Amad Diallo’s late-winner gives Ivory Coast 1-0 win over Ecuador in 2026 World Cup opener

What a game!

Amad Diallo tried his luck from distance but his shot was weak and straight to Galindez's hands.

Amad Diallo receives a ball as he enters the box and slots it in the left bottom corner!

Heartbreaking stuff for Ecuador!

Great free kick cross by Caicedo which Ordonez headers but it gets deflected by a defender.

Diomande beats Ordonez and Preciado but then Konan sends his shot wide of Ecuador's goal.

Caicedo fouls twice in less than three minutes but still the referee doesn't book him with a yellow.

Ibrahim Sangare comes in for Seko Fofana, and Christ Inao Oulai comes in for Nicolas Pepe in Ivory Coast.

As for Ecuador, Enner Valencia is taken out and Kevin Rodriguez comes in for the last stretch.

Both teams are still trying everything in their power to harm the other, but you can see speed fading a bit due to all the intensity.

Gonzalo Plata unleashes a nasty shot with his left foot but keeper Yahia Fofana's reflexes were on point to deny Ecuador its first goal!

Jhon Yeboah and Alan Franco are off.

Angelo Preciado and Jackson Porozo enter the game for Ecuador as they seek a momentum change.

Fofana cuts inside and unleashes a furious right-footed low shot, but Galindez lays to his left and saves the shot without even giving a rebound!

Ivory Coast is better than Ecuador right now. Diomande swtiched sides to the left wing, while Diallo is on the right.

Alan Minda is subbed off, Nilson Angulo comes in for Ecuador.

Amad Diallo, and Ange-Yoan Bonny come in for Elye Wahi and Bazoumana Toure.

Ivory Coast goes into the counter and after a cross, Elye Wahi wins the race against Pacho and his shot hits the same crossbar that's been hit twice today!

How are we still scoreless!?

Seko Fofana makes a run in between lines, and throws a backward pass to Diomande, who shoots with his left foot, but it goes wll wide.

Less than a minute and Ecuador is already causing chances!

The referee blows the whistle and the second half is underway at Philadelphia Stadium.

Possession:

• Ecuador 55%
• Ivory Coast 38%
• In contest 7%

Attemtps at goal:

• Ecuador 6
• Ivory Coast 6

Yellow cards:

• Ecuador 0
• Ivory Coast 3

A highly entertaining first half has passed as the score is still tied at 0.

The Ivory Coast center back was in Ecuador's box and as the cross came, he opted for a bycicle kick that went off target.

Huge athleticism shown by the defender

Four minutes of added time as the first half enters its last stretch.

Enner Valencia is a menace in the box!

He manages to shoot off a cross but his header went too high.

First Fofana, now Kessie, both defensive midfielders have a yellow card right now.

That's something Ecuador can exploit.

Diomande beats Hincapie in a 1-on-1, he passes the ball straight into Pepe who unleashes a shot but Alan Franco slid just in time to block the shot.

This game has been played at a crazy pace!

Ivory Coast finally got a shot after plenty of minutes of Ecuador's superiority.

However, Seko Fofana sent his shot way, way above target.

Pedro Vite makes an incredible through ball and Alan Minda shots across Fofana, but his shot goes straight into the woodwork!

It's a miracle that Ecuador is not ahead!

The first yellow card of the game goes to Seko Fofana after a harsh tackle on Caicedo.

Let's just hope that the cooling break doesn't interfere with the flow the game was in.

Early contender for game of the tournament so far!

Jhon Yeboah causes havoc once again. He repeated the recipe, cutting inside to his left foot and now his shot hit the bar as Ivory Coast's keeper was helpless looking at the ball.

Off to cooling break we go.

Thanks to Diomande, Ivory Coast is now bringing a lot of danger. Hincapie is struggling to keep him in a low light.

The game is wide open right now! Ivory Coast had a great chance thanks to Diomande's assist to Wahi but his shot was very weak to beat Galindez!

