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Netherlands and Ecuador drew 1-1 in the 2026 international friendly held at Philips Stadium

On their visit to Philips Stadium, Ecuador secured a draw against the Netherlands. An own goal by Willian Pacho and a strike from Enner Valencia were the goalscorers.

Netherlands vs Ecuador.
© Getty ImagesNetherlands vs Ecuador.

Preparations for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup continue steadily. In this case, the Netherlands and Ecuador played one of the international friendlies of the week, finishing in a 1-1 draw.

Shortly after the match began, Willian Pacho opened the scoring for the home side with an own goal. In the 23rd minute of the first half, Enner Valencia leveled the score with a penalty.

In an end-to-end match that grew more physical as the minutes passed, one of the standout moments was Dumfries’ sending off. The Netherlands effectively played almost the entire game with one man down.

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90'+5 - End of the match! (1-1)

The Netherlands and Ecuador drew 1-1 at Philips Stadium. An own goal by Willian Pacho and a penalty by Enner Valencia were the scorers.

90' - Added time is being played (1-1)

The referee adds five more minutes.

88' - More substitutions for Ecuador (1-1)

Jordy Caicedo, Jeremy Arevalo, and Jordy Alcivar came on for Yeboah, Enner Valencia, and Pedro Vite.

87' - Yellow card for Ecuador (1-1)

Pedro Vite was booked after a tough foul on an opponent.

85' - The final five minutes of the match (1-1)

Both teams seem content with the draw.

81' - More heart than soccer (1-1)

Ecuador, with more pride than soccer, look to turn the result in their favor.

Possession seems to be the key.

76' - Four substitutions for the Netherlands (1-1)

Koopmeiners, Valente, Weghorst, and Hato came on in place of Simmons, Brobbey, Timber, and Ake.

75' - More substitutions in the match (1-1)

Angelo Preciado came on for Felix Torres.

66' - Ecuador escape unscathed (1-1)

Brian Brobbey raced alone toward Ecuador’s goal, but his shot was blocked, resulting in a corner. The set piece posed no real threat to the visitors.

65' - Fatigue is showing on the players (1-1)

Ecuador control the ball with ease. The visitors are slowly advancing toward the Netherlands’ goal area.

59' - Another substitution for the Netherlands (1-1)

Jean Paul van Hecke came on for Jeremie Frimpong, who had entered in the second half.

57' - Gonzalo Valle goes down injured (1-1)

After an unfortunate clash with an opponent, Ecuador’s goalkeeper remained down on the ground.

David Cabezas comes onto the field for the injured Valle.

53' - The game becomes stop-and-start (1-1)

Xavi Simmons went off injured but returned limping, without major issues.

50' - The Netherlands look to play a bit more aggressively (1-1)

Despite being a man down, the home team wants to take the lead in play. Ecuador, however, continue to dictate the pace.

45' - Second half is underway (1-1)

The Netherlands and Ecuador are already underway in the second half. The home team is playing with 10 men following Dumfries’ red card.

Jeremie Frimpong and Timo van de Ven came on for Cody Gakpo and captain Virgil van Dijk for the home side.

For Ecuador, Anthony Valencia came on for the booked Alan Franco.

45'+3 - End of first half! (1-1)

An own goal by Willian Pacho opened the scoring, and Enner Valencia leveled the match from the penalty spot at the 23rd minute.

Stay tuned to Bolavip for live minute-by-minute coverage of the second half of Netherlands vs Ecuador!!!

45' - The match is now in added time (1-1)

Three additional minutes are being played at Philips Stadium.

42' - The Netherlands look to even out the flow of the game (1-1)

With little build-up, the home team is trying to hold possession as the first half winds down.

37' - A scare for Ecuador (1-1)

Enner Valencia came off injured but has returned to the field.

35' - With patience, Ecuador pin their opponent back (1-1)

The Netherlands can’t get past midfield, though Ecuador are lacking in finishing.

A cross-shot from Pedro Vite went just past the home team’s post.

30' - Ecuador take control of the match (1-1)

After leveling the score, Ecuador take possession and push for a second goal. Yeboah tried a shot that went just past the post.

23' - GOOOOAL for Ecuador! (1-1)

Enner Valencia converts the penalty to level the match.

22' - Penalty for Ecuador! (1-0)

Frekken brought down Gonzalo Plata inside the box, and Ecuador is awarded a penalty.

19' - Yellow card for Franco (1-0)

Alan Franco is the first Ecuador player booked after a foul on Nathan Ake.

17' - First substitution of the match! (1-0)

Lutsharel Geertruida comes on in place of Donyell Malen to reshape the Netherlands’ back line into a four-man defense.

13' - Red card for Denzel Dumfries! (1-0)

Denzel Dumfries brings down Gonzalo Plata, who was through on goal. The Netherlands are down to 10 men.

10' - End-to-end match (1-0)

Enner Valencia smashed a shot off the post, and on the counter, the Netherlands nearly extended the lead.

8' - Simmons leads the Netherlands’ attack (1-0)

Xavi Simmons is driving his team toward the opponent’s area.

3' - GOOOOAL for Netherlands!! (1-0)

An own goal by Willian Pacho gives the Netherlands the lead.

0' - Game is underway! (0-0)

The match has kicked off at Philips Stadium!

Finishing pre-competition moves

Both teams finished their pre-competition preparations as they await the start of the match. Philips Stadium is slowly starting to fill up.

Maintaining the strong form

Of their last 13 matches, the Netherlands have won 8 and drawn 5.

History favors the Netherlands

03/01/2006 – Friendly: Netherlands 1-0 Ecuador (Dirk Kuyt)
05/17/2014 – Friendly: Netherlands 1-1 Ecuador (Robin van Persie / Jefferson Montero)
11/25/2022 – Qatar 2022 World Cup: Netherlands 1-1 Ecuador (Cody Gakpo / Enner Valencia)

Ecuador face a tough group

The South American team already knows all its opponents in Group E: Germany, Curaçao, and Ivory Coast.

Group F for the Netherlands

Looking ahead to the upcoming 2026 World Cup, the Netherlands will be the top seed in Group F.

They will share the group with Japan, Tunisia, and the winner of the match between Poland and Sweden.

Ecuador's starting XI

Sebastian Beccacece chose these players to start the friendly match:

Gonzalo Valle; Pervis Estupinan, Joel Ordonez, Willian Pacho, Felix Torres; Moises Caicedo; Gonzalo Plata, Pedro Vite, Alan Franco, John Yeboah, Enner Valencia.

The starting 11 for the Netherlands!

Here are the 11 players selected by Ronald Koeman to start the match:

Mark Flekken; Nathan Ake, Virgil Van Dijk, Stefan De Vrij, Denzel Dumfries; Jerdy Schouten, Jurrien Timber;  Xavi Simons, Cody Gakpo, Donyel Malen; Brian Brobbey.

Today's referees

German referee Sascha Stegemann will serve as the main official, assisted by Christof Günsch and Christian Gittelmann. Martin Petersen will act as the fourth official.

The VAR official will be Nicolas Winter, with Frederick Assmuth serving as AVAR.

Kickoff time and where to watch

This intriguing match will get underway at Philips Stadium at 2:45 PM (ET)

ViX will be the primary option to watch Netherlands vs Ecuador in the USA.

Welcome to a new live blog on Bolavip!

Ahead of the 2026 World Cup, we have another friendly match coming up. This time, we’ll be covering the minute-by-minute of the game between the Netherlands and Ecuador!

Stay tuned so you don’t miss a single moment of this exciting matchup.

Matías Persuh
Matías Persuh
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