Pepe’s brace sends Ivory Coast to first knockouts as Curacao exit World Cup
Key takeaways
- The West Africans will face the second-place finisher between France and Norway in Group I on Tuesday in Texas.
- Pepe’s somewhat unlikely brace in the Group E finale helped the Ivorians finish second with six points, while eliminating debutants Curacao from contention on Thursday afternoon.
- Curacao became the eighth team eliminated at this tournament, a fate that arrived later than many anticipated after they became the smallest nation ever to qualify for a World Cup finals last November.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
The West Africans will face the second-place finisher between France and Norway in Group I on Tuesday in Texas.
xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogle Add Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Ivory Coast's Guela Doue and teammates celebrate after the match against Curacao [Pilar Olivares/Reuters]By Reuters Published On 25 Jun 202625 Jun 2026Nicolas Pepe’s double has sealed the Ivory Coast’s first-ever trip to the World Cup knockout phase in a 2-0 victory over Curacao.
Pepe’s somewhat unlikely brace in the Group E finale helped the Ivorians finish second with six points, while eliminating debutants Curacao from contention on Thursday afternoon. Les Elephants finished third in their group in their three previous World Cup appearances from 2006 to 2014.