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Cape Verde players celebrate after the 0-0 draw during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group H match against Saudi Arabia on June 26, 2026 in Houston, Texas.
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FIFA World Cup last 32 set as African teams make their mark
Jun 28, 2026
CAPE VERDE's first World Cup campaign has earned them a last-32 meeting with defending champions Argentina after the island nation became one of the biggest stories of the expanded 48-team tournament.
The third-smallest country ever to compete at the World Cup drew all three of their group-stage matches to qualify for the knockout stage. Their reward is a clash with Lionel Messi's Argentina on Friday in Miami Gardens, Florida.
Cape Verde's run is also part of a wider success story for African football. A record 10 African nations qualified for the expanded tournament and nine have reached the last 32, with only Tunisia exiting in the group stage.
Spain, England, Portugal and Brazil were all unable to beat African opposition during the group stage, while Morocco have spoken confidently about becoming the first African nation to win the World Cup.
"That shows the quality of African football," said Algerian star Riyad Mahrez.
"When you see nine out of 10 teams going through for the next round in the biggest tournament, that shows a lot."
Cape Verde's campaign has also provided support for FIFA's decision to expand the World Cup from 32 to 48 teams, despite criticism that the move was designed to generate record revenues for world football's governing body.
The smallest nation ever to reach the World Cup knockout stage, the archipelago of just over 500,000 people held Spain to a draw in their tournament debut.
Forty-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha became an internet sensation after his man-of-the-match performance against the European champions and now has 17 million Instagram followers.
Further draws against two-time champions Uruguay and 2034 World Cup hosts Saudi Arabia saw both sides eliminated at Cape Verde's expense.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo also reached the knockout stage for the first time in their second World Cup appearance. Their only previous appearance came as Zaire in 1974. DR Congo will play England on Wednesday in Atlanta.
Africa's allocation of World Cup places doubled from the previous tournament and, apart from Tunisia, who conceded 12 goals in three defeats, the continent's representatives have justified the increase.
"I have been working on the African continent for 15 years now. I see federations becoming better organised, coaches improving and players getting better - Africa keeps progressing," said DR Congo coach Sebastien Desabre.
"For me that won't stop because there is still room for growth. I think and hope that an African team will win the World Cup this year or in the coming years. To me, it is just a matter of time."
Morocco, the first African team to reach the World Cup semi-finals four years ago, have continued to impress.
They held Brazil to a 1-1 draw in their opening match and now face the Netherlands in one of the standout last-32 ties on Monday in Guadalupe, Mexico.
"We need to believe in this objective, this target (to win the World Cup)," said Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi.
"Morocco have entered a whole new dimension. The players and the fans believe in their team, and our opponents respect our team."
The knockout stage will feature 13 European teams, five South American teams and two Asian teams. The only North American teams to advance are co-hosts Mexico, the United States and Canada.
Only three teams won all three group-stage matches - Argentina, France and Mexico.
Uruguay, ranked No. 16 by FIFA before the tournament, were among the biggest teams to exit after drawing with Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia.
Iran also narrowly missed out. They drew all three group matches and were moments away from qualifying before Austria scored a late equaliser against Algeria, a result that moved Algeria into the eighth and final qualifying third-place spot and eliminated Team Melli.
The Caribbean island of Curacao also enjoyed a memorable moment by drawing 0-0 with Ecuador.
However, Curacao, Haiti and Panama all exited without a win as the three additional CONCACAF qualifiers from a competition without co-hosts United States, Mexico and Canada failed to advance.
Asia has not matched Africa's success despite also receiving more qualification places.
Only Japan and Australia reached the knockout stage. Jordan and Uzbekistan ended their World Cup debuts without a point, while Iraq conceded 12 goals after facing France, Senegal and Norway.
The group stage also produced goals from some of football's biggest names. Lionel Messi leads the Golden Boot race with six goals. France's Ousmane Dembele and Kylian Mbappe, Brazil's Vinicius Junior and Norway's Erling Haaland have four each, while 10 players, including England's Harry Kane, have scored three.
The expanded tournament has also produced several one-sided matches. There have been eight wins by margins of four goals during the group stage, one fewer than the combined total across the previous three World Cups.
The round of 32 begins with South Africa taking on Canada on Sunday.
Monday's fixtures are Brazil against Japan, Germany against Paraguay and the Netherlands against Morocco.
Tuesday will see Ivory Coast face Norway, France play Sweden and Mexico meet Ecuador.
On Wednesday, England take on DR Congo, Belgium play Senegal and the United States face Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Thursday's matches are Spain against Austria, Portugal against Croatia and Switzerland against Algeria.
Friday's fixtures are Australia against Egypt, Argentina against Cape Verde and Colombia against Ghana.
The round of 16 will be played from July 4 to July 7, followed by the quarter-finals from July 9 to July 11.
The first semi-final will take place on July 14 in Arlington and the second on July 15 in Atlanta.
The third-place play-off will be held in Miami Gardens on July 18 before the final in East Rutherford on July 19.
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