England vs. DR Congo buildup, Mexico triumph, injury updates: Latest World Cup news today

Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live World Cup 2026 news blog on Wednesday, July 1!

As the last 32 reaches its midway point, we will continue to bring you all of the latest breaking off-the-field news, including up-to-date injury reports from across the camps.

On top of that, we will be building up to England vs. DR Congo at 5pm, so make sure you do not miss a beat with our dedicated live blog below!

Latest World Cup news today: What's happening on July 1?

Not only are we at the halfway point in the World Cup last 32, we have hit the 50% mark for the tournament as a whole, and the last-16 bracket is filling up thick and fast.

Following Norway's 2-1 triumph over Ivory Coast on Tuesday evening, France joined the Scandinavian side in the next round with a straightforward 3-0 victory over Sweden, thanks to a Kylian Mbappe brace and Bradley Barcola strike.

The former's double in East Rutherford took him up to six goals for the 2026 competition - tied with Lionel Messi at the top of the scoring charts - and 18 overall, moving him clear of Miroslav Klose and taking him just one behind the Argentine's all-time record.

Barcola also did his chances of a big-money Premier League move no harm whatsoever in the last 32, where Mexico also overcame Ecuador 2-0 to earn a potential date with England.

The Three Lions seek to set up a tie with the co-hosts when they take on DR Congo in a 5pm kickoff UK time, four hours before Group G winners Belgium and Group I runners-up Senegal lock horns.

The winner of that contest will square off with either the USA or Bosnia-Herzegovina in the last 16, with that head-to-head taking place in the early hours of Thursday morning.