Ecuador upset Germany 2-1 in their final Group E match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on June 25, securing a place in the knockout stage for only the second time in their history [1, 2, 3, 4]. Germany took an early lead with a goal by Leroy Sané in the 2nd minute, but Ecuador equalized in the 9th minute through Nilson Angulo’s shot from the edge of the box [5, 6, 3, 4]. Jeremy Plata scored the winning goal for Ecuador in the 77th minute [4].
The win earned Ecuador 4 points in the group, with a zero goal difference, qualifying them as one of the best eight third-placed teams to advance to the round of 16 [3, 4]. Ecuador president Daniel Noboa declared June 26 a national holiday to celebrate, thanking "the players and the coach who, despite the criticism, the insults, and the tough moments they went through, managed to recover and give this immense joy to the entire country" [1]. Ecuador coach Gustavo Alfaro called it "the most important victory in Ecuador’s World Cup history," adding, "We came with dreams and now have achieved them. We will continue with humility and caution" [4].
Germany had already qualified as group winners before the match after finishing with a record of two wins and one loss, but coach Julian Nagelsmann criticized tactical mistakes after taking the early lead, calling it "tactical suicide" that made the match difficult [1, 2, 4]. Captain Joshua Kimmich warned the team must improve defensively, stating, "We cannot keep conceding one or two goals every game. We must reduce losing possession and improve defensively to win against any opponent" [4].
In the other Group E match played simultaneously, Ivory Coast defeated Curacao 2-0 [1, 2, 5, 6, 3, 4]. Forward Nicolas Pepé scored both goals, one early in the match and the other in the 64th minute [7, 8, 9, 4]. Pepé said, "I am proud to be the first from Ivory Coast to reach the knockout stage. The goals were thanks to the team; I just put my foot out to finish the plays" [7]. Ivory Coast finished second in Group E to advance to the World Cup knockout stage for the first time in their history, according to coach Emerse Fae, who added, "We are proud. We knew this match would be tough but we made it by finishing second in the group. We celebrate tonight but must look forward to the future" [7].
Curacao, a first-time World Cup participant with a population of about 150,000, finished bottom of Group E with one point [10, 4]. Ivory Coast will face the second-placed team from Group I, either France or Norway, in the round of 16 on July 1 in Dallas [7, 8, 9, 4].
