After a magical day of World Cup action, the Round of 16 kicks off

(CNN) — Note: This story first appeared in The Beautiful Game by CNN Sports, our daily newsletter on all things World Cup. To subscribe, click here.

Wow.

Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow. Wow! If you missed last night’s match between Argentina and Cape Verde, go right now and watch the entire thing on demand or, at the very least, watch the extended highlights because that was for the ages.

The game was Exhibit A of why soccer is the greatest sport in the world (in most people’s opinions around the world, including mine and Ben’s): storylines aplenty, superstars performing, heroes rising up, rollercoaster emotions, the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. Through it all, on a night facing the defending world champion with arguably the greatest player ever on its roster, the Blue Sharks showed the world that they belonged and made an entire continent proud by taking mighty Argentina down to the wire.

The Beautiful Game isn’t just the name of this newsletter, it’s what soccer is. Popularized by the great Pelé, who called it “Jogo Bonito,” last night’s events in Miami perfectly encapsulated what it’s all about and why the World Cup is so magical. But as we are all so eminently aware, time marches on, turning fairytale journeys into heartbreaking “almosts” and finally into legendary stories to be passed on to new generations.

While today will struggle to live up to what happened at Hard Rock Stadium (let us not forget that Egypt and Colombia also won their games yesterday), it marks the start of the Round of 16, where even more dreams will continue and we will witness even more drama.

Co-host Canada is bidding to make more history today as it faces Morocco in the first last-16 clash, but the African side is one of the dark horses for the competition after building on that magical World Cup run nearly four years ago in Qatar.

We’ll start there today.

The Main Thing: Morocco is out to prove that its 2022 fairytale run was no one-off

By CNN’s Aleks Klosok

What do you do when you’ve already made history? Answer: You look to make more of it.

In 2022, Morocco went where no team from Africa had ever gone before – becoming the first Arab and African nation to reach the semifinals of a World Cup.

If its heroic exploits in Qatar marked a soccer revolution that upended all expectations, 2026 in North America is about accelerated evolution – a step closer to achieving the ultimate prize in the game and a historic first for the continent: World Cup glory.

You only have to look at the nation’s protagonists of 2026 to sense the direction of travel.

2022 stalwarts Romain Saïss, Hakim Ziyech and coach Walid Regragui have exited stage left, giving way to a new generation of Atlas Lions.

Talismanic figures in captain Achraf Hakimi and goalkeeper Yassine Bounou remain, but it’s a team sprinkled with exciting, young world-class talent – many of whom have benefited from elite European academies with their parents having left North Africa.

Midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi of Lille and forward Ismael Saibari are already breakout stars at this tournament. Bouaddi is attracting interest from a host of elite European clubs and Saibari has joined German giant Bayern Munich from PSV Eindhoven.

And then there’s coach Mohamed Ouahbi – only appointed in March this year but who had been well established within the national team set-up – who has quickly made his stylistic mark.

Solidity has given way to fluidity. Possession is king. Risk taking is now the modus operandi.

Morocco has already gone toe-to-toe with Brazil in the group stages and triumphed over the Netherlands in the Round of 32, but bigger fish are there to be fried.

Dispatch co-host Canada in the Round of 16 today and a potential tantalizing shot at juggernaut France awaits. Overcome Didier Deschamps’ side on July 9 – a tall order at the moment given how good Les Bleus look – and heads will be spinning at the possibilities that could await.

And if progress doesn’t come now – with Morocco set to be one of the co-hosts for the next 2030 World Cup and a continued, concerted effort to invest in the country’s youth soccer programs in place – the mood music points to plenty of positive momentum, with a potential redrawing of the world soccer power map to come.

Canada vs. Morocco

When? 1 p.m. ET

Where? Houston Stadium (NRG Stadium), Houston, Texas, USA

By CNN’s Emile Nuh

It has already been a World Cup of firsts for co-host Canada.

A draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina in its opener earned the nation its first point at the tournament, a 6-0 thrashing of nine-man Qatar gave Les Rouges a first World Cup win and – despite a 2-1 loss to Group B champion Switzerland in its final group game – four points were enough to secure a runner-up spot that saw the co-host advance to the knockout rounds for the very first time.

Canada’s historic World Cup run continued into the round of 32, as Stephen Eustáquio’s stunning 92nd-minute strike from the edge of the box secured a last-gasp 1-0 victory over South Africa and a maiden round of 16 berth. The team is well and truly in unchartered territory and will enter this game feeling it has nothing to lose.

In contrast, having been a 2022 World Cup semifinalist, Morocco would have expected to be here.

The Atlas Lions impressed in their opening 1-1 draw against Brazil, and finished as Group C runner-up behind the five-time champion on goal difference after successive wins against Haiti and Scotland.

They looked to be on the brink of elimination against the Netherlands when Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo put the Oranje ahead with under 20 minutes remaining, but Issa Diop’s vital header in injury time kept Morocco alive, with the African nation going on to advance after a dramatic penalty shootout.

