Cape Verde stuns Spain with a surprising 0-0 draw in the country’s World Cup debut - AP News

Cape Verde supporters celebrated the World Cup tie with Spain in Atlanta. But for Spain soccer fans, the draw is disappointing. (AP Video by Emilie Megnien) 2 of 6 |  Cabo Verde’s Dailon Livramento, left, and Cabo Verde’s Sidny Lopes Cabral celebrate after the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser) 3 of 6 |  Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha celebrates as holds the flag of his country during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) 4 of 6 |  Cape Verde players celebrate after the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser) 5 of 6 |  Cabo Verde’s Dailon Livramento, center, and Cabo Verde’s Sidny Lopes Cabral celebrate after the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser) 6 of 6 |  Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha (1) makes a save during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) Cape Verde supporters celebrated the World Cup tie with Spain in Atlanta. But for Spain soccer fans, the draw is disappointing. (AP Video by Emilie Megnien) Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 2 of 6 |  Cabo Verde’s Dailon Livramento, left, and Cabo Verde’s Sidny Lopes Cabral celebrate after the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser) Cabo Verde’s Dailon Livramento, left, and Cabo Verde’s Sidny Lopes Cabral celebrate after the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser) Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 3 of 6 |  Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha celebrates as holds the flag of his country during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha celebrates as holds the flag of his country during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 4 of 6 |  Cape Verde players celebrate after the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser) Cape Verde players celebrate after the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser) Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 5 of 6 |  Cabo Verde’s Dailon Livramento, center, and Cabo Verde’s Sidny Lopes Cabral celebrate after the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser) Cabo Verde’s Dailon Livramento, center, and Cabo Verde’s Sidny Lopes Cabral celebrate after the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser) Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 6 of 6 |  Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha (1) makes a save during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha (1) makes a save during the World Cup Group H soccer match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta, Monday, June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More By  JAMES ROBSON Updated : , ,   Leer en español  Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share (function () { const counter = document.getElementById("scrollToComments"); const HEADER_OFFSET = 120; function findCommentsModule() { return document.querySelector('.vf3-comments, #vf-conversations, '); } function maybeShowCounter() { if (findCommentsModule()) { counter.style.display = "inline-flex"; } else { counter.style.display = "none"; } } // Show only when Viafoura is present maybeShowCounter(); // Watch DOM for late loads const observer = new MutationObserver(maybeShowCounter); observer.observe(document.documentElement, { childList: true, subtree: true }); // Scroll action counter.addEventListener("click", function () { const el = findCommentsModule(); if (!el) return; const top = el.getBoundingClientRect().top + window.scrollY - HEADER_OFFSET; window.scrollTo({ top, behavior: "smooth" }); }); })(); .thin-line-button { display: inline-flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center; border: 1px solid #ccc; height: 30px; padding: 0 10px; cursor: pointer; border-radius: 5px; background: none; text-align: center; font-size: 1.4rem; font-weight: 700; white-space: nowrap; flex-shrink: 0; color: inherit; transition: none; /* Remove animation effect */ } .thin-line-button { color: #000; background: white; } /* Remove hover effect */ .thin-line-button:hover { border: 1px solid #ccc; } .comment-icon { width: 20px; height: 20px; min-width: 20px; min-height: 20px; flex: 0 0 20px; object-fit: contain; display: inline-block; } .Page-actions-commentCounter .embed-caption { display: none; } .vf-comments-count.vf-is-logged-in { margin-left: 4px; } ATLANTA (AP) — So much for a supersized World Cup diluting the quality of soccer’s biggest tournament. Tiny Cape Verde, making its debut at the World Cup, pulled off a stunner, holding heavily favored Spain scoreless in a 0-0 draw on Monday. “This means everything for our country,” Cape Verde coach Pedro Leitão Brito said. “We have always said that we wanted everybody to see our country, our team and we have shown organization and braveness and this is proof of what our country is about — resilience and to try to overcome hardships.” European champion Spain is one of the favorites to win the tournament and was -1200 to beat Cape Verde. But it could not find a way past a 40-year-old goalkeeper and a stubborn defense that had an answer to everything Spain’s superstars threw at them. Not even sensational teenager Lamine Yamal, who came in off the bench in the second half, could turn a game that ended with wild and emotional celebrations inside the stadium. “A dream” was how Cape Verde defender Steven Moreira described it. Veteran goalkeeper Vozinha broke down in tears after the final whistle following his impressive performance to keep Spain at bay. Paying homage to Socceroos great Tim Cahill has become a World Cup tradition for Australia 1 MIN READ Senegal takes on World Cup favorite France, and other Tuesday game highlights, in photos 1 MIN READ US forward Christian Pulisic practices on his own in calf injury rehab, team says he is ‘day to day’ 1 MIN READ He was the player of the match, pulling off a string of saves at the end of the first half to deny Ferran Torres, Pedri and Aymeric Laporte. The closest Spain came to finding a breakthrough was when Torres struck the bar shortly before halftime. “We should have won today’s match with everything that happened, with all the favorable situations we created, but we lacked freshness and a clinical edge,” said Spain coach Luis de la Fuente, who had warned before the match that Cape Verde could be one of the surprise teams of the World Cup. Spain could have been the victim of an even bigger upset when Diney Borges had a late chance to score, but saw his header saved by Spain keeper Unai Simon. Add Cape Verde to Cameroon, Senegal and Saudi Arabia on the list of teams that have pulled off shocking results against soccer’s giants in the World Cup. Cameroon beat defending champion Argentina in 1990 and Senegal beat defending champion France in 2002. Four years ago, Saudi Arabia triumphed against Lionel Messi’s Argentina, which went on to win the tournament in Qatar. Cape Verde didn’t win, but its performance rebuked some of the criticisms that the expansion of the World Cup from 32 teams to 48 would weaken the tournament. The group of islands off Africa’s West coast have about 4,000 square meters (about 2.5 miles) of landmass and approximately half a million inhabitants, making Cape Verde the third-smallest nation by population to qualify for the World Cup. And even against a loaded Spain roster, Cape Verde proved its worth on soccer’s biggest stage. Despite the majority of the 67,640 crowd inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium appearing to be Spain fans, it was the Cape Verde supporters who cheered loudest. They continued their celebrations after the final whistle, singing and dancing in the concourses. “All of us, we are happy because we work a lot to be here. We deserve to be here,” Vozinha said. The 2010 champion Spain is aiming to win the World Cup for a second time and is coming into the tournament after winning the Euros in 2024. But a disappointing start echoes its performances in recent World Cups. Spain has failed to advance beyond the round of 16 in each of the last three editions. “What doubts do you think my team is going to have? Zero doubts,” De la Fuente said. “We know how difficult this competition is. The idea we need to follow is what took us here and what made us European champions.” Spain plays Saudi Arabia on Sunday and Cape Verde faces Uruguay. James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/fifa-world-cup