FIFA World Cup 2026 :Canada/Mexico/United States: Discussion Thread

[nikola22]

Absolutely, this is by far the biggest surprise we've seen until now. Spain had a lot of ball possession but it was mainly sterile, things got more interesting once Lamine Yamal came in. Very disappointing result but, at the same time, this is only the first match, many times in the past we've seen big teams under performing during the first match, it's not a big deal at the end.

apparently Spain underestimated Cape Verde and thought they could easily get three points. Spain's xG in this match was 2.1. it doesn't seem like very much but it's enough to score at least one goal. it's also worth noting that this is the first goalless draw at this World Cup and I don't think anyone expected it to happen in the Spain vs. Cape Verde match. you're right that this is only the first match and everything is still to come but having three points from the first match could make next games less nerve-wracking.

[KTChampions]

I just don't know what to say man... How can Spain be that bad? You have the game in your control in fact but you are still so desperate to score!

Not even a single goal against a weak team? I respect Cape Verde's resistance but this is mostly because of Spain's being useless at finishing today.  



This result has just cost me a good amount of money...

I bet you were betting on a handicap, meaning even a minimal victory for Spain would be a loss for you? My condolences, bro.
When I think about how many bets were lost today (Total Over, both halves with a goal, etc.) i have goosebumps. This goalless draw worked like a nuclear bomb, I am sure that few people benefited from this game. I'm not sure, but it seems to me that many rushed to recoup their losses by betting on Belgium, since the odds on their victory dropped from 1.7 to 1.5 very quickly. But Egypt is leading after the first half  

[Adams0001]

One of the biggest shocking history in World Cup 2026 had been created by Cape Verde when they managed to force a draw against the hot favorite team Spain today. I believe a lot of gamblers might have lost huge amount of money betting on this match as most people would not even believe Cape Verde could ever survive against the mighty Spain before the start of the match. Vozinha a goalkeeper who are just playing for a small football club Chaves in the Liga Portugal 2 has indeed made fame for himself today as he was one of the most crucial player in the Cape Verde team to deny Spain a victory.

That is why we can’t be predicting game sometimes no one will believe that Cape Verde will get the opportunity to draw with Spain today. We still have some games that will shock us very soon because the team that I underestimated are doing very well and sharing point with the tough countries.

With the squad that Spain have they failed to get even a single goal against Cape Verde. Now that they have share the point both countries will do there best to get a victory and achieve three point so that they can get hope in qualifying in the group stages. Egypt are doing well against Belgium and leading by one goal difference. Let see how the match will end.

[knowngunman]

I don't even know where Cape Verde is, but this is probably the biggest surprise of the World Cup so far, and also the first scoreless match of the tournament. But Spain had 74% possession and didn't capitalize on it, much like in the Switzerland game.

Absolutely, this is by far the biggest surprise we've seen until now. Spain had a lot of ball possession but it was mainly sterile, things got more interesting once Lamine Yamal came in. Very disappointing result but, at the same time, this is only the first match, many times in the past we've seen big teams under performing during the first match, it's not a big deal at the end.

Cape Verde is an African country

If you ever watch them play, you would never underrate them. They are very small country but they normally make it tough for Africa giants like Nigeria, Egypt, South Africa and Cameron. Get some of their highlights from AFCON and friendlies to check their performance.

But to be sincere, I never saw this coming despite knowing that Cape is very stubborn. What I still don't understand is why Cape Verde defended nothing throughout the game. This is not a knockout game yet, so I don't know what they aim to achieve with this draw.

[MorganaX]

I just don't know what to say man... How can Spain be that bad? You have the game in your control in fact but you are still so desperate to score!

Not even a single goal against a weak team? I respect Cape Verde's resistance but this is mostly because of Spain's being useless at finishing today.  



This result has just cost me a good amount of money...

I bet you were betting on a handicap, meaning even a minimal victory for Spain would be a loss for you? My condolences, bro.
When I think about how many bets were lost today (Total Over, both halves with a goal, etc.) i have goosebumps. This goalless draw worked like a nuclear bomb, I am sure that few people benefited from this game. I'm not sure, but it seems to me that many rushed to recoup their losses by betting on Belgium, since the odds on their victory dropped from 1.7 to 1.5 very quickly. But Egypt is leading after the first half  

This type of games are the ones the betting company use as liquidation because it would be hard for anyone that played this to avoid any options that wouldn't have resulted to loss and that's why I really don't know if anyone benefited, I mean what can you play from this game that would have given a chance at winning, I think many people also ignored the game since the odd for space to win was so little and likewise the odds for goals to be scored too since everyone even the bookmakers taught it woul be a goalfest.

