Three-Team Shootouts: the most extreme tiebreak that can decide the KWC Nations Brazil 2026

The Kings World Cup Nations Brazil 2026 leaves no room for interpretation. If three national teams finish level in the group stage, their fate is not decided in offices or through endless calculations. It is decided on the pitch. Face to face. One versus one.

That is where the Three-Team Shootouts comes into play: the official Kings League tiebreak system designed to resolve three-way ties at the KWC Nations. A format built so that football — and nothing else — determines who keeps dreaming and who is left behind.

What is the Three-Team Shootouts and when does it apply?

The Three-Team Shootouts is activated only when three national teams finish tied in the group standings after all group-stage matches have been played.

Its purpose is clear: to definitively rank the group positions at stake, which may range from 1st to 3rd place or from 2nd to 4th, depending on the competitive scenario (direct qualification to the Quarter-finals, a place in the Last Chance, or elimination).

To do so, the teams involved compete in a sequence of Shootouts until one of them reaches five converted Shootouts within the same rotation of rounds among the three teams.

From that point on:

• The other two teams keep the Shootouts they have already converted
• They continue facing each other
• The next team to reach five finishes as the second-best ranked
• The remaining team takes the worst position at stake (3rd or 4th)

Match order: constant rotation

The system is organized into rounds. In each round, every team takes one Shootout, always against a different opponent.

Round 1

• Team A vs. Team B
• Team B vs. Team C
• Team C vs. Team A

Round 2

• Team A vs. Team C
• Team B vs. Team A
• Team C vs. Team B

This pattern is repeated in the following rounds until all positions are fully defined. Everyone shoots the same. No one has an advantage. No one can hide.

What if two or three teams reach five at the same time?

This is where the format reaches its most intense moment: sudden death.

If two or all three teams reach five converted Shootouts in the same round, the final ranking is not decided automatically.

An extra sudden-death round is activated, played only by the teams involved.

The scenarios are clear:

• Two teams score and one misses
  • The team that misses drops behind
  • The two teams that scored play another round to decide their order
• One team scores and the other two miss
  • The scoring team takes the best available position
  • The other two play a round to decide the next spot
• All three score or all three miss
  • Another sudden-death round is played between the three teams

This process is repeated until the standings are fully and definitively decided.

And the best third-place team? How it is decided across groups

Once the groups are finalized, if multiple third-place teams are tied, the best third-place team among the five groups is determined according to the following criteria, in this order:

1. Most points in the group
2. Best goal difference
3. Most goals scored
4. Best disciplinary record (fewer red cards, then fewer yellow cards)
5. Results in Shootouts between the tied teams, if applicable

Every detail matters. Every action counts. Every Shootout can change a nation’s destiny.