FIFA WORLD CUP 2026

England 4–2 Croatia: World Cup 2026 Group L Match Report

Wednesday, June 17, 2026 • 3 min read • By FootUps Editorial
Group Stage · Group L · Matchday 1
England
4 – 2
Croatia
FINAL

England claimed all three points by a comfortable two-goal margin, a result that was expected given the pre-match ELO ratings. England entered this fixture as favorites.

Pre-match win probabilities based on ELO ratings gave England a 68% chance of winning versus 32% for Croatia.

Today's Matches & Predictions

Goalscorers

ELO Rating Impact

This result has updated both teams' ELO ratings, which feed directly into the win probability model for future matches.

Team Pre-Match Change New ELO Global Rank Win %
England 2070 ±0 2070 #3 2.7%
Croatia 1940 ±0 1940 #10 2.4%

ELO ratings updated using FIFA K-factor 60 with goal-difference multiplier. Changes reflect match result vs pre-match expectation.

Group L Standings

# Team P W D L GD Pts
1 England 1 1 0 0 +2 3
2 Ghana 0 0 0 0 +0 0
2 Panama 0 0 0 0 +0 0
4 Croatia 1 0 0 1 -2 0

✓ = currently qualifying for Round of 32

Next Up

Follow all remaining matches live with real-time ELO rankings on FootUps.