[JoyMarsha]

I don't even know where Cape Verde is, but this is probably the biggest surprise of the World Cup so far, and also the first scoreless match of the tournament. But Spain had 74% possession and didn't capitalize on it, much like in the Switzerland game.

Absolutely, this is by far the biggest surprise we've seen until now. Spain had a lot of ball possession but it was mainly sterile, things got more interesting once Lamine Yamal came in. Very disappointing result but, at the same time, this is only the first match, many times in the past we've seen big teams under performing during the first match, it's not a big deal at the end.

Not really a big deal as it stands because there are two group matches on the way for Spain to win and come up top as anticipated in Group H. However, the next Spain match is against Saudi Arabia, I don't think Saudi Arabia will in anywhere hold Spain to a draw, making their chance of qualification out of the group stage slim.

[bangjoe]

Why are Belgium so depressed? The match between Belgium and Egypt really made me feel distrustful of Belgium, where they always perform well usually but now have not scored a single goal, and instead temporarily lost to Egypt with a score of 0-1.
Hopefully the situation can be turned around, at least it can end with a draw from losing, now Belgium is trying to equalize the match and play a much better tempo, and hopefully this can make Belgium turn things around.

Anyone betting on this match?

[Noorooo]

What a match between Brazil and Morocco! Both teams showed their strength but Morocco surprised me a lot. The way they played was absolutely amazing. Last year was also incredible for them as they reached the semi finals. Many people said that their success was just luck but this time I think they can reach the semi-finals again. They have the potential and quality players to make it that far and maybe even reach the final. Brazil also played well and has many talented players. However the reason Morocco surprised me so much is that they do not have the same football history and tradition as Brazil. Thats why I am a little surprised by how strong and competitive they have become.

[Stavri]

These huge stadiums in this tournament really bring back that old world cup nostalgia. in our day, a world cup meant massive stadiums. but over the last four cups, we've mostly been stuck watching games in 30k to 40k seater stadiums...

these massive grounds were exactly what we needed.

[Son Of Blockchain (SOB)]

One of the biggest shocking history in World Cup 2026 had been created by Cape Verde when they managed to force a draw against the hot favorite team Spain today. I believe a lot of gamblers might have lost huge amount of money betting on this match as most people would not even believe Cape Verde could ever survive against the mighty Spain before the start of the match. Vozinha a goalkeeper who are just playing for a small football club Chaves in the Liga Portugal 2 has indeed made fame for himself today as he was one of the most crucial player in the Cape Verde team to deny Spain a victory.

I doubt anyone would've thought of a draw in the match before kickoff,  I believe many people would've picked Spain to beat Cape Verde or the option for multiple goals and so, draw is the least I expected. To those who are yet to realise, anything is possible in football that's why predicting and winning is based on luck, this match just proved it and yes many bettors would've lost their bet cause of it.
 We're yet to see more surprises from this tournament and also more talents that would be discovered, I never knew Cape Verdi had a genius goalkeeper, he's the major reason why surving against Spain was possible, i know several clubs would now send their scouts to look out for him, I hope he keep it up so he'll move from the small Portuguese club to have a better career in a more established club.

[MK-74]

The World Cup favorites Spain, were held to a 0–0 draw by Cape Verde. I just saw the result, and I'm genuinely surprised.
Spain couldn't even score a goal.
For Cape Verde, who are making their first-ever World Cup appearance, this is truly an incredible result.
Congratulations to them, it is a fantastic achievement.

Meanwhile, the match between Belgium and Egypt is currently tied 1–1, with around 30 minutes left to play. Let's see if there will be any more goals before the final whistle.

[Ruttoshi]

Why are Belgium so depressed? The match between Belgium and Egypt really made me feel distrustful of Belgium, where they always perform well usually but now have not scored a single goal, and instead temporarily lost to Egypt with a score of 0-1.
Hopefully the situation can be turned around, at least it can end with a draw from losing, now Belgium is trying to equalize the match and play a much better tempo, and hopefully this can make Belgium turn things around.

Anyone betting on this match?

Belgium is putting up a good performance in this second half and they have been the better side in this second half but both teams are going for goal as Egypt is using counter attack to see how they can double their lead.

