2026 World Cup Qualifiers: Mixed Fortunes as Germany Stunned, Spain and Cameroon Cruise

The race to the 2026 FIFA World Cup continued on Thursday with a series of fixtures across Africa and Europe. In a dramatic encounter, Ghana were forced to share the spoils after Chad’s Celestin Ecua struck late to cancel out Jordan Ayew’s opener, ending the game 1-1.

Elsewhere, Cameroon dominated Eswatini with a comfortable 3-0 victory, mirroring Tunisia’s result against Liberia, while Mali also impressed with a commanding win over Comoros.

Europe saw one of the night’s biggest shocks as Germany fell 2-0 to Slovakia in Bratislava — their first-ever away defeat in World Cup qualifying. David Hancko put Slovakia ahead in the 42nd minute before David Strelec sealed the win shortly after halftime.

Spain, on the other hand, showed their class in Sofia with a convincing 3-0 triumph over Bulgaria, courtesy of first-half strikes from Mikel Oyarzabal, Marc Cucurella, and Mikel Merino.