The Atlas Lions will undoubtedly be favored, but Canada will be boosted by the return of its captain and best player: Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies. A quarterfinal clash on Thursday against Paraguay or tournament favorite France in Foxborough’s Gillette Stadium awaits the winner.

Quote of the Day

The words of Cape Verde center-back Pico Lopes after his nation’s heroic effort against the grandest of soccer Goliaths, Argentina.

The Blue Sharks have won the hearts of every soccer fan around the world with their journey at the 2026 World Cup. An astounding draw against Spain (Note from Spaniard Patrick: I didn’t have a lot of fun while watching it…), a defiant tie against Uruguay and progression to the knockouts were already something that everyone around the planet was proud of, but the performance last night against the Albiceleste was like watching the movie, “300” – a small band of capable men against incredible odds. Much like the movie, they didn’t happen to pull it off, but what they did will go down in history.

Cape Verde manager Bubista summed it up best: “I feel proud to have competed against some of the best teams in the world. We are a small nation, but we have shown that we can face any team and go toe to toe. Being our first time in the World Cup, we feel extremely proud of what we have accomplished in this tournament.”

WATCH: Will a controversial red card unite a country?

It’s almost been 72 hours, but the sting of the red card shown to United States Men’s National Team (USMNT) attacking star Folarin Balogun hasn’t numbed a bit. Our CNN Sports colleague Don Riddell looked into how, despite the striker missing the match against Belgium, the controversial decision might inadvertently unite the USMNT and the country in its quest for World Cup glory.

Paraguay vs. France

When? 5 p.m. ET

Where? Philadelphia Stadium (Lincoln Financial Field), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

By CNN’s Emile Nuh

Paraguay has to be applauded for just getting to this point.

It entered the World Cup after a 16-year hiatus – last appearing at South Africa 2010 – but managed to progress from a tricky Group D that included co-host United States, a talented Turkey side and a resurgent Australia.

La Albirroja then pulled off a monumental upset to knock out four-time champion Germany in the Round of 32, as they won a thrilling penalty shootout after the teams played out a hard-fought 1-1 draw following 120+ minutes.

However, there is arguably no matchup currently more daunting than a game against this formidable France side.

Les Bleus have been the standout team at the World Cup and look to be on a mission to make amends for their heartbreaking defeat on penalties in the 2022 final.

The two-time champion breezed through Group I and then Sweden in the Round of 32, winning all of its games and notching up a staggering 13 goals in the tournament so far – the most of any side.

Kylian Mbappé’s six goals have him one behind Lionel Messi in the Golden Boot race, while Michael Olise’s five assists currently have him as the tournament’s leading playmaker.

Even if Paraguay manages to keep both quiet, it could open up space for Ousmane Dembélé to flourish – the current Ballon d’Or holder already has four goals and two assists to his name.

It’s safe to presume there will be a few goals in this one, with the winner advancing to play either co-host Canada or 2022 semifinalist Morocco on Thursday in Massachusetts.

The Final Whistle: The underdog World Cup providing evidence that a 48-team tournament isn’t so bad

After 23 days of action at this World Cup (we’ve still got 16 days left, don’t worry), it’s safe to say that one of the prevailing storylines has been the performance of the underdogs.

King amongst those has been Cape Verde, with its heroic, defiant, gritty trip to the knockouts nearly paying off as the Tubarões Azuis almost produced one of the greatest upsets in sports history against defending World Cup champion Argentina.

But there have been plenty of other small nations either providing shocks or bringing joy to the masses that make the World Cup the greatest spectacle in sports.

Praise be to Paraguay as it survived a 4-1 humbling at the hands of the USA before eking into the knockouts and stunning four-time World Cup champion Germany in the Round of 32. Buena suerte contra Francia (Good luck against France).

World No. 59 Qatar earned its first-ever World Cup point in the 94th minute of its match against Switzerland, a team which has just won a place in the Round of 16. The feat sparked scenes of jubilation in Doha, which our colleague Matias Grez was lucky enough to experience.

DR Congo drew with mighty Portugal and made it to the Round of 32, where Les Léopards nearly shocked England. World No. 82 Curaçao (who brought some of the best kits to the World Cup) drew with Ecuador, which finished second in South American qualifying and made it to the Round of 32. World Cup minnow Haiti took a 2-1 lead against a strong looking Morocco, scoring one of the goals of the tournament in the process and bringing joy to countless Haitian fans.

All of this to say that the proponents of the expanded World Cup – chief amongst those is FIFA itself – have been gifted a lot of evidence that their decision to bring 48 teams to North America was the right one.

While we may have seen some games that were really lopsided, I can assure you that it wasn’t anything that hadn’t been seen before (Spain beat Costa Rica 7-0 in the group stages of the last World Cup). Also, the joy that the competition has brought to 16 more countries, which wouldn’t have experienced it this time around, is something really in the decision’s favor.

Finally – and quite selfishly – it gives us a lot more games to watch, and I think that’s something we can all agree is a good thing.

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