Ecuador produced one of the great comebacks of the 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage, recovering from an early setback to beat already-qualified Germany 2-1 and seal a dramatic place in the Round of 32 as one of the tournament's best third-placed teams.
Having failed to score in their opening two matches, Ecuador knew only victory would realistically keep their World Cup dream alive. Germany struck after just two minutes through Leroy Sané, but the South Americans refused to panic.
Nilson Angulo restored parity nine minutes later before Gonzalo Plata completed the turnaround in the 77th minute, reacting quickest from a corner to spark wild celebrations among the Ecuador supporters in New Jersey.
The victory lifted Ecuador to four points in Group E, enough to guarantee qualification among the best eight third-placed teams while simultaneously denting Scotland's hopes of progressing.
Germany, despite the defeat, finished top of Group E with six points and also advanced to the knockout stage.
Meanwhile, the Ivory Coast celebrated a historic milestone after Nicolas Pépé scored twice in a comfortable 2-0 victory over Curaçao to book the Elephants' place in the World Cup knockout rounds for the first time.
Emerse Faé's side needed only a draw to progress, but took charge early, with Pépé opening the scoring inside seven minutes after excellent work from Yan Diomande. The former Arsenal forward completed his brace in the 65th minute after being released by Ibrahim Sangaré, securing second place in Group E with six points.
The result finally ended Ivory Coast's long-standing group-stage hoodoo after previous World Cup exits in 2006, 2010 and 2014, giving a new generation of Ivorian players a place in history.
For Curaçao, the defeat brought their maiden World Cup campaign to an end. The tournament debutants finished bottom of the group with one point, earned in their draw against Ecuador, but left with plenty of credit after competing admirably against more established nations.
Elsewhere, Japan and Sweden settled for a 1-1 draw in their final Group F encounter, a result that suited both sides.
Daizen Maeda gave Japan the lead before Anthony Elanga's superb solo effort earned Sweden a share of the spoils. The draw confirmed Japan as Group F runners-up and sent Sweden through as one of the tournament's best third-placed teams.
Japan will now face Brazil in the Round of 32, while group winners Netherlands, who defeated Tunisia 3-1, will take on Morocco.
Ellyes Skhiri of Tunisia slotted into his own net in the third minute to give the Netherlands that first goal of the match. Four minutes later, Van Dijk set Brian Brobbey to secure the second goal of the game before Tunisia responded with their lone goal of the game in the second half through Hazem Mastouri.
Jan Paul Van Hecke scored the third for the Netherlands to seal the contest in the 62nd minute after being set by Manchester City's midfielder Tijani Reijnders.
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