FIFA World Cup 2026
Spain v Cape Verde
Spain v Cape Verde (Kick-off 5.00pm). Mark Pougatch presents coverage of the opening match in Group H, held at Atlanta Stadium in the USA. Spain won this tournament in 2010 and are among the favourites to do so once again, having won Euro 2024 and qualified from a group containing Türkiye, Georgia and Bulgaria with five wins, a draw and no defeats. They were also runners-up to Portugal in last year's UEFA Nations League, and their squad boasts the talents of the likes of Barcelona stars Pedri and Lamine Yamal, who is an injury doubt for the group stage, and Manchester City's 2024 Ballon d'or winner Rodri. Cape Verde are one of the tournament outsiders and it would be a major upset should they manage to get a result this evening, but they impressed in qualifying, topping a group that contained the likes of Cameroon, Libya and Angola. They have few players among their ranks who would be widely considered as household names, but are likely to look to captain and all-time leading goalscorer Ryan Mendes for inspiration. With analysis from Juan Mata, Emma Hayes and Ange Postecoglou, and commentary by Sam Matterface and Lee Dixon