A crucial encounter in Group A as Czechia will hope to make it to the FIFA World Cup 2026 round of 32 with a win over hosts Mexico on Wednesday.
Mexico have already made it to the next knockout round after two wins in two. Czechia would've been in a stronger position if they had not conceded a late goal in their previous game against South Africa with the match ending 1-1. They had earlier lost their opening match against South Korea 2-1.
Here's everything you need to know about the match.
How to watch:
The match will be available on BBC One in the UK, Fox Sports in the U.S., Zee5 in India and SBS in Australia. You can also follow ESPN's live updates.
Key Details:
Date, kick-off time:
U.S. ET: 9 p.m. Wednesday, June 24
UK BST: 2 a.m. Thursday, June 25
India IST: 6:30 a.m. Thursday, June 25
Australia AEST: 11 a.m. Thursday, June 25
Venue: Mexico City Stadium
Referee: Yael Falcon Perez
Team News
Czechia - Predicted XI
GK: Matej Kovár
CB: Ladislav Krejcí | CB: Robin Hranác | CB: Stepán Chaloupek
LM: Jaroslav Zelený | CM: Alexandr Sojka | CM: Tomás Soucek | RM: Vladimír Coufal
CAM: Pavel Sulc
ST: Adam Hlozek | ST: Patrik Schick
Mexico - Predicted XI:
Predicted XI:
GK: Raúl Rangel
LB: Jesús Gallardo; CB: Johan Vásquez; CB: Edson Álvarez; RB: Israel Reyes
CDM: Érik Lira
LW: Julián Quiñones; CAM: Álvaro Fidalgo; CAM: Roberto Alvarado; RW: Brian Gutiérrez
ST: Raul Jiménez
Talking Points
A must-win game for Czechia
The equation is simple for Miroslav Koubek's team -- they need a win to ensure they stay in contention for the next round. Mexico have clinched the Group A with two straight wins, and they will finish on top no matter the result of this game. Czechia, at the moment, are third with just one point behind South Korea who have three points.
For Czechia, and for that matter even South Africa who will face South Korea at the same time, a loss would most or less end their hopes for the next round as they will be stuck with just a point. A win will take them to four points which will put them in contention of finishing second or among the best ranked third place teams. If Czechia beat Mexico and South Africa does the same against South Korea, then both teams will make it to the next round while South Korea will miss out.
A draw against Mexico will also it difficult for Czechia as that would see them finish the group stage with just two points, which is likely to be not enough to be among the best-ranked third place teams.
Mexico might heavily rotate in their last group game so Czechia will look to take the advantage against a side not in full strength. However, the team will need to add more urgency into their game and push to score more goals. In their previous game against South Africa, Czechia took an early lead but failed to capitalise on it as they were passive throughout the match. They eventually conceded a penalty late in the game and ended up drawing the game 1-1.