Switzerland ended its long wait for a World Cup knockout-stage victory by defeating Algeria 2-0 on Thursday night to book a place in the round of 16.
Breel Embolo and Dan Ndoye scored for the Swiss, who advanced to the next stage and will face the winner of Friday's match between Colombia and Ghana in Kansas City, Missouri. The round-of-16 match is scheduled for next Tuesday in Vancouver.
It was Switzerland's first victory in a World Cup knockout match since 1938 in France. The team also won a playoff match to reach the quarterfinals at the 1954 World Cup.
Although Switzerland reached the round of 16 at each of the previous three World Cups, when the tournament featured 32 teams, it failed to progress beyond that stage.
"Today we write one page of history, but we want more, and we work for more," Ndoye said. "I think we show that we are a strong team, and now we need to show it in the next game, and we hope again to the next game."
After the final whistle, the Swiss players celebrated by sitting on the pitch while their fans sang. As the atmosphere built, the players got up and danced together.
Algeria was knocked out after returning to the World Cup for the first time since 2014, when it reached the knockout stage before losing to eventual champion Germany.
Algeria started brightly and controlled the opening 10 minutes before Johan Manzambi broke down the right wing and set up Embolo for a simple finish. Embolo marked his 26th international goal with a knee-slide celebration.
"It was important to score at the right moment," Switzerland coach Murat Yakin said. "It was a lucky punch, but then after that, I think that we were dominating on the pitch, and I'm really happy with the overall performance, because we played against very strong individual players."
Switzerland doubled its lead less than a minute into the second half when Ndoye fired a powerful shot from the edge of the box that Algeria goalkeeper Luca Zidane could not keep out.
Fabian Rieder nearly added a third goal in the 81st minute but failed to convert from close range as the ball rolled across the face of goal.
"I think the second goal was decisive. In the first half, we played a good match. We had several opportunities, and unfortunately we did not score," Algeria coach Vladimir Petkovic said. "Unfortunately, after 12 minutes they scored the first goal, and we were not able to really cope with it. I have to congratulate them. They played a very good match."
FIFA President Gianni Infantino attended the match, his second of the day after earlier watching Spain face Austria in Inglewood, California.
Algeria qualified for the knockout stage as one of the third-placed teams after drawing 3-3 with Austria last Saturday in Kansas City. The result sent both teams through while eliminating Iran. Algeria captain Riyad Mahrez, 35, scored twice in that match.
"It was already a big success to be back at a competition like this after 12 years away, and making it through the group stage for only the second time in our history. I think that's also an excellent result," Petkovic said. "Of course, we wanted to achieve a little bit more, but we weren't able to do so."
Switzerland secured its place in the knockout stage by beating Canada 2-1 on Wednesday with goals from Rubén Vargas and Johan Manzambi, ending Canada's hopes of playing its first-ever World Cup knockout match on home soil.
The Swiss returned to Vancouver after spending a week at their training base in San Diego.
Manzambi, 20, has emerged as one of Switzerland's standout performers at the tournament, contributing two goals and two assists. After beginning the World Cup as a substitute, he earned a place in the starting lineup for Switzerland's last two matches.
Petkovic coached Switzerland from 2014 to 2021, guiding the team out of the group stage at the 2018 World Cup and leading it to the quarterfinals of the 2020 European Championship.