Belgium and USA advance; the last-16 draw hands Richard a Henry showdown

Two more went through. Pete’s Belgium edged Henry’s Senegal 3-2 in a five-goal thriller - Pete up to second on 56, Senegal out - and this morning Ella’s USA beat Nichola’s Bosnia 2-0 to reach the last 16, lifting Ella to 47.

The bigger news is the shape of the Round of 16 draw, and it is a beauty: Richard’s Mexico meets Henry’s England - first against third, the tie of the round. Elsewhere Richard’s Paraguay draws Nichola’s France, Emily’s Brazil faces Pete’s Norway, Henry’s Canada meets Tega’s Morocco, and Ella’s USA runs into Pete’s Belgium.

The table: Richard 71, then Pete 56, Henry 53, Emily 50, Sophie 48, Ella 47, Nichola 42 and Tega 39. The round’s last two R32 ties are today: Sophie’s Portugal v her own Croatia - one of her own guaranteed through - and Ella’s Spain v Tega’s Austria.

Odds watch

The last-16 draw did what Richard’s rivals hadn’t managed: it dented him. Both his R16 teams drew contenders - Mexico into Henry’s England, Paraguay into Nichola’s France - so his price slipped to ~4.3 (23%, -5.3pp) even as he sits eighteen clear on the table. Henry moved the other way (+3.7pp to ~7.8), through and handed a winnable draw. Up top the title board stays a tight three-way - France ~20.6%, Argentina ~19.6%, Spain ~17.1% - close enough that first place keeps trading hands run to run. The quiet risers are Tega (~17) and Sophie, each with a team into the last 16 from a kind Morocco draw and today’s all-Sophie tie.