Belgium secured their place in the knockout stage of the 2026 World Cup with a commanding 5-1 victory over New Zealand on Friday night in Vancouver, finishing atop Group G. Leandro Trossard scored twice, while Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, and Alexis Saelemaekers also found the net for the Belgians, who had struggled earlier in the tournament with two draws.
Belgium Overcomes Slow Start
The Belgians entered the match in a surprising third place in Group G after a 1-1 draw against Egypt and a scoreless draw against Iran. The win ensured they finished first in the group, ahead of Egypt, who drew 1-1 with Iran in the other group finale played simultaneously in Seattle. Belgium will face an undetermined third-place finisher in the round of 32 on Wednesday in Seattle.
Leandro Trossard opened the scoring in the 28th minute after a scramble in front of the net, popping the ball off the crossbar and into the goal. It was Belgium's first goal from open play in the tournament, following an own goal in the opener against Egypt. Trossard added his second early in the second half, striking a rebound off a New Zealand player past goalkeeper Max Crocombe.
De Bruyne and Lukaku Shine
Kevin De Bruyne put the game beyond doubt with a stunning strike from outside the box in the 66th minute, celebrating by making a heart with his hands for the sellout Vancouver crowd. Romelu Lukaku scored on a header in the 86th minute, blowing a kiss to the fans, and Alexis Saelemaekers added a goal in stoppage time. Elijah Just scored for New Zealand in the 84th minute to avoid a shutout, his third goal of the tournament.
“I think we had the chances as well in the first two games, and we didn’t take them. So it’s important that we took them today,” Trossard said. “And it’s always nice to score a lot of goals, and we’re just really happy to go through in first place as well, and yeah, a lot of joy.”
New Zealand Eliminated Without a Win
New Zealand needed a victory to have a chance at advancing but fell short. The All Whites head home without their first-ever World Cup win. They lost 3-1 to Egypt on Sunday and tied 2-2 with Iran in their group opener. Elijah Just, who scored three goals in the tournament, said, “It’s been a long journey, and proud of the boys. Everyone worked their hardest, it just wasn’t there.”
Belgium coach Rudi Garcia downplayed talk of the round of 16, saying, “First, we’ll have to win our round of 32 match. I don’t even know who we’ll be playing yet, so it would be disrespectful to start talking about the round of 16 already. We’ll see who comes through.”
Team News and Records
Winger Jérémy Doku started for Belgium after missing the draw with Iran due to illness and flying to London for the birth of his son. He had only trained with the team once in seven days. Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made his 18th World Cup appearance for Belgium, breaking the record set by Enzo Scifo. Belgium were eliminated in the group stage in Qatar four years ago after finishing third at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
