Cape Verde’s fairytale rolls on, Ousmane Dembele runs riot | OneFootball

As the 2026 FIFA World Cup edges closer to the knockout stage, the stakes are rising, the margins are shrinking and every result carries greater weight.

The tournament has lived up to its reputation for unpredictability, with Group C producing one of the most fascinating narratives in recent World Cup history.

Elsewhere, Belgium finally got off the mark in this summer’s tournament, beating New Zealand 5-1 in Vancouver to avoid another disaster after a dismal group-stage exit in Qatar.

Read on as we take a closer look at the key moments from another day of World Cup action.

Cape Verde’s dream comes true as Uruguay crash out

With a population of just under 500,000 and no previous World Cup experience, Cape Verde arrived in North America widely expected to bow out in the group stage.

Many had tipped Bubista’s team to finish bottom of Group C without a point, especially when factoring in the strength of Spain and Uruguay.

However, after avoiding defeat against all three teams in their group, they’ve become just the third African side to reach the knockout stage of a debut World Cup without losing.

A scoreless draw against Saudi Arabia at NRG Stadium ensured the fairytale continues, as Cape Verde booked a historic place in the round of 16 at Uruguay’s expense.

La Celeste have failed to go through the group stage of a World Cup in back-to-back appearances for the first time ever, as a 1-0 defeat to Spain condemned them to a disappointing third-place finish.

Meanwhile, Cape Verde’s remarkable journey now takes them into a mouth-watering round-of-32 meeting with reigning champions Argentina.

Dembele too hot to handle for second-string Norway

France put Norway to the sword in the final game of Group I, cruising to a dominant 4-1 victory at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on the back of Ousmane Dembele’s lightning-fast hat-trick.

Stale Solbakken’s decision to rotate ten players after securing knockout qualification with a game to spare raised a few eyebrows before last night’s kick-off, but the French didn’t care.

Dembele scored the second-fastest hat-trick in World Cup history.

He broke the deadlock in the seventh minute and needed only 25 minutes to complete his treble, becoming the third player to net three goals in one game at this summer’s tournament.

Despite failing to add to his four-goal tally in North America, France captain Kylian Mbappe set up his former Paris Saint-Germain teammate twice, maintaining his remarkable international form.

Desire Doue opened his World Cup account in the dying moments of the encounter to seal Les Bleus’ first perfect group-stage campaign since 1998, when they won the crown.

Manager Didier Deschamps was not in the dugout due to personal reasons, but the two-time world champions held up their end of the bargain and will now face Ivory Coast in the round of 32.

Thelo Aasgaard grabbed a consolation goal for Norway, while Jorgen Strand Larsen spurned a penalty early in the second half that could have breathed life back into the contest.

Senegal thrashed 10-man Iraq 5-0 at BMO Field in the other Group I fixture, recording the biggest-ever win by an African nation at a World Cup to significantly boost their chances of progressing as one of the best third-placed teams.

Redemption time in East Rutherford

England kick-started their World Cup journey with a convincing 4-2 win over back-to-back semi-finalists Croatia, reinforcing the nation’s hopes of finally ending their long wait for major international silverware.

However, Thomas Tuchel’s side quickly came back down to earth after being held to a disappointing goalless draw by Ghana in round two, despite boasting 79 percent possession and 19 shots on goal.

Eager to make amends for their underwhelming performance against the Black Stars, England will renew hostilities with Group L minnows Panama, whom they faced at the 2018 World Cup.

Panama scored their first-ever World Cup goal in that match. However, it did little to prevent a one-sided defeat, with the Three Lions posting their biggest triumph in competition history with a 6-1 win.

There’s little doubt that the 1966 world champions will be seeking another emphatic win as they bid to extend their six-game unbeaten World Cup run against CONCACAF opposition.

Panama are on the verge of another group-stage elimination, but they’ve shown tremendous fighting spirit at the tournament, suffering a pair of narrow 1-0 losses to Ghana and Croatia.

With the Canal Men drawing a blank in three of their five previous World Cup outings, another clean sheet could be on the cards for the European powerhouse.

Despite setting one foot in the round of 32, this feels like an ideal opportunity for England to restore a feel-good factor ahead of the knockout stage.

Top football stories

Football Today features

What to watch

Croatia bounced back from an opening-game defeat to England with a hard-earned victory over Panama. The 2018 World Cup finalists must now beat Ghana to secure a top-two finish in Group L.

Even though this will be the first-ever meeting between Croatia and Ghana, history strongly favours the Blazers, as they’ve won three of their four previous World Cup matches against African opposition.

Manager Zlatko Dalic will put the nation’s fate into the hands of seasoned veterans Luka Modric and Ivan Perisic, who could become the first Croatians to start 20 World Cup games.

Given the magnitude of the occasion, a cagey clash may be expected, with Ghana likely to look towards Manchester City star Antoine Semenyo to make the difference.