Cape Verde, the tiny island country off the coast of West Africa, became the smallest nation ever to reach the knockout stages of a World Cup after going unbeaten in the group stages. They kicked off the tournament with a stunning 0-0 draw against pre-World Cup favorites Spain, before back-to-back draws against Uruguay and Saudi Arabia.
Considering they entered the tournament ranked No. 67 in FIFA’s world rankings, the fact that they’ve made it this far is why Cape Verde has become one of the best stories of the entire 2026 World Cup.
And what have they been rewarded with? A Round of 32 matchup against arguably the best team in soccer, Argentina, headlined by the greatest player in history, Lionel Messi.
But Cape Verde coach Pedro Leitao Brito doesn’t care. Speaking with reporters on Thursday, he quickly credited the Argentinian legend while also emphasizing how it’s a team game, and that the focus can’t just be on one individual.
“We as a team have our own strategy, not only against Messi but the whole team,” he said. “They are the current world champions and one of the best teams in the tournament. We will play against the whole team. We know Messi is one of the best players in the world, but we play against the whole team.”
Even with underdogs like Cape Verde breaking through, and heavyweights like Germany and Netherlands dropping off, Messi has been the face of the 2026 World Cup. At 39 years old, he already has six goals in three group stage matches, tied for the most in the tournament, and he’s broken records along the way.
He scored a hat-trick in the tournament opener against Algeria and a brace against Austria that made him the all-time leading scorer in men’s World Cup history, now holding an all-time career total of 19 goals. He’s also set the record for most World Cup appearances ever at 29, four more than second-place Cristiano Ronaldo, who’s still chasing his first World Cup trophy.
Argentina demolished opponents in Group J, allowing just a single goal through three games, and enters Friday’s contest as the heavy favorites, thanks in large part to Messi.
But the knockout rounds can be unpredictable, and we’ve already seen a few giants stumble. Add in the fact that Cape Verde isn’t fearing Argentina or their lead man, and we could have one of the greatest upsets in soccer history on our hands.
Friday’s match will kick off at 6:00 p.m. ET in Miami, Florida, with the winner going on to play either Australia or Egypt on July 7 in Atlanta, Georgia, in the Round of 16.