Pépé Brace Seals Historic Knockout Berth: Curaçao 0–2 Côte d'Ivoire (World Cup 2026 Group E)

Final Score and Goals

Nicolas Pépé scored a brace (7', 64') to give Côte d'Ivoire a 2–0 victory over Curaçao, sending the Elephants to the knockout stage for the first time in their history and ending Curaçao's debut World Cup campaign .

• 7' — Nicolas Pépé (assist: Yan Diomande): A defensive mix-up by Curaçao — Jurien Gaari's wayward pass back to Joshua Brenet — bounced into the path of Yan Diomande, who crossed for Pépé to sweep home from close range . This seventh-minute strike became the fastest goal ever scored by Côte d'Ivoire in a World Cup match .
• 64' — Nicolas Pépé (assist: Ibrahim Sangaré): Ibrahim Sangaré delivered a sharp pass from midfield; Pépé curled a left-footed finish into the top corner from the right side of the box to complete his brace . The French Wikipedia match sheet credits the assist to Franck Kessié, but multiple detailed reports, including beIN Sports and BBC, specify Sangaré's delivery .

Individual Contributions

• Yan Diomande was named Man of the Match and set up the opening goal with a cross after pouncing on Curaçao's defensive error .
• Ibrahim Sangaré provided the assist for the second goal with a sharp pass into Pépé's path .
• Nicolas Pépé became the second Ivorian ever to score a World Cup brace (after Aruna Dindane in 2006) and, at 31 years 27 days, the second-oldest African to do so (after Roger Milla in 1990) .

Curaçao's World Cup Debut

Curaçao made their first-ever FIFA World Cup appearance in 2026. They lost their opener 7–1 to Germany, earned a creditable 0–0 draw against Ecuador, and exited the tournament with this 2–0 defeat to Côte d'Ivoire . They faced 30 shots on target across their three matches, the most by any team in a single group stage since North Korea in 2010 .

Group E Standings and Knockout Path

Germany had already secured first place in Group E before the final matchday . Côte d'Ivoire's win lifted them to six points, securing second place in the group as runners-up . As a result, they qualified for the Round of 32, where they were scheduled to face a Group I runner-up in Arlington, Texas (Dallas area) on June 30 .

Post-Match Reactions

Nicolas Pépé said: "It's a source of pride and joy… My two goals? It's all thanks to the team. On the first one, Yan [Diomande] did a great job setting me up. The second was a magnificent pass from Ibrahim [Sangaré], and all I had to do was get my foot on it… We're going to try to go as far as possible, we have the players and the quality to do it."

Head coach Emerse Faé said: "Pride is the first word that comes to mind. We knew we could do it, and we also knew it was going to be difficult. We did it… We're looking even further ahead. Ivory Coast deserves this… They can keep cheering us on so we can go as far as possible." Faé also expressed confidence that his side could cause an upset against whoever they face in the knockout round .