Switzerland defeated Colombia in a penalty shootout in the World Cup round of 16 and will now face Argentina in the quarterfinals.
Published July 7, 2026
After a scoreless draw, Switzerland defeated Colombia 4-3 in a penalty shootout, advancing to the quarterfinals against defending champion Argentina.
The teams canceled each other out on Tuesday in the final round of 16, the last match to be played outside the United States in the 2026 tournament.
Recommended stories
list of 4 itemsend of list
Both teams missed their spot-kicks, but Swiss goalkeeper Gregor Kobel made a great save from Cucho Hernandez’s shot, and Ruben Vargas converted the decisive penalty.
Colombia were once again backed by thousands of enthusiastic fans in Vancouver, but Switzerland also proved difficult to overcome, conceding just one goal in the four games leading up to Tuesday’s game.
The first notable action occurred in the 21st minute. It happened when Cobel was forced into a flying save to deny Gustavo Puerta’s curling shot from the edge of the penalty area.
The Swiss stepped up a gear immediately after the first rehydration break, with Camilo Vargas beating Fabian Rieder’s shot and denying Dan Ndoye.
However, the game remained scoreless until halftime, with the two teams struggling to find some inspiration after playing well.
Switzerland started the second half with the upper hand, but Colombia also had chances, but Luis Suarez wasted the shot.
Both managers made multiple changes in the second half, but Colombia’s star winger Luis Diaz remained silent and once again struggled to create a meaningful lead.
Ndoye fired a shot across goal in stoppage time, but no one could convert and the game ended in regular time 0-0.
The game got lively, albeit late, in the first period of overtime.
In the ninth minute, Colombian defender John Lucumi headed the ball against the bar from a corner, and as the South Americans increased the tempo, Korbel denied Hamington Campas’ fierce shot.
At the other end, Vargas dove to his left and beat substitute Zeki Amdouni’s shot.
With five minutes left on the clock, Campas missed a glorious chance to win.
Nothing could separate the teams and the match went to penalties.
Switzerland will face Argentina in Kansas City on Saturday after Lionel Messi’s side defeated Egypt 3-2 in Atlanta.
The last time Switzerland reached the quarter-finals was in 1954 at the World Cup.
