Ecuador upset Germany 2-1 to secure place in next round

Ecuador upset Germany 2-1 on Thursday to secure their place in the next round in their final Group E match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at New York New Jersey Stadium in the US.

Moments after kickoff, Leroy Sane capitalized on Florian Wirtz’s precise pass to slot it into the bottom corner in the 2nd minute to give Germany a lightning fast lead.

Such an early goal by Germany gave them confidence, but the Ecuadorian answer did not take long. Seven minutes later, Nilson Angulo powered it through a German defender’s legs, catching German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer off-guard in the 9th minute to score Ecuador’s first goal in the tournament.

While the rest of the half remained goalless, the pressure and excitement was up. The back and forth between the two sides trying to get the upper hand was intense as the referee blew the whistle for halftime.

Renewing their efforts for a lead, Germany shored up the offensive line with the likes of Deniz Undav and Maximilian Beier, but neither had a convincing chance.

In a shocking turn, it was Ecuador that took the lead this time. Gonzalo Plata acted faster than Neuer to hook an incoming header by Kevin Rodriguez into the top of the net in the 77th minute to gain the upper hand, delivering a huge upset to a dominant performance by Germany in the tournament so far.

As a result of the game, Germany finished Group E in first place, securing their place past the group stage, while Ecuador finished third, expected to advance too as part of the best third teams within current rankings.

As things stand, Germany is set to play Paraguay, while Ecuador will face off against England in the Round of 32.