World Cup debutants Cape Verde stand a strong chance of making the knockouts at the first time of asking, with today's opponents Saudi Arabia their weakest group opponents on paper. Goalkeeper Vozinha has taken most of the plaudits, but the Blue Sharks have a cutting edge at the other end, too.
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Victory at NRG Stadium in Houston would definitely take Cape Verde into the round of 32, potentially even as Group H winners above Spain. A third draw from three games might be good enough for second or one of the slots earmarked for the eight best third-placed teams, but they'd need other results to go their way.
After a promising start, Saudi Arabia fell to a damaging 4-0 defeat by Spain that's badly hurt their goal difference and left them with no other choice but to win their final group game to stand any chance of progressing to the knockouts for the first time since 1994. Even then, it might not be automatic, if Uruguay beat Spain in the group's other match.
Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the information you need to watch Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia in the FIFA World Cup 2026 online, on TV, and from anywhere.
Watch Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia for FREE
Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia will be free-to-stream across multiple regions, including ITV in the UK, RTÉ Player in Ireland, SBS On Demand in Australia, CazéTV on YouTube in Brazil, NOS in the Netherlands, RTBF/VRT in Belgium, SRF/RTS/RSI in Switzerland, and TRT in Turkey.
English commentary will be provided on ITV, RTÉ Player and SBS On Demand.
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How to watch Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia in the UK
In the UK, you can stream Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia on ITV4. The build-up starts at 12:15am BST, ahead of the kick-off at 1:00am BST.
How to watch Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia in the US
In the US, you can stream Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia on FS1.
This channel is accessible via Fox's own streaming platform Fox One or via a cord-cutting platform such as YouTube TV, Hulu+Live TV, Sling (select markets), Fubo or DirecTV.
How to watch Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia in Australia
In Australia, you can watch Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia on the free SBS On Demand.
Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia: World Cup 2026 Preview
Cape Verde's sensational goalless draw with Spain was all about the "Hand of Voz", but they showed they can play a bit too in their topsy-turvy 2-2 draw with Uruguay. The Blue Sharks were even ahead for a bit, thanks to Kevin Pina's no-nonsense thwack of a free-kick, and if there were an element of luck to Helio Varela's equaliser, Cape Verde had certainly earned it by putting the jitters up the two-time world champions.
Bubista is going to have to shuffle his pack slightly for this Friday night clash, however, as Sidny Lopes Cabral is suspended. The Trabzonspor left-back was booked early on in both of Cape Verde's previous games, and will likely be replaced in the starting lineup by utility man Joao Paulo.
Saudi Arabia gave as good as they got against Uruguay, but were blown away against Spain, falling to the sort of 4-0 defeat where they were lucky, as they say, to get nil.
Georgios Donis' men carry a set-piece threat, which came off in their opener when centre-back Abdulelah Al-Amri found the net from a corner, but against La Roja they just weren't able to get up the pitch enough to put it to any use. Remedy that against Cape Verde and Vozinha could be in for another busy night.
To finish second, the Green Falcons will need to win their final group game and hope that Uruguay don't get the better of Spain. Four points, however, should be enough to make it through as one of the best third-placed teams.
Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia: Group H
FourFourTwo's prediction
Cape Verde 1-1 Saudi Arabia
FourFourTwo predicts an end-to-end affair marred by a lack of real quality up front.
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