What a striker, what a goal from Lukaku. He came from the bench not up to two minutes to get an equalizer and level the scoreline. Lukaku has put Belgium back into the game as the scoreline is 1-1.

[BIT-BENDER]

Why are Belgium so depressed? The match between Belgium and Egypt really made me feel distrustful of Belgium, where they always perform well usually but now have not scored a single goal, and instead temporarily lost to Egypt with a score of 0-1.
Hopefully the situation can be turned around, at least it can end with a draw from losing, now Belgium is trying to equalize the match and play a much better tempo, and hopefully this can make Belgium turn things around.

Anyone betting on this match?

Belgium is putting up a good performance in this second half and they have been the better side in this second half but both teams are going for goal as Egypt is using counter attack to see how they can double their lead.

What a striker, what a goal from Lukaku. He came from the bench not up to two minutes to get an equalizer and level the scoreline. Lukaku has put Belgium back into the game as the scoreline is 1-1.

Well the goal has been given as an own goal but great work from Lukaku, I think we may be seeing the second draw of the day in this tournament after Spain ended up drawing to Cabo Verde.
One thing about this tournament so far is European teams are finding it very different and difficult does this have something to do with the heat right now only two European teams has won and out of three African nations that has played one has lost that's South Africa, one won that's Cote d'Ivoire and one drew that Cabo Verde which is not bad for the African teams.

[icebar]

Belgium vs Egypt match is going on in a same manner. The performances of the two teams are often the same. Even though Egypt did not have much time to control the ball, they made good use of the opportunity they got in the 20th minute. However, since then, Belgium's attack has started to become more dangerous. They have made several attacks but have not yet found success. Belgium is keeping the ball for a long time and trying to organize the attack, but it is becoming very difficult for them to reach the goal by breaking through the defense and goalkeeper of the opponent. Belgium is performing relatively poorly due to time pressure. In such a situation, luck seems to be playing against them. However, the match is really attack-oriented, which looks very exciting.

[Silikiem]

I just don't know what to say man... How can Spain be that bad? You have the game in your control in fact but you are still so desperate to score!

Not even a single goal against a weak team? I respect Cape Verde's resistance but this is mostly because of Spain's being useless at finishing today.  



This result has just cost me a good amount of money...

I bet you were betting on a handicap, meaning even a minimal victory for Spain would be a loss for you? My condolences, bro.
When I think about how many bets were lost today (Total Over, both halves with a goal, etc.) i have goosebumps. This goalless draw worked like a nuclear bomb, I am sure that few people benefited from this game. I'm not sure, but it seems to me that many rushed to recoup their losses by betting on Belgium, since the odds on their victory dropped from 1.7 to 1.5 very quickly. But Egypt is leading after the first half  

This type of games are the ones the betting company use as liquidation because it would be hard for anyone that played this to avoid any options that wouldn't have resulted to loss and that's why I really don't know if anyone benefited, I mean what can you play from this game that would have given a chance at winning, I think many people also ignored the game since the odd for space to win was so little and likewise the odds for goals to be scored too since everyone even the bookmakers taught it woul be a goalfest.

Earlier before this game started I stated it clearly here that Cape Verde will be one of the surprise package in this World Cup, and so any of the top teams playing them shouldn’t underrate them. I knew Spain was already thinking that this match is a walk over game for them, no one would’ve expected a free scoring side Like the Spanish team will not be able to register at least one goal in this game. It’s certainly going to be an eye opener for the other remaining teams in the group not to underestimate Cape Verde, it would’ve been worst if Spain had lost this game.

[Ryu_Ar1]

I bet you were betting on a handicap, meaning even a minimal victory for Spain would be a loss for you? My condolences, bro.
When I think about how many bets were lost today (Total Over, both halves with a goal, etc.) i have goosebumps. This goalless draw worked like a nuclear bomb, I am sure that few people benefited from this game. I'm not sure, but it seems to me that many rushed to recoup their losses by betting on Belgium, since the odds on their victory dropped from 1.7 to 1.5 very quickly. But Egypt is leading after the first half  

Few people benefit in this match but the amount of their profit can be huge especially for those who are in the draw or some other bets.

The odds must be very high. Bad luck happened for me in this match because I put Spain into multi because they should have won, not only that in single bet I made a bet and everything managed to stress me out.

Fortunately there are Belgium and Egypt that make my losses can be slightly covered because BTTS yes & Under 3 is likely to be able to win so that it can slightly cover the loss of Spain betting.

