Cape Verde Reach Last 32 Without a Win After Goalless Houston Stalemate
Related teams:Cabo Verde, Saudi Arabia
Match statistics
View Group H fixtures →- Saud Abdulhamid 4'
- Wagner Pina 8'
- Hassan Al-Tambakti 33'
- Nawaf Boushal 82'
- Firas Al-Buraikan 90+3'
HT 0–0|Poss 54–46%|Shots 10–5|SOT 2–2
MOTM: Deroy Duarte
Fri, Jun 26, 2026 • 19:00 (Houston local)
Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia played out a 0–0 draw at Houston Stadium as the Blue Sharks secured a historic round-of-32 berth on their World Cup debut. Bubista's side finished with three draws from three group games and advanced as runners-up once Spain beat Uruguay in the simultaneous fixture in Guadalajara.
Cape Verde finished with 54% possession, 10 shots and two on target to Saudi Arabia's five and two in front of 68,278 fans. Nuno da Costa fired wide in front of an open goal in stoppage time after Garry Rodrigues had cut the ball back, while Deroy Duarte was named Superior Player of the Match for his screening role in midfield.
Cape Verde finish second in Group H and will face Argentina in the round of 32. Spain top the group on seven points. Saudi Arabia finish bottom on two points and are eliminated, while Uruguay also bow out after losing to Spain.