David beat Goliath. A tie for Cape Verde against soccer powerhouse Spain is like a victory for the small African country.

David beat Goliath. A tie for Cape Verde against soccer powerhouse Spain is like a victory for the small African country.
ROBERTO SCHMIDT
World Cup 2026

Biggest surprise so far at the 2026 World Cup? Spain ties Cape Verde 0 - 0

Joseph McMahon
SEO journalist
Born in Chicago, Joe played varsity football and baseball in Bowling Green, Ohio for BGHS and later played lacrosse at BGSU. A year abroad in Spain changed everything. As destiny would have it he ended up living in Zaragoza, running his own business, teaching Journalism at a private university then working as a SEO journalist for Diario AS.
Update:

Spain dominated the match from the first minute until the last, but they couldn’t find a way to get the ball past Vozinha, the 40-year-old Cape Verde goalkeeper stopped everything the Spaniards sent him. Things got so desperate at the end of the match that Spain’s manager Luis de la Fuente took Yamine Lamal off the bench to try to get a goal against a solid Cape Verde defense.

Other upsets so far at the 2026 World Cup

There have been a few surprises these first five days. Upsets? Not really. Australia beating Turkey 2-0 is probably the best example of an upset. Nobody expected the Socceroos to beat Turkey, but the Australians played well and will face the USMNT on Friday,

Qatar drawing against Switzerland was another surprise, but the 1-1 tie can’t be considered an upset. Another impressive showing by an African team was Morocco against Brazil, which ended 1-1 and was a huge draw for Morocco and a shock for one of the favorites to win the 2026 World Cup.

Spain can still finish first in its group and has every possibility of winning its next two matches against Saudi Arabia and Uruguay. When Spain won the World Cup in 2010 in South Africa they lost their first match against Switzerland 1-0.

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