[Taricoins]

Absolutely, this is by far the biggest surprise we've seen until now. Spain had a lot of ball possession but it was mainly sterile, things got more interesting once Lamine Yamal came in. Very disappointing result but, at the same time, this is only the first match, many times in the past we've seen big teams under performing during the first match, it's not a big deal at the end.

apparently Spain underestimated Cape Verde and thought they could easily get three points. Spain's xG in this match was 2.1. it doesn't seem like very much but it's enough to score at least one goal. it's also worth noting that this is the first goalless draw at this World Cup and I don't think anyone expected it to happen in the Spain vs. Cape Verde match. you're right that this is only the first match and everything is still to come but having three points from the first match could make next games less nerve-wracking.

I don't think Spain underestimated Cape Verde, I feel it's everyone apart from De la Fuente because he fielded the best possible lineup for this matchup, imagine some bookies giving the odds for Spain to win as low as 1.05 odds, it was shocking for everyone. Funny how this World Cup is looking exciting as smaller underestimated teams are actually putting up, Egypt are drawing against Belgium, Cape Verde draw against Spain and even Japan drawing against Netherlands and surprisingly scoring a header. It's a wild first round

[Nheer]

I don't even know where Cape Verde is, but this is probably the biggest surprise of the World Cup so far, and also the first scoreless match of the tournament. But Spain had 74% possession and didn't capitalize on it, much like in the Switzerland game.

Absolutely, this is by far the biggest surprise we've seen until now. Spain had a lot of ball possession but it was mainly sterile, things got more interesting once Lamine Yamal came in. Very disappointing result but, at the same time, this is only the first match, many times in the past we've seen big teams under performing during the first match, it's not a big deal at the end.

Cape Verde is an African country

If you ever watch them play, you would never underrate them. They are very small country but they normally make it tough for Africa giants like Nigeria, Egypt, South Africa and Cameron. Get some of their highlights from AFCON and friendlies to check their performance.

But to be sincere, I never saw this coming despite knowing that Cape is very stubborn. What I still don't understand is why Cape Verde defended nothing throughout the game. This is not a knockout game yet, so I don't know what they aim to achieve with this draw.

It's true they are usually a pain in the neck for many African teams even though they're not really strong, there is just something about them that surprises people everytime. They seem to have a pretty solid defensive structure but upfront they are nothing but that strength is what they are holding on to always. But then Spain can never be compared with any of these African teams so it's a surprise that Cape Verde held Spain to a goalless draw. No one expected that at all, instead everyone predicted Spain win or score as many goals as possible.

Spain is one of the favorites in this Tournament so it's a disappointment that they failed to even score a goal at least.
Some are complaining that the squad was not a good one but I think regardless of the squad Spain should be able to win Cape Verde.
It's a terrible day for gamblers because a lot us are losing our bets today.

[$crypto$]

What a striker, what a goal from Lukaku. He came from the bench not up to two minutes to get an equalizer and level the scoreline. Lukaku has put Belgium back into the game as the scoreline is 1-1.

Why wasn't Lukaku included as a starter? Coach Rudi Garcia is a bit different, I'm sure when Lukaku starts the scenario will be different in attack because he has the right timing when kicking the ball.

The game ended in a draw, I think it was a fair score for both sides, Egypt weren't considered weak as I saw some good play as they threatened the Belgian goal several times but Cortouis made some good saves.

[$weetne$$]

 I doubt anyone would've thought of a draw in the match before kickoff,  I believe many people would've picked Spain to beat Cape Verde or the option for multiple goals and so, draw is the least I expected. To those who are yet to realise, anything is possible in football that's why predicting and winning is based on luck, this match just proved it and yes many bettors would've lost their bet cause of it.
 We're yet to see more surprises from this tournament and also more talents that would be discovered, I never knew Cape Verdi had a genius goalkeeper, he's the major reason why surving against Spain was possible, i know several clubs would now send their scouts to look out for him, I hope he keep it up so he'll move from the small Portuguese club to have a better career in a more established club.

A draw was the last thing that would have ever crossed my mind in this game but then as the situation may have it, we are seeing a goalless draw. This indeed is another show of anything is possible and can happen in football, you can never be too sure or know it all with what to expect in football games. The keeper did an excellent job for them, he did not get affected by their not so strong defence, he had his own performance which gave them the advantage to finish goalless.