Ballon d’Or winner Rodri is expected to anchor the midfield as Spain begins its pursuit for a second World Cup title against Cape Verde. | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Spain arrives in Atlanta with the aura of a team anticipating a lengthy World Cup summer, but on Monday, it takes on an opponent with an equally potent emotion: the euphoric disbelief of a country, Cape Verde, seeing its name on the tournament board for the first time.

But Cape Verde is more than just a romantic location in North America.

With fewer than 600,000 people, the Blue Sharks are the third-smallest nation by population to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, behind Iceland in 2018 and Curacao in 2026. They were one of the unexpected qualifiers.

Spain vs Cape Verde head-to-head:

• Total matches: 0
• Belgium: 0
• Egypt: 0
• Draws: 0

Spain vs Cape Verde form guide:

Spain: W D D W D

• Peru 1-3 Spain
• Spain 1-1 Iraq
• Spain 0-0 Egypt
• Spain 3-0 Serbia
• Spain 2-2 Turkiye

Cape Verde: W D L D D

• Cape Verde 3-0 Serbia
• Cape Verde 1-1 Finland
• Chile 4-2 Cape Verde
• Egypt 1-1 Cape Verde
• Iran 0-0 Cape Verde

Spain vs Cape Verde Predicted XI:

Spain (4-3-3): Simón – Llorente, Cubarsí, Laporte, Cucurella — Fabián, Rodri, Pedri — Torres, Oyarzabal, Baena

Cape Verde (4-2-3-1): Vozinha — Moreira, Costa, Pico, Paulo — Semedo, Pina — Mendes, Monteiro, Cabral — Dailon

Published on Jun 15, 2026