Spain and Cape Verde have confirmed their starting teams as both teams begin their 2026 World Cup campaigns in Atlanta on Monday.
The reigning European champions and 2010 World Cup winners are among the favourites to triumph this time.
The Blue Sharks qualified by beating Eswatini 3-0 at home last October, finishing top of their qualifying group ahead of five-time African champions Cameroon.
The match is the first to take place in Group H, which continues when Saudi Arabia meet Uruguay in Miami at 23:00 BST.
🏟️ The stage is set.
Atlanta Stadium awaits Spain’s World Cup opener.ROLL ON TOMORROW. 🇪🇸#VamosEspaña | #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/KAQ2wlDrvZ
— Spanish Football (@SpainIsFootball) June 14, 2026
World Cup 2026: Spain confirmed team vs Cape Verde
Spain make one change from their 3-1 win over Peru in Puebla six days ago, bringing in Gavi for Alex Baena.
Victor Munoz is on the bench, having been a doubt because of muscular overload. Wingers Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams have returned to full training after hamstring injuries and are on the bench.
Barcelona wideman Fermin Lopez misses the finals after suffering a fracture in his right foot shortly before the squad was announced.
Spain starting XI: Unai Simon, Marc Cucurella, Aymeric Laporte, Pau Cubarsi, Marcos Llorente, Fabian Ruiz, Rodri, Pedri, Gavi, Mikel Oyarzabal, Ferran Torres
Spain substitutes: David Raya, Joan Garcia, Marc Pubill, Alex Grimaldo, Eric Garcia, Pedro Porro, Mikel Merino, Alex Baena, Martin Zubimendi, Dani Olmo, Yeremy Pino, Nico Williams, Lamine Yamal, Victor Munoz, Borja Iglesias
World Cup 2026: Cape Verde full line up vs Spain
Cape Verde make seven changes from their 3-0 win over Bermuda in East Hartford on June 6, bringing in Vozinha, Pico Lopes, Diney Borges, Sidny Cabral, Kevin Pina, Jamiro Monteiro and Laros Duarte.
Villarreal centre-back Logan Costa, who has not played in a competitive international since March 2025 and missed almost the entirety of last season with a knee injury, moves to the bench, as do Marcio Rosa, Telmo Arcanjo, Joao Paulo, Willy Semedo, Deroy Duarte and Stopira.
Former Ireland Under-19 international Pico Lopes, who is a defender for Irish side Shamrock Rovers, made his Cape Verde debut in 2019 after being recruited via LinkedIn, having been born in Dublin to a Cape Verdean father and Irish mother.
Cape Verde starting XI: Vozinha, Steven Moreira, Pico Lopes, Diney Borges, Sidny Cabral, Ryan Mendes, Kevin Pina, Jamiro Monteiro, Laros Duarte, Jovane Cabral, Dailon Livramento
Cape Verde substitutes: CJ dos Santos, Stopira, Logan Costa, Joao Paulo, Gilson Benchimol, Garry Rodrigues, Marcio Rosa, Deroy Duarte, Yannick Semedo, Willy Semedo, Telmo Arcanjo, Nuno da Costa, Wagner Pina, Kelvin Pires, Helio Varela
Where to watch Spain vs Cape Verde: TV channel, live online stream
Kick-off on Monday is at 17:00 BST (12:00 ET / 09:00 PT). In the UK, live coverage is on ITV1.
Fans can stream the action via ITV’s website and ITVX app, which is available on a vast variety of devices for viewing on the go.
World Cup 2026: Spain vs Cape Verde stats
- Spain have qualified for their 17th World Cup and their 13th in a row since missing out on the 1974 edition, which is their longest ever streak of participations at the tournament
- Their triumph in 2010 is the only time they have reached the semi-finals of the tournament in their last 14 participations
- They have won one of their last six matches at the World Cup (D4 L1), beating Costa Rica 7-0 in the 2022 group stage.
- La Roja could become the fourth nation to simultaneously hold both the EURO and World Cup, after West Germany (EURO 1972, World Cup 1974), France (World Cup 1998, EURO 2000) and Spain themselves (EURO 2008, World Cup 2010, EURO 2012)
- An unbeaten 31-match run in competitive matches (W25 D6), since a 2-0 loss at
- Scotland in March 2023, is the nation’s longest ever sequence of non-friendlies without defeat
- Mikel Oyarzabal – who scored Spain’s late winner in the EURO 2024 final – was one of three players with at least 10 goal involvements in European qualifying (6 goals, 4 assists), along with Erling Haaland (18) and Memphis Depay (12).
- Luis de la Fuente will experience his second major tournament as Spain boss after guiding them to victory at EURO 2024. He also oversaw their 2022/23 UEFA Nations League triumph
- Cape Verde could become the first African team since Ghana in 2006 to reach the knockout stage on their maiden appearance.
- They had the lowest goal difference among the African teams to reach the 2026 tournament (+8) and have advanced to the knockout stage in three of their four Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) appearances, with their best runs coming in 2013 and 2023, when they reached the quarter-finals
- After winning one of their first three World Cup qualifiers (D1 L1), Cape Verde won six of their last seven (D1)
- Each of the four goals Dailon Livramento scored in qualifying put Cape Verde ahead and were winners
- Bubista is managing at his first World Cup, having taken charge of the Blue Sharks in January 2020 and led them to the AFCON knockout stage of the on two occasions: round of 16 in 2021 and quarter-finals in 2023, before failing to qualify for the 2025 edition
