MOTD Live: FIFA World Cup 2026
Ivory Coast v Ecuador
Ivory Coast v Ecuador (Kick-off 12.00am). Mark Chapman presents coverage of the Group E match at Philadelphia Stadium in the USA. This will be the first ever meeting between these nations, and both will be aiming to get their campaigns off to a winning start having performed admirably in qualifying for this tournament. Les Éléphants finished atop their group in the CAF region after finishing with a record of eight wins and two draws from their 10 matches, while La Tricolor finished second in the highly competitive CONMEBOL region, trailing only Argentina, even after they were deducted three points related to an infringement from a previous World Cup qualification cycle. Neither of these nations has a stellar World Cup record from previous appearances, with Ivory Coast never having progressed beyond the group stage, and not having qualified since 2014, while Ecuador have appeared at four World Cup finals, most recently four years ago, making it to the last-16 on just one occasion. With analysis from Benni McCarthy and Ellen White