Cape Verde qualifies for the FIFA World Cup for the first time in history
The win also secured Cape Verde the top spot in Group D of African qualifying, finishing four points ahead of Cameroon, who were held to a 0-0 draw at home against Angola on Monday.
Cape Verde has made football history, qualifying for the FIFA World Cup for the first time ever after a commanding 3–0 victory over Eswatini at the National Stadium in Praia on Monday night.
The win saw the island nation secure the top spot in Group D of the African qualifiers, finishing four points ahead of Cameroon to seal their place at the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
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It’s a momentous achievement for the Blue Sharks, who become the second-smallest nation ever to reach the men’s World Cup, after Iceland in 2018.
The match itself mirrored Cape Verde’s rise — patient, determined, and emphatic. After a tense first half in which several chances went begging, Dailon Livramento broke the deadlock in the 48th minute before Willy Semedo doubled the lead six minutes later.
Veteran left-back Lanique dos Santos Tavares, popularly known as Stopira, sealed the victory in the 91st minute, scoring just four minutes after coming on as a substitute.
The result crowned Cape Verde’s impressive qualifying campaign, in which they lost only once — a 4–1 defeat to Cameroon. A thrilling 3–3 draw with Libya in their penultimate match briefly threatened to derail their hopes, but Cameroon’s dropped points against Libya, Eswatini, and Angola allowed the islanders to stay ahead and make history.
Cape Verde joins first-time qualifiers Uzbekistan and Jordan, alongside co-hosts the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and 15 other nations already confirmed for the 2026 finals.
The island nation has also built an impressive record on the continental stage, appearing in four of the last seven Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournaments and reaching the quarter-finals in 2013 and 2023.
The 2026 World Cup will feature a new 48-team format, replacing the traditional 32. Instead of eight groups of four, there will be 12 groups of four teams each. The top two teams from each group, along with the eight best third-placed teams, will advance to the round of 32.
"Adopting 12 groups of four was chosen over the option of 16 groups of three teams, based on a thorough review that took into consideration a number of factors, including team and fan experience, player welfare and sporting integrity," the FIFA website reads.
"The new format means the team that triumphs in the final on 19 July will have played eight games to be crowned champions, one more than at Qatar 2022, after the inclusion of an additional round of 32 knockout phase."
For Cape Verde, though, Monday’s win is about more than numbers or new formats. It marks the beginning of a new chapter — one where the tiny Atlantic island nation takes its place among football’s elite on the world’s biggest stage.
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