p.m. ET Saint Petersburg Fox
Wednesday, July 11
Match 62: Match 59 winner vs. Match 60 winner 1 p.m. ET Moscow Fox
Third-place match
Saturday, July 14
Match 63: Match 61 loser vs. Match 62 loser 9 a.m. ET Saint Petersburg Fox
World Cup final
Sunday, July 15
Match 64: Match 61 winner vs. Match 62 winner 10 a.m. ET Moscow Fox
For complete World Cup standings in Spanish, visit our sister site, CNET.com.
The Russia World Cup 2018 is just hours away and the excitement is palpable. The teams are arriving, England have posed for their send-off picture and the first whistle is only days away.
Here's our guide on how to watch every second of the action. From this Thursday, we will be in for a feast of pretty much non-stop football.
Last December's draw put England in Group G with Belgium, Tunisia and Panama and the good news is that all three of the games have been scheduled at sociable times. You can hear the sighs of relief from office bosses all around the country.
The full World Cup 2018 fixture schedule is included below, with timings, venues and TV channels included.
All times BST. Local times are BST +2 apart from games played in Kaliningrad (+1), Samara (+3) and Ekaterinburg (+4).
Group stages
Thursday 14 June
Russia vs Saudi Arabia (Group A) - Moscow (Luzhniki) - 4pm - ITV
Friday 15 June
Egypt vs Uruguay (Group A) - Ekaterinburg - 1pm - BBC
Morocco vs Iran (Group B) - St Petersburg - 4pm - ITV
Portugal vs Spain (Group B) - Sochi - 7pm - BBC
Saturday 16 June
France vs Australia (Group C) - Kazan - 11am - BBC
With just one day to go, football fans all over the world are waiting with bated breath for the FIFA World Cup 2018 to get underway. While it’s safe to say the World Cup is the pinnacle for all footballers, not all matches are actually worth watching. At times, the quality on display fails to enthuse viewers. No offence to the likes of Russia and Saudi Arabia but that’s hardly the ideal game to kick-off the World Cup. The group stage matches are bound to throw some drab affairs but there are some eye-catching fixtures as well.Here we list out 7 group stages matches which you shouldn’t miss:In Mo Salah, Egypt have one of the most exciting players in the world. Salah, who suffered a late injury but has recovered for the World Cup, will be eager to make his mark on the biggest stage. And his first test will come against South American heavyweight Uruguay who too have their own superstars in Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez. It’s a straight shootout between Uruguay’s strikers and Mo Salah which is what makes this match one to watch out for.Quite possibly the tastiest matchup in the group stages. Both teams have stars all over the pitch including Cristiano Ronaldo, Andres Iniesta, among others. The winner of this match will make their life easier in qualifying for the next stage. No one wants to lose their first match of the World Cup and certainly not when the opponents are your Iberian rivals.While on paper this looks like an easy game for Germany but it has the potential to be a banana skin. Mexico certainly won’t be pushovers for a talented Germany squad as they have players who can trouble their opponents. Add to it that the World Cup has a history of defending champions not doing well in their opening matches, it will be interesting to see how Germany open their defence of the trophy.Another game to watch out for as Croatia are a team that can go far in the tournament. Argentina certainly won’t find it easy against the midfield maestros of Croatia – Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic – and will need to be on top of their game to emerge victorious. The Messi factor could be critical for Argentina – not just in this game though – and how the Argentine wizard performs might just influence the result of this match.Come to think of it, Germany have landed themselves in a really tough group. Apart from Mexico, they have South Korea and Sweden. While the Swedes will be without their talisman Zlatan Ibrahimovic, they still have certain pedigree and are known to cause an upset or two in the World Cup.The Serbs for sure aren’t there to be tourists and have some really experienced players in their squad. Nemanja Matic, Alexander Kolarov, Dusan Tadic add steel and trickery to the Serbian team and Brazil won’t be taking them lightly at all. It could be the perfect game for attack vs defence and the Serbs are known to have a mean defence while Brazil have the likes of Neymar, Gabriel Jesus and Philippe Coutinho.Is this the battle of perennial underachievers? Both teams – England more so – have often flattered to deceive but boast of household names all over the pitch. Belgium have talent scattered all over their squad while England might lack star names but boast of some quality players in Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Raheem Sterling. It has all the ingredients for a World Cup classic.
