Written by John Hodge
The men’s curling round robin for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics is almost over, meaning it’s time to find out which countries still have a chance at the podium.
The top four teams advance to the playoffs, with the first and fourth place teams facing each other in the semifinals, and the second and third place teams facing each other in the semifinals. Several teams have already taken one of these coveted spots, while a handful of others continue to search for the remaining spots.
With this in mind, let’s take a look at how the players stack up for the remaining two days of round-robin play. The field is divided into four different layers.
punched a hole in the ticket
Switzerland (7-0)
Since the start of the match at the Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, Yannick Schwaller’s rink from the Geneva curling club Troischênes has dominated.
Only two of the team’s seven wins have come by fewer than four points, and they have already defeated Great Britain, Canada and Sweden, who were the favorites for gold.
Switzerland leads the team with a team shooting percentage of 89.6, but Schwaller, No. 4 pitcher Benoit Schwartz-van Berkel and leadoff Pablo Lacha-Couchpin all rank first at their respective positions.
The world No. 2 team has shown their best performance this week, a sign that their medal hopes are high. The Swiss have not won a gold medal in men’s curling since the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics.
Remaining opponents: norway and italy
Canada (6-1)
Glencoe Club team in Calgary, Alta. They beat UK 9-5 on Tuesday night, punching their ticket to the playoffs.
Brad Jacobs and his rink started the match by scoring three points in the seventh end, which was packed with Bruce Moore’s double takeout attempt, and Jacobs ended up with a regular draw. Canada scored in the eighth and ninth ends as Mu’at struggled to hit, and Great Britain conceded points early.
The only blemish on the Canadians’ schedule so far is a 9-5 loss to Switzerland on Saturday afternoon. Switzerland had four deuces in the game and shot 92 percent compared to Canada’s 85 percent.
The Canadians have thrown 87.5 percent as a team through seven games, ranking second in the field. All four players are in the top four at their respective positions, with Jacobs coming in second with a skip rate of 87.3 percent.
Remaining opponents: italy and norway
in the hunt
Italy (4-3)
The hometown heroes significantly improved their chances of making the playoffs with an 8-5 win over the Americans on Tuesday night.
The Italians scored three points in the sixth end, prompting a deafening roar from the crowd. Joel Retornaz scored two points with a nose hit from a relatively narrow port and a 12-footer on the final stone of the eighth end. The veteran skip made no mistake with a nose hit in the 10th end to secure the victory.
Trentino Curling Cembla’s team has received overwhelming support from the local fans all week. With two remaining matches scheduled against top teams in the field, Italy will need all the support they can get as they aim to win the first Olympic medal in men’s curling history.
Remaining opponents: canada and switzerland
Norway (4-3)
Magnus Ramsfjell’s side gained huge momentum on Monday afternoon by defeating Great Britain with a score of 7-6. The Norwegians stole two in the eighth end after Bruce Muat missed one tap and sealed the match in the 10th end with a double takeout on Ramsfjell’s final rock.
The Norwegian team, based at Trondheim Curling Club, 500 kilometers north of Oslo, lost 7-4 to Sweden on Tuesday night. The team allowed two steals in the fourth end when Ramsviel went to right field on a tie, but allowed a steal in the sixth end when Ramsviel went to right field on a one-on-one tap.
Norway’s biggest challenge will be the same as playing against Italy, as they have yet to play against the top two teams. A landslide victory in these two matches would ensure the Norwegians a place in the playoffs, but losing one or more could put them in jeopardy.
Remaining opponents: switzerland and canada
America (4-4)
Casper and his rink, based at the Chaska Curling Center in Minnesota, looked poised to clinch a playoff spot before suffering two losses on Tuesday.
The first loss came at the hands of China when Casper piled on the draw until the end of the 8th end, giving his opponent 3 steals. After scoring 3 points in the 9th end, Xiaoming Xu made a double takeaway in the 10th end, allowing 3 more points and an 8-5 victory.
The U.S. shot just 78 percent against Italy on Tuesday night, but currently ranks tied for seventh with Norway with a shooting percentage of 82.4. Casper’s rink can still qualify for the playoffs, but Italy and Norway will need to stay on form in the final two games.
Remaining opponents: England
United Kingdom (4-4)
The world No. 1-ranked team officially collapsed in Milan-Cortina, suffering three consecutive losses to Switzerland, Norway and Canada. Bobby Ramey, the team’s No. 2 player, shot 65 percent in the loss to Canada, but skip Bruce Mouat wasn’t as good at 69 percent.
Muat’s rink, based at Gogar Park Curling Club in Edinburgh, Scotland, was expected to win gold in Italy. Depending on the results of the last two matches between Norway and Italy, there is still a chance for the team to qualify for the playoffs, but there is no denying that this team has disappointed this week.
Despite their recent struggles, UK ranks third with a team shooting percentage of 86.4 percent, with Grant Hardy ranking second of three at 89.0 percent.
Remaining opponents: united states of america
hanging by a thread
Germany (3-5)
Mark Maskatewicz’s rink had three steals in the final five ends of the game on Monday, taking a key step toward a playoff berth with a 7-3 victory over Sweden. Since then, the Germans have stumbled.
The team from Curling Club Füssen, located near the Austrian border, lost 9-7 to the previously winless Czech Republic on Tuesday morning. On Tuesday night, the team couldn’t bounce back, losing 8-4 against Switzerland in what was by no means a close game.
Benjamin Kupp has shot below 80 percent three times in his last four games after leading the way in shooting percentage through the first third of the round robin. German No. 2 Felix Messenzel ranks second at his position, pitching 87.0 percent.
Remaining opponents: China
China (2-5)
China had an accelerated schedule for the start of the Olympics, but they were unable to adapt and suffered five consecutive losses to Great Britain, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden, and Canada.
The team’s shot-making has taken a slight step back, with front-enders Jingtao Xu and Zhichao Li ranking ninth at their respective positions, while third-place Xueqing Fei and skip Xiaoming Xu rank fifth and sixth, respectively.
Despite a poor start and a guaranteed loss in the round-robin, back-to-back wins over Italy and the United States kept China’s slim playoff hopes alive. It will take a lot of help to get there, but Xu’s link can still advance to the semifinals.
Remaining opponents: czech and germany
play for pride
Sweden (2-6)
It hasn’t been a strong week for the defending gold medalist, who will be best remembered for Friday’s on-ice altercation with Canada.
Niklas Edin let his team down in Milan-Cortina, ranking 8th among skips by throwing 75.7 percent. They lost less than 70 percent against Italy, Great Britain, and the United States.
The Swedes gave their fans a boost with a 7-4 win over Norway on Tuesday, but they had no chance of making it to the playoffs. Despite the disappointing results in the men’s competition, second-place finisher Rasmus Warano will leave Italy with the gold medal he won alongside his sister Isabella in the mixed doubles.
Remaining opponents: czech
Czech (1-6)
Lukasz Klima’s rink entered Milan Cortina as the lowest team in the field, which was evident for most of the event. After a narrow loss to the United States in the first session, the team suffered five consecutive losses by three points or more before finally winning.
The victory came as the Czech Republic came from behind to defeat Germany on Tuesday morning. Klima’s rink scored three points in the seventh end and one point in the eighth to take its first lead of the game. Klima hit Germany’s stone into the hole with the final shot of the match, scoring three points and the Czech Republic eventually won 8-5.
This became the first male and female curling team to represent the Czech Republic at the Olympics. The unit from Prague’s Curling Club Zbraslav is relatively young and appears to be on the right track as they finished just one spot short of a playoff spot at the 2025 World Championship.
Remaining opponents: China and Sweden