Cape Verde have booked their place as debutants at the 2026 World Cup after a 3-0 home victory over Eswatini secured top spot in their African qualifying group.
With a population of just under 525,000, the tiny Atlantic island nation will become the second-smallest country by population to play at a men’s World Cup finals, behind only Iceland, who qualified in 2018.
The Blue Sharks overcame a nervous first 45 minutes amid windy conditions in Praia, with three second-half goals ensuring they topped Group D ahead of Cameroon. The Indomitable Lions needed to beat Angola and hope Cape Verde slipped up, but could only draw their game 0-0 in Yaoundé and must now hope to earn a playoff spot.
Dailon Rocha Livramento struck from close range just three minutes after the break against winless opponents, before fellow forward Willy Semedo made it 2-0 six minutes later to spark rapturous celebrations. Late substitute Stopira added a third in stoppage time to rubber-stamp qualification for a team ranked 70th in the world.
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Shamrock Rovers centre-back Roberto ‘Pico’ Lopes started the match and kept a clean sheet, and the Dublin-born defender will be heading to the World Cup. – Guardian
