The Most Dramatic Day of the 2026 World Cup: England's Escape & Belgium's Miracle

July 1, 2026, was one of the most dramatic days in FIFA World Cup history, featuring two astonishing round-of-32 comeback victories — England's 2-1 escape against DR Congo and Belgium's record-shattering 3-2 extra-time win over Senegal — that produced a pair of blockbuster round-of-16 matchups .

England 2-1 DR Congo — Kane's Record-Breaking Rescue Act

The match: England trailed 1-0 at half time after Brian Cipenga gave DR Congo a surprise lead in the 7th minute at Atlanta Stadium . For 68 minutes, Thomas Tuchel's side looked headed for a humiliating early exit. Then Harry Kane took over .

Kane restored parity in the 75th minute with a well-timed header from Anthony Gordon's cross, then fired home the winner in the 86th minute with a powerful right-footed strike . The 2-1 win sent England through to the last 16 .

Records broken on the night:

• Kane's brace took him to 13 career World Cup goals, moving him past Pelé (12 goals) on the men's all-time World Cup scoring list. He also equalled France legend Just Fontaine's 13 goals .
• He had already surpassed Gary Lineker to become England's all-time leading World Cup goalscorer during the group stage against Panama on June 28, reaching 11 goals to Lineker's 10 . His brace against DR Congo extended that lead to 13 .
• Kane now has five goals in World Cup knockout matches, the second-most by an Englishman (level with Geoff Hurst, one behind Lineker's six) .
• He became the fourth English player to score more than one goal in a single World Cup knockout game, the first since Lineker in the 1990 quarterfinal .

The bizarre witch doctor subplot: Earlier in the tournament, ahead of England's group-stage match against Ghana (which ended 0-0), Ghanaian self-proclaimed witch doctor Nana Kwaku Bonsam — whose name translates to "Devil of Wednesday" — claimed he had placed a curse on Harry Kane to stop him scoring . After Kane failed to score in the draw and missed a late chance, Bonsam claimed credit and then said he had lifted the curse . The story went viral as one of the tournament's strangest side narratives . Some fans later joked that the curse had been lifted only after Kane's brace against DR Congo .

Round-of-16 matchup: England advanced to face co-hosts Mexico at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on July 5 .

Belgium 3-2 Senegal (AET) — The Greatest Comeback of the Tournament

The match: At Seattle Stadium, Senegal took a commanding 2-0 lead through Habib Diarra (24') and Ismaila Sarr (51') . With just four minutes of regulation time remaining, Belgium looked dead and buried .

The comeback:

• Romelu Lukaku pulled one back in the 86th minute, finishing off a setup from Thomas Meunier .
• Youri Tielemans equalized in the 89th minute with a header after goalkeeper Mory Diaw failed to deal with Leandro Trossard's delivery .
• In the second half of extra time, Senegal's Lamine Camara slid in on Tielemans in the box. After a VAR review, a penalty was awarded .
• Tielemans stepped up and converted the spot kick at 120'+5' (the 125th minute), calmly guiding the ball into the top right corner .

Record broken: Tielemans' goal at 124 minutes and 44 seconds is officially the latest decisive goal in World Cup history . Multiple sources cite it as the 124th or 125th minute — the Sofascore data places it at 124:44 . All agree it is the latest winning goal ever scored in a World Cup match . Belgium's 3-2 win was described as "the biggest comeback of the World Cup so far" by the Associated Press .

Round-of-16 matchup: Belgium advanced to face the United States in the last 16, contingent on the US beating Bosnia and Herzegovina later that night .

What It All Meant

July 1, 2026, was a day that rewrote World Cup record books. Harry Kane cemented his legacy as England's greatest ever World Cup goalscorer and surpassed a Brazilian legend in Pelé. Belgium produced a comeback for the ages, scoring twice in the final four minutes of regulation before Tielemans' historic spot kick deep into extra time. Both victories set up tantalizing round-of-16 matchups: England against co-hosts Mexico and Belgium against the United States .