Diallo's 90th-minute strike gives Ivory Coast a dream World Cup start

Amad Diallo buries Ecuador in the 90th minute

Ivory Coast 1–0 Ecuador. A 19-game unbeaten run, ended. Amad Diallo scored the winner in the 90th minute, and it was superb (2). He is now Ivory Coast's youngest ever World Cup goalscorer at 23 years and 11 months old. Six goals since last October. No one in the squad has more.

Your team did not just win. They out-shot Ecuador 15 to 12 and held firm at the back. Ecuador's coach called the match exactly what it was: a contest decided by one moment of quality (2). That moment belonged to Diallo.

Diomande, 19, owned his World Cup debut

Yan Diomande was named man of the match. He is 19. RB Leipzig's winger ran the game on his first World Cup start, and PSG and Liverpool are watching (2). Diomande has told everyone the same thing: he will decide his club future after the tournament. For now, he is yours.

First African win, first Ivorian World Cup win since 2014

This was Africa's first victory of the 2026 World Cup. It was also Ivory Coast's first World Cup win since 2014. Emerse Fae's squad arrived with momentum and delivered. Ecuador had not lost since September 2024. Now they have.

Renard's shadow still looms

A long profile of Hervé Renard dropped this week, tracing his path from Zambia's fairytale AFCON to the Ivory Coast triumph (1). He won the trophy with both nations, something no other coach has done. For Ivorian fans, the piece is a reminder of what Renard built, and what Fae is now chasing.