Soccer-How many points are needed to advance to the World Cup knockouts?

The expanded 48-team World Cup format will see the top two teams from each group and the best eight third-placed finishers advance to the last 32.

The expanded field of 48 teams at this year’s World Cup means ​that not only do the top two teams advance from ​each of the 12 first-round groups but also the ‌best ​eight third-placed finishers.

As the weekend’s action across Canada, Mexico and the United States begins to give the group standings some shape, so the calculators will come out to start determining what the minimum requirement will ‌be to advance to the last 32. It is only the second time a tournament run by world football’s governing body FIFA has featured as many teams, so past experience is limited to last November’s U-17 World Cup in Qatar.

But it is far from the first time that third-placed finishers in the group ‌phase of a tournament have had an opportunity to advance. This stretches back to the 1986 World Cup finals in Mexico, which was the first ‌where the four best third-placed finishers from the six groups of four teams progressed to the knockout rounds along with the top two teams in each.

That was still in an era when two points were awarded for a win, rather than three, but a survey of 38 FIFA tournaments and continental championships where there has been a 24-team field, and ⁠therefore four places ​available for the best third-placed finishers ⁠to advance, gives some indication of what will be needed points-wise to advance to the knockout stages. HOW THE POINTS TALLY UP

(Writing by Mark Gleeson ​in Atlanta; Editing by Toby Davis)

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