Germany got off to a flying start in the World Cup thanks to a massive 7-1 win against tournament debutants Curaçao. Die Mannschaft face a solid Ivory Coast team who also won their match against Ecuador thanks to a late goal.
Location: BMO Field, Toronto, Canada
Date: June 20, 2026
Kickoff: 4:00 PM Local time (EDT) | 1:00 PM PDT
TV/streaming: ESPN+, Find Your Country
Team news
Here’s the setup we think Julian Nagelsmann will roll out for the next match
Expect few changes, if at all, from Nagelsmann who, despite
his knack for tinkering, wouldn’t want to change too much and risk an unwelcome outcome.
Three things to know about Germany:
- Germany has never won against Ivory Coast before. The only time the two countries had faced each other was back on 18 November 2009 (the same day as the Thierry Henry handball against the Republic of Ireland). Lukas Podolski scored a brace (including a 90th minute goal) to rescue a point for the Germans.
- The last time that Germany failed to win against an African nation was way back at the 2014 World Cup: the 2-2 draw with Ghana.
- In terms of their last loss against an African country, it was way back in the 1982 World Cup which was a 2-1 loss to Algeria; it was the first African or Arab win against a European team at the World Cup.
Three things to know about the Ivory Coast:
- Ivory Coast has only won one game against European opponents at the World Cup: a 3-2 win over Serbia and Montenegro (before the latter declared independence) at the 2006 edition of the World Cup.
- Les Éléphants has participated in four World Cups, but each time it finished the group stage with only one win. They have yet to string together back-to-back wins.
- Similarly, the Ivorians have never scored more than four points in a World Cup group. Their current best was set in 2010 when it drew with Portugal and beat North Korea.
Prediction: Germany wins 2-1 with goals from Jamal Musiala and Kai Havertz.
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