The fifth day of the 2026 World Cup group stage produced a result rarely seen in the tournament's history: all four matches ended level. The headline story came from Atlanta, where Cape Verde held pre-tournament favourites Spain to a goalless draw, delivering one of the biggest shocks of the competition so far.
Spain arrived as heavy favourites, with most observers expecting Luis de la Fuente's side to overpower their African opponents comfortably. Instead, Cape Verde produced a disciplined, courageous defensive display built around 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha, whose string of saves denied Spain time and again. De la Fuente turned to teenage sensation Lamine Yamal in the second half to inject fresh energy into the attack, but Cape Verde's back line refused to break, securing a famous point that will resonate well beyond Group H. teenpatti 20-20
Elsewhere, Belgium and Egypt shared the spoils in a lively 1-1 draw. Egypt struck first through a fierce effort from Emam Ashour, catching Belgium off guard, before Romelu Lukaku's persistent pressing forced Mohamed Hany into an unfortunate own goal to restore parity. Both goalkeepers, Thibaut Courtois and Mostafa Shoubir, were called into action repeatedly, while Kevin De Bruyne came agonisingly close to a winner when his shot cannoned off the post.
Saudi Arabia Push Uruguay to the Brink
Saudi Arabia once again showed how far Asian football has progressed, giving Uruguay a genuine scare. Abdulelah Alamri put the Saudis ahead with a sharp rebound finish, and goalkeeper Mohammed Alowais backed up the lead with a composed performance between the posts. Uruguay looked short of answers for long spells before Maxi Araujo finally found an equaliser in the 80th minute, sparing his side from an opening-day defeat.
Iran and New Zealand Share a Thriller
The day's most dramatic encounter came in the meeting between Iran and New Zealand, which finished 2-2. Elijah Just scored twice for the Oceania representatives, giving New Zealand the lead on two separate occasions, only for Iran to respond both times through Ramin Rezaeian and Mohammad Mohebbi. New Zealand's performance drew widespread praise on their return to the World Cup stage, a sign that the gap between traditional powers and emerging footballing nations continues to narrow.
Groups G and H Wide Open
With all eight teams across Group G (Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand) and Group H (Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Cape Verde) now level on one point, both sections are as tight as they could possibly be after the opening round. Statistically, this marks the first time since the 1958 World Cup that a single day of the tournament has produced four draws. It is a striking illustration of how competitive the modern international game has become, and it sets up a fascinating second round of fixtures in both groups.
