Reigning African champions, Ivory Coast face Germany on Saturday in their second Group E clash. Both nations won their openers: the winner will take a firm grip on top spot at the 2026 World Cup. Here’s everything you need to know before kick-off.
This is one of the unmissable clashes of the night. Ivory Coast face Germany at BMO Field in Toronto, Canada, on Saturday 20 June 2026, with kick-off set for 10 p.m. (French time). Winners against Ecuador (1-0) thanks to a late Amad Diallo strike, Emerse Faé’s Elephants produced a composed opening display that leaves them well placed in Group E. Germany, for their part, struck hard by thrashing Curaçao (7-1), driven by an already-double-scoring Kai Havertz. Suffice to say the fixture promises plenty — and the Ivorian camp believes in it.
For Ivory Coast, there’s history to be made: the side has never advanced beyond the group stage of a World Cup. Emerse Faé’s men rely on a solid spine featuring players well known to French fans — Sébastien Wahi (Nice), Jean-Eudes Aholou and Franck Kessié among them — and arrive on the back of an encouraging showing against Ecuador. Germany, four-time world champions, will have to do without the injured Serge Gnabry. For the Elephants, who beat France in a pre-tournament friendly in Nantes (2-1), the goal is clear: confirm their standing as an African heavyweight and keep flying the continent’s flag high.