Ecuador made history on Thursday evening by beating Germany to reach the World Cup 2026 knockout stage at the New York New Jersey Stadium. A popular pre-tournament dark horse, La Tri's World Cup campaign was not going to having failed to score a single goal in their opening two games.
Leroy Sane had fired Germany, who were already qualified as group winners, into an early lead, before Nilson Angulo soon had Ecuador level after nine minutes. Germany had a penalty at the start of the second half overturned following a VAR review for a foul in the build-up before Gonzalo Plata stabbed in the winner with 13 minutes left to leave the South Americans on four points and top of the third-place rankings.
Ecuador’s victory further dents Scotland’s hopes of making it through to the last 32. Steve Clarke’s side – who have three points and a minus three goal difference – now drop down into the final eighth spot, but with other groups still to finish.. Follow Ecuador vs Germany LIVE below with our dedicated match blog.
Ecuador vs Germany latest news
- GOAL! Plata punishes Neuer mistake
- GOAL! Angulo equalises for Ecuador with stunning strike
- GOAL! Sane fires Germany ahead inside two minutes
FULL-TIME
22:58 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Ecuador 2-1 Germany
Ecuador 2-1 Germany
22:57 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
90+6 min: Plata wins a foul deep in the Germany half, can’t imagine the ball will be going into the box with seconds left on the clock.
Ecuador 2-1 Germany
22:56 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
90+5 min: Turn and shot from Gross at the edge of the box, but he can’t keep his effort down. Ecuador will not care as more precious seconds are eaten up. The Germany pressure continues.
Ecuador 2-1 Germany
22:53 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
90+3 min: Undav holds off a challenge and fires a shot into the side-netting from an acute angle.
Ecuador 2-1 Germany
22:51 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
90 min: Desperate defending by Ecuador but they finally get the ball clear, but they mess up a counter attack chance.
SEVEN MINUTES OF STOPPAGE TIME.
Ecuador 2-1 Germany
22:50 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
89 min: Raum gets a second bite at the cherry after his initial set-piece is cleared away. More great defending from the resulting corner before Plata is booked for a naughty tackle on Musiala.
Another Germany set-piece, in a dangerous position.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:46 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
85 min: Yeboah and Angulo are replaced by J.Caicedo and Torres. What a shift from the Ecuador pair.
Ecuador 2-1 Germany
22:44 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
83 min: Ecuador are not exactly sitting on this 2-1 lead as they are pushing forward with numbers at every opportunity.
GOAL! Ecuador 2-1 Germany | Gonzalo Plata ‘78
22:39 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
78 min: ECUADOR IN FRONT!
Would you believe it, from the resulting corner Ecuador take the lead. Flick on by Kevin Rodriguez and Gonzalo Plata gets his boot to the ball before Manuel Neuer.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:38 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
76 min: That may have been the game right there. Wonderful centre-forward play from Undav to set Sane free but he shoots straight at Galindez.
At the other end, Rodriguez uses his body well in the box but sees his effort deflected behind for a corner.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:34 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
73 min: CHANCE! A mix-up between Tah and Neuer allows Rodriguez to play the ball back for Caicedo and his cross is deflected just wide by Plata. Will Ecuador live to rue that miss?
Gross replaces Wirtz for Germany.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:30 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
69 min: Attendance watch: 80, 663! A full house at the New York New Jersey Stadium.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:29 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
68 min: The boos can only mean one thing...hydration break
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:26 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
65 min: Another Germany change has seen Beier replace Nmecha.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:25 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
64 min: Undav’s eyes light up in the middle as Raum’s cross is begging to be headed home but Galindez comes and claims.
Changes for Ecuador as Preciado and Rodriguez replace Franco and Valencia.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:23 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
62 min: Brilliant run from Yeboah as he chases down what looked to be a lost cause up against Rudiger and lays the ball back for Valencia who then stings the palms of Neuer.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:20 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
59 min: Undav and Thiaw replace Havertz and Kimmich for Germany.
Dom Smith at New York New Jersey Stadium
22:19 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Haven't seen as much as I'd have expected to from the likes of Wirtz or Musiala yet.
Ecuador have seen plenty of the ball and Germany have been quite wasteful when they've had chances to run into open space.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:15 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
54 min: Rare mistake from Pacho almost lets Germany in but Havertz’s pass to Musiala is not good enough which allows the Ecuador defender to get back.
At the other end, Yeboah wins a corner. Could have been much better had he not decided to check back.
Corner is deep, Caicedo does well to get his head on the ball but the effort was never beating Neuer in a million years.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:09 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
48 min: VAR review going on. NO PENALTY, free-kick to Ecuador instead. Sane adjudged to have fouled Vite.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:07 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
47 min: What a start to the second half. Stiller has come on for Pavlovic but Germany have a penalty as Havertz was brought down by a clumsy Ordonez tackle.
KICK-OFF!
22:05 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Back underway in New York!
Dom Smith at New York New Jersey Stadium
22:04 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
While it slowed a little in the last 10 minutes of that first half, I do think this has been a really lively game.
The outpouring of relief and joy and sheer noise from the Ecuadorians right around this stadium was extraordinary when Nilson Angulo equalised.
All to play for.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
22:00 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
After two goalless games at World Cup 2026, Ecuador are finally up and running!
"If this place had a roof, it would've gone" 🤯
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) June 25, 2026
Nilson Angulo scores Ecuador's first goal of the World Cup! pic.twitter.com/nXgtGX8xNO
Around the grounds
21:59 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
In the other game from Group E, Ivory Coast lead Curacao 1-0 at half-time.
This result benefits Ecuador, but they need to beat Germany.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:58 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
A great finish from Leroy Sane, but should the goal been allowed to stand?
Should Germany's opener have been allowed to stand? pic.twitter.com/9ROVVYOx6E
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) June 25, 2026
Dom Smith at New York New Jersey Stadium
21:55 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Not a bad view...
Good view. pic.twitter.com/ef2C2dCfXp
— Dom Smith