Cape Verde draws with Saudi Arabia to become Argentina's opponent in World Cup

Cape Verde, making its World Cup debut, drew 0-0 with Saudi Arabia to finish Group H in second place behind Spain and set up a round-of-32 match against defending champion Argentina.

Scraper SystemJune 27, 2026, 09:58 AM

Cape Verde draws with Saudi Arabia to become Argentina's opponent in World Cup

Cape Verde, making its World Cup debut, drew 0-0 with Saudi Arabia to secure a spot in the round of 32 and earn a match against defending champion Argentina. The result in Houston, combined with Spain's 1-0 victory over Uruguay on the same day, allowed the island nation, which entered the tournament ranked 67th, to finish Group H in second place behind Spain.

The archipelago nation of about 500,000 people remained unbeaten in all three group-stage matches. Cape Verde will face Argentina, the team that Lionel Messi plays for, on July 3 in Miami, adding a new chapter to its remarkable story.

Spain, which also drew 0-0 with Cape Verde in its first match, finished the group with 7 points. Cape Verde, making its debut, collected 3 points, while Uruguay and Saudi Arabia each had 2 points and were eliminated. Spain will face the runner-up of Group J, which will be either Algeria or Austria.

Defensive resilience on historic night

Cape Verde head coach Bubista changed half of his starting lineup for the match, with a historic opportunity at stake; some of the changes were forced. However, he kept 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha in goal. The experienced shot-stopper had single-handedly kept his team in the game in the historic draw against European champion Spain.

Cape Verde, located off the coast of West Africa, later earned a courageous 2-2 draw with two-time former champion Uruguay. That result made the chance of chasing a round-of-32 ticket against Saudi Arabia almost incredible. Saudi Arabia was also still in contention in the group.

Match flow and key moments

In the match played in Houston, Cape Verde held a slight advantage in the first half against Saudi Arabia, who had drawn 1-1 with Uruguay and then lost 4-0 to Spain. Saudi Arabia suffered a blow when experienced defender Hassan al-Tambakti was injured and carried off on a stretcher in the 33rd minute.

Towards the end of the first half, Spain taking the lead in Mexico was greeted with joy by Cape Verde fans in Houston. Willy Semedo's shot narrowly missed the Saudi Arabian post, but neither team managed to pose a serious threat in a tense first half. At that moment, Cape Verde was the side advancing to the next round in place of Uruguay.

Early in the second half, Jamiro Monteiro had a big chance from close range, but his shot was weak. Then Kevin Pina's long-range effort narrowly missed the target. As the final quarter approached, tension rose, but Saudi Arabia, despite needing to turn the game around, was surprisingly lacking in attacking productivity.

In the 75th minute, goalkeeper Mohammed al-Owais denied Laros Duarte's crucial strike, keeping Saudi Arabia in the match. A point was enough for Cape Verde, but they were the side more likely to score as the final minutes approached.

Cape Verde draws with Saudi Arabia to become Argentina's opponent in World Cup

Cape Verde, making its World Cup debut, drew 0-0 with Saudi Arabia to finish Group H in second place behind Spain and set up a round-of-32 match against defending champion Argentina.