Jhon Yeboah cuts inside and launches a left-footed effort from outside the box and it goes barely above the bar!

La Tri is having a great start to this game.

Ecuador had a big chance on their hands!

Hincapie sends a cross and Ivory Coast's defender slipped, the ball fell right to Valencia and the otherwise prolific striker sent his shot way off target!

Ecuador bring more intensity in the early goings, despite not having names like Pervis Estupinan and Kendry Paez on their lineup.

Both players wait for their chance on the bench,

Ecuador is getting the ball earlier and Moises Caicedo tried his luck with a wide effort from outside of the box.

It's all Ecuador in the early exchanges of the game, though.

The battle of dark horses is underway!

The time is coming! Ecuador and Ivory Coast's anthems are being played and the game is about to start!

Ecuador will feel very at home as the Philadelphia Stadium is packed with yellow shirts!

Add that to the fact that Amad Diallo isn't starting for Ivory Coast, and Ecuador fans must be thrilled minutes ahead of the game!

Mega-rapper Jay Z is in the building, and he made sure we all know who he is rooting for!

At 19 years and 212 days, Yan Diomande is the first teenager to make an official appearance in a FIFA World Cup match for Ivory Coast.

Diomande is called to be one of the best players on the pitch today.

Ivory Coast is in the building!

Germany's 7-1 victory over Curaçao conditions this game massively.

The group standings have Germany not only with three points, but also a key +6 goal difference.

This puts pressure on both Ivory Coast and Ecuador as they not only need to win, but start scoring heavily in hopes of not losing track to the Germans.

After tonight's Group E opener against Ecuador, Ivory Coast's World Cup journey will continue with two big-time matchups as they look to advance to the knockout stage.

• June 20: Ivory Coast vs Germany
• June 25: ivory Coast vs Curaçao

After tonight's Group E opener against Ivory Coast, Ecuador will continue their World Cup campaign with two crucial fixtures as they look to advance to the knockout stage.

• June 20: Ecuador vs Curaçao
• June 25: Ecuador vs Germany

Ivory Coast's lineup will be a 4-2-3-1: Yahia Fofana; Ghislain Konan, Wilfried Singo, Emmanuel Agbadou, Guela Doue; Seko Fofana, Franck Kessie; Nicolas Pepe, Bazoumana Toure, Yan Diomande; Elye Wahi.

Ecuador's lineup is a 3-4-3 formation: Hernan Galindez; Piero Hincapie, Willian Pacho, Joel Ordoñez; Alan Minda, Moises Caicedo, Alan Franco, Pedro Vite; Yohn Yeboah, Enner Valencia, Gonzalo Plata.

Ivory Coast and Ecuador's last World Cup appearances were both in 2014.

Hence, this marks their first World Cup game in 12 years for both sides.

Ivory Coast come riding a three-game winning streak after beating South Korea (4-0), Scotland (1-0), and France (1-2) before the World Cup.

As for Ecuador, they are in a 19-game unbeaten run going back to 2024. Their last defeat was away against Brazil in September, 2024.

Both teams are red-hot.

Ivory Coast will wear their orange, spotted uniform with green details!

As for Ecuador, they'll wear a navy blue jersey, white shorts and white socks.

FIFA had to use a reserve referee for this game! Originally, it was Michael Oliver, but now, it will be the French Francois Letexier.

Letexier will be assisted by fellow French assistants Cyril Mugnier and Mehdi Ramouni. Ukrainian Mykola Balakin will serve as the fourth official of the game.

As for the VAR, French Jerome Brisard will be the main VAR assistant referee, aided by France's Willy Delajod and Portugal's Tiago Martins.

Ivory Coast vs Ecuador will get underway at 19:00 PM ET.

Watch this 2026 World Cup match between Ivory Coast and Ecuador live in the USA on Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue, Hulu + Live TV, Peacock Premium, FS1, and Telemundo.