The Biggest Shocks of the 2026 World Cup So Far

The small teams did not get the memo.

The first few days of the 2026 World Cup were supposed to be a warm-up for the giants.

Instead, the giants are dropping points, and the underdogs are writing history.

Here are the biggest shocks so far, ranked from the loudest down.

1. Cape Verde 0-0 Spain

This is the one nobody saw coming.

Cape Verde are a tiny island nation of about 500,000 people, at their first ever World Cup, ranked 70th in the world.

Spain are ranked 2nd.

They are the reigning European champions and the 2010 world champions.

On paper this looked like a walk in the park for Spain.

But Cape Verde had other ideas in this game.

Spain had about 74% of the ball and fired 27 shots at goal.

And not one of them went in.

Cape Verde threw bodies in the way, hung on, and walked off with a point that their whole country will remember forever.

For a nation this small to shut out a team this big at their first ever World Cup, that is the shock of the tournament so far.

2. Saudi Arabia 1-1 Uruguay

This one was almost even bigger.

Saudi Arabia did not just hold Uruguay, the 2-time world champions, they led them.

An Al-Amri goal in the 41st minute put the Saudis in front.

And for most of the game, they stayed there.

They were minutes away from one of the great World Cup wins.

Then Ronald Araujo popped up in the 80th minute to rescue Uruguay with the equalizer in this game.

A 1-1 draw still feels like two points dropped for Uruguay, and a night of pride for Saudi Arabia.

3. New Zealand 2-2 Iran

The lowest-ranked team at the whole tournament refused to lie down.

New Zealand are ranked 89th, dead last among the 48 teams here.

Against Iran, a side that has been to plenty of World Cups, they fought back to draw 2-2.

Coming back to share the points is a huge moment for the All Whites, who do not get to the big stage very often.

It is the kind of result that tells a small football nation the dream is worth chasing.

4. Brazil 1-1 Morocco

Even Brazil, the most successful team in World Cup history, stumbled.

The 5-time world champions were held to a 1-1 draw by Morocco.

To be fair to Morocco, they reached the semifinals at the 2022 World Cup, so Morocco are no small team.

But it was still a flat, nervy start from Brazil under their new coach, Carlo Ancelotti.

A draw will not panic Brazil yet, but it was a reminder that nobody is getting an easy ride at this tournament.

What it all means

Add it up and a pattern jumps out.

The gap between the big teams and the small ones looks smaller than it has in years.

Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, and New Zealand all walked away with a point nobody expected them to get.

And that is exactly why the World Cup is the best show on earth.

Keep an eye on these teams, because the early rounds are only getting started.