Spain Begins 2026 FIFA World Cup Journey Against Debutants Cape Verde

Atlanta. European champions Spain are set to make their appearance in the 2026 FIFA World Cup with high expectations from the entire nation.

European champions Spain will begin their World Cup campaign against Cape Verde at Atlanta Stadium in Georgia.

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Spain vs Cabo Verde FIFA World Cup 2026

Spain will start their Group 'H' campaign against Cape Verde, one of the four teams participating in the World Cup for the first time this year. Saudi Arabia and Uruguay are also in this group. The Spanish team, led by Luis de la Fuente, aims to send a strong message for the rest of the tournament by performing excellently in the opening match.

Spain, who defeated England 2-1 in the final of the last major tournament, Euro 2024, two years ago, are currently ranked second in the FIFA rankings. Spain qualified for this World Cup by winning 5 out of 6 matches in the qualifying round, emerging as group winners.

If Spain wins the World Cup title this time as European champions, they will become the fourth team to simultaneously hold both the World Cup and European Championship titles. Previously, only West Germany (Euro 1972, World Cup 1974), France (World Cup 1998, Euro 2000), and Spain itself (Euro 2008, World Cup 2010, Euro 2012) had achieved such success.

Coach De la Fuente has brought Spain back to their old form. His team is unbeaten in their last 31 competitive matches. Since their 2-0 defeat to Scotland in March 2023, Spain has won 25 matches, which is their longest unbeaten run in non-friendly matches.

In the qualifying round for this World Cup, Spain averaged 9.7 shots on target per 90 minutes, which is more than any other team.

Mikel Oyarzabal, who scored the winning goal for Spain in the Euro 2024 final, was one of the three players involved in 10 or more goals in the European qualifiers. Only Erling Haaland (18) and Memphis Depay (12) surpassed his 6 goals and 4 assists.

Oyarzabal has maintained his goal-scoring form even after Spain secured their place in the World Cup. He has scored 3 goals in 4 friendly matches for 2026. Additionally, Victor Muñoz, Ferran Torres, and Pedri have also performed excellently.

However, Spain's record in recent World Cups has not been very good. Spain has won only one match within 90 minutes in their last 6 World Cup games. In the group stage of the 2022 World Cup, Spain defeated Costa Rica 7-0.

Spain can take inspiration from that victory against Costa Rica, as they are playing against Cape Verde, who are making their World Cup debut today. Cape Verde qualified for the World Cup by finishing top of their group, ahead of African powerhouse Cameroon.

The only loss Cape Verde suffered in the qualifying round was a 4-1 defeat against Cameroon. However, among the African teams reaching the World Cup, the 'Blue Sharks', as Cape Verde is known, had the lowest goal difference (+8).

Cape Verde, making their debut in this World Cup along with Curaçao, Jordan, and Uzbekistan, has reached the knockout stage of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) twice under head coach Bubista.

In fact, Cape Verde has reached the knockout stage in 3 out of their total 4 AFCON participations. The team reached the quarterfinals in 2013 and 2023, with the latter success achieved under Bubista's leadership.

Winning 6 out of 7 matches in the qualifying round, Cape Verde enters this World Cup with high morale. In the two friendly matches before the tournament, they defeated both Serbia and Bermuda by the same scoreline of 3-0.

Forward Djaló Livramento scored 4 goals in the last 5 matches of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. Among these, he scored the opening goal in three matches, including the crucial 1-0 victory against Cameroon.

Cape Verde, captained by former winger Ryan Mendes of Lille and Nottingham Forest, is not a very familiar team to Spain. However, some players, including Villarreal center-back Logan Costa, are familiar among Spanish players.

Head-to-Head between Spain and Cape Verde

This will be the first meeting between Spain and Cape Verde as the African nation Cape Verde makes its debut on the biggest stage of world football.

Nigeria is the only African nation to have defeated Spain in the World Cup. Nigeria defeated Spain 3-2 in the group stage of 1998.

Spain's last two matches against African teams were against Morocco. Spain drew 2-2 in 2018 and was defeated 3-0 on penalties after a goalless draw in the 2022 quarterfinals.

Spain's 26-member squad

• Goalkeepers: Unai Simón (Athletic Bilbao), David Raya (Arsenal), Jon García (Barcelona).
• Defenders: Marcos Llorente (Atlético Madrid), Marc Pubill (Atlético Madrid), Pedro Porro (Tottenham), Aymeric Laporte (Athletic Bilbao), Eric García (Barcelona), Pau Cubarsí (Barcelona), Marc Cucurella (Chelsea), Alejandro Grimaldo (Bayer Leverkusen).
• Midfielders: Rodri (Manchester City), Martín Zubimendi (Arsenal), Mikel Merino (Arsenal), Pedri (Barcelona), Gavi (Barcelona), Fabián Ruiz (Paris Saint-Germain), Álex Baena (Atlético Madrid).
• Forwards: Jérémy Pino (Crystal Palace), Víctor Muñoz (Osasuna), Mikel Oyarzabal (Real Sociedad), Ferran Torres (Barcelona), Lamine Yamal (Barcelona), Dani Olmo (Barcelona), Nico Williams (Athletic Bilbao), Borja Iglesias (Celta Vigo).

Cape Verde's 26-member squad

• Goalkeepers: Vozinha (Chaves), Márcio Rosa (Montana), C.J. dos Santos (San Diego).
• Defenders: Stopira (Torreense), Roberto Lopes (Shamrock Rovers), João Paulo (FCSB), Diney (Al-Bataeh), Logan Costa (Villarreal), Steven Moreira (Columbus Crew), Wagner Pina (Trabzonspor), Sidney Lopes Cabral (Benfica), Kelvin Pires (SJK).
• Midfielders: Jamiro Monteiro (PEC Zwolle), Kevin Pina (Krasnodar), Deroy Duarte (Ludogorets), Telmo Arcanjo (Vitória Guimarães), Laros Duarte (Puskás Akadémia), Yanick Semedo (Farense).
• Forwards: Ryan Mendes (Iğdır), Garry Rodrigues (Apollon Limassol), Willy Semedo (Omonia), Jovane Cabral (Estrela Amadora), Gilson Tavares (Akron Tolyatti), Djaló Livramento (Casa Pia), Hélder Varela (Maccabi Tel Aviv), Nuno da Costa (Istanbul Başakşehir).