&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "FIFA 2026: Ivory Coast president Alassane Ouattara congratulates team on historic knockout qualification")
Ivory Coast (Cote d’Ivoire) made history by reaching the FIFA World Cup knockout stage for the first time after beating Curacao 2-0 in their final Group E match on Thursday at Philadelphia. President Alassane Ouattara congratulated the team on their historic achievement and in a post on X, he praised the players and wished them success in the next stage of the tournament.
"Bravo to our Elephants for this historic qualification to the second round of a FIFA World Cup final phase. Full speed ahead to the round of sixteen," he said in the X post.
Nicolas Pepe was the star of the match, scoring both goals to help Ivory Coast finish second in Group E. The win also ended Curacao’s impressive first World Cup campaign.
Ivory Coast started strongly and controlled the game from the beginning and took the lead in the seventh minute when Pepe finished a well-worked move with a calm strike past goalkeeper Eloy Room.
Curacao needed a victory to stay in the tournament but found it difficult to break down Ivory Coast’s organised defence, although they created a few chances, but they could not seriously trouble the African side.
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After halftime, Ivory Coast continued to dominate possession and controlled the pace of the match. Pepe scored his second goal in the 64th minute with a powerful shot from the edge of the box.
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Watch FIFA World Cup 2026 Live on Zee5 Photograph: (WION)
In the final stages, Ivory Coast comfortably managed the game, while Curacao failed to create clear chances despite pushing forward.
The victory gave Ivory Coast six points and secured their place in the knockout stage, finishing behind Germany in Group E. Germany, however, suffered a surprise 2-1 loss to Ecuador in their final group match.
