Cape Verde are through to the World Cup 2026 Round of 32 after grinding out three draws to go unbeaten in Group H – not bad for their first try.
After famously holding the mighty Spain to a goalless draw, Cape Verde showed off their shooting boots in their 2-2 draw against Uruguay to save a point. And earlier today, Bubinha’s side sealed the deal with another goalless draw against Saudi Arabia.
The Blue Wave will join La Roja at the top of Group H, with the latter finishing as the No. 1 seed, as predicted by the pre-tournament World Cup 2026 odds. Luis de la Fuente’s men have won back-to-back matches against Saudi Arabia (4-0) and Uruguay (1-0) after dropping points against Cape Verde.
Check out the latest World Cup 2026 results, courtesy of today’s SBOTOP recap.
Cape Verde 0-0 Saudi Arabia
Cape Verde became the first debutant to advance from the group stage in the World Cup since Slovakia in 2010, but they had to weather the storm against Saudi Arabia at the NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.
Salem Al-Dawsari almost opened the scoring when he was left open inside the penalty area, but Wagner Pina blocked his close-range effort. The Saudi Arabia skipper’s attempt at 17 minutes and 12 seconds was the longest in a match before a shot was attempted at this year’s finals.
The Blue Wave replied shortly when Willy Semedo forced a save from Mohammed Al-Owais at the near post. Semedo also tried his luck from distance during the 42nd minute, but to no avail. Cape Verde played with more risk than usual, but Bubinha’s side struggled to manufacture clear-cut chances.
Mohammed Kano came close to giving Saudi Arabia the lead before halftime, but Vozinha caught his looping header.
During the restart, Jamiro Monteiro fired at Al-Owais before Kevin Pina’s 30-yard drive went wide right. Substitute Mohammed Abu Al-Shamat almost made an immediate impact, but Vozinha snatched his ball. On the other hand, Al-Owais stopped Laros Duarte in a 1v1 situation.
Vozinha, who became the third goalie to keep multiple World Cup clean sheets after turning 40, alongside Peter Shilton and Dino Zoff, became the hero again when he caught Abdullah Al-Hamddan’s tame strike late in the match, sparking wild celebrations after they realised they’re through to the knockouts.
Uruguay 0-1 Spain
Spain were determined to strike first to pile pressure on a desperate Uruguay side. However, they weren’t as clinical as they had hoped early on.
Luis de la Fuente’s men almost took the lead inside the first two minutes of the contest, as an errant pass from Rodrigo Bentancur gave them their first chance. However, after Lamine Yamal laid the ball to Mikel Oyarzabal, his attempted cross towards a cutting Mikel Merino was blocked by Sebastian Caceres.
From there, Spain couldn’t find their groove, with Juan Manuel Sanabria keeping Yamal quiet in the opening proceedings. Uruguay had two chances to score, but Darwin Nunez failed to connect with a backheel, and Bentancur’s long-range volley sailed over the crossbar in the 36th minute.
Spain finally drew first blood three minutes before halftime after a howler from goalkeeper Fernando Muslera. Marcos Llorente’s delivery picked out Alex Baena, who turned and rifled a powerful shot past the Uruguayan goalkeeper’s grasp and into the back of the net. To make matters worse for La Celeste, Manuel Ugarte left the pitch on a stretcher after the Manchester United midfielder sustained a knee injury.
Sergio Rochet subsequently replaced Muslera at halftime, marking the first time Uruguay made a goalie substitution in a World Cup match since subs were introduced at the tournament in 1970. However, Marcelo Bielsa’s men continued to struggle.
La Roja almost increased their advantage with chances from Dani Olmo and Ferran Torres, whose shots were too high. Uruguay’s misery was compounded in stoppage time when Agustin Canobbio received a straight red card for a challenge on Pau Cubarsi.
Much of the talk about Spain being this year’s favourites is due to their vaunted attack, but it’s their rearguard that has given them a solid foundation. They have yet to concede a goal in the World Cup, having not faced a single shot on target in the first half of their three group-stage matches this year, the first team to do so in the tournament.
In stark contrast, Uruguay’s backline did not fare well in what could have been Muslera’s final game for his country. Muslera became the first goalkeeper on record since 1966 to commit three errors leading to goals in a single World Cup campaign.
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