Eight teams — two from each pool — are still alive in their pursuit of a WBC title as the event takes on a tournament-style, single-elimination format. The quarterfinals begin with a two-game slate on Friday, with two more games to follow on Saturday.
Right now, two of those matchups are set. Team USA will take on Canada on Friday night (8 p.m. ET, FOX), while Italy battles Puerto Rico on Saturday (3 p.m. ET, FS1).
The other two quarterfinal matchups will be finalized later on Wednesday night, contingent on the result of the Pool D game between Venezuela and the Dominican Republic.
How they got here: Canada clinched the top spot in Pool A with a 7-2 win over Cuba on Wednesday, finishing pool play with a 3-1 record. That was tied with Puerto Rico for first place in Pool A, but Canada’s win over Puerto Rico on Tuesday gave the Canadians the head-to-head tiebreaker. Canada began pool play with a win over Colombia on Saturday before suffering a one-run loss to Panama on Sunday, its lone blemish in the tournament thus far.
The U.S. tore through pool play with three wins in as many games before a surprising loss to Italy on Tuesday. Team USA out-scored its first three opponents by a total of 20 runs, but faced potential elimination before Italy’s win over Mexico on Wednesday pushed the Americans through to the quarterfinals.
What’s at stake: This is the first time that Canada has qualified for the WBC quarterfinals, and the national team will look to keep this magical ride going with another monumental victory. On the other hand, the Americans are still alive in their quest for a third-consecutive championship game appearance. The winner of this game will advance to the semifinals to play the winner of Venezuela/Dominican Republic vs. Korea on Sunday.
Matchup history: It’s been 20 years since Canada’s lone win over the U.S. in a WBC contest, an 8-6 game that came as part of Pool B play back in the inaugural Classic in 2006. The U.S. beat Canada in pool play in each of the next four tournaments, with 2026 marking the first WBC in which the two North American neighbors fell into separate pools. Most recently, in 2023, the U.S. drubbed Canada 12-1 in a game that ended in seven innings because of the run rule.
How they got here: Puerto Rico finished as the runner-up in Pool A with a 3-1 record in pool play, losing out to Canada on a head-to-head tiebreaker. Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to the Canadians was Team Rubio’s only defeat, as Puerto Rico won its three other games in pool play, including a dramatic 10-inning victory over Panama in walk-off fashion.
Italy’s stunning 8-6 win over the U.S. highlighted a 4-0 record in Pool B play, booking Italy a trip to the quarterfinals for the second straight WBC. On Wednesday, Italy closed out pool play with a historic 9-1 win over Mexico, headlined by a three-homer game from first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino — the first three-homer game in Classic history.
What’s at stake: Puerto Rico will look to improve on its 2023 WBC run, which ended with a crushing loss to Mexico in the quarterfinals. Puerto Rico is hoping that this trip to the quarterfinals results in another trip to the title game, as it did in 2013 and 2017.
Meanwhile, this is the third time that Italy has advanced past pool play. It’s still looking to win a game in the quarterfinals. The winner of this quarterfinal showdown will advance to the semifinals to play the winner of Japan vs. Dominican Republic/Venezuela on Monday.
Matchup history: Puerto Rico and Italy faced off in WBC play in both 2013 and 2017, with Puerto Rico coming out on top both times. In the first matchup between the two countries, Puerto Rico’s 4-3 win in a second-round elimination contest set the stage for an improbable run to the championship game. The two were both part of Pool D in the 2017 Classic, with Puerto Rico beating Italy 9-3 en route to finishing in first place in pool play.