The African continent has shown that it is no pushover at the 2026 FIFA World Cup currently underway in Canada, the United States of America (USA), and Mexico.
Côte d’Ivoire and Morocco kept Africa’s hopes alive with impressive performances in their opening matches of the tournament.
Côte d’Ivoire stunned Ecuador in a match played in the early hours of Monday, June 15, securing a dramatic 1-0 victory thanks to a last-minute goal Amad Diallo. Just when the match appeared destined to end in a goalless draw, Diallo struck deep into the referee’s added time to hand the
Ivorians deserved victory and moved them into second place in Group E behind Germany.
In another match, reigning African champions Morocco earned a hard-fought 1-1 draw against fivr-time world champions Brazil in Group C.
Ismael Saibari opened the scoring in the 21st minute, but Morocco’s lead lasted only 10 minutes as Vinícius Júnior equalised for the South Americans.
Scotland currently leads Group C after edging Haiti 1-0 in the group’s other fixture.
The standout matches of the opening round came in Groups E and F, where fans witnessed a total of 14 goals in just two games.
At Houston Stadium in Texas, Germany produced a ruthless attacking display to thrash Curaçao 7-1 in a Group E encounter.
Nicknamed the Blue Wave, Curaçao — a Dutch Caribbean island located about 65 kilometres north of the Venezuelan coast — were making their historic FIFA World Cup debut.
However, they proved no match for Germany, who have won the World Cup four times.
In Group F, Sweden also enjoyed a goal-scoring feast, defeating Tunisia 5-1 in a six-goal thriller.
The victory moved Sweden to the top of Group F after the Netherlands and Japan had earlier played to an entertaining 2-2 draw.
Meanwhile, in Group D,
Australia secured a comfortable 2-0 victory over Turkey.
Two more opening-round matches are scheduled for Monday, June 15, in the United States, with two African nations facing tough challenges.
The first match will take place at Atlanta Stadium, where 2010 World Champions Spain will take on Cape Verde in a Group H clash.
Later in the evening, Belgium will face Egypt in a Group G encounter at Seattle Stadium, with kick-off scheduled for 9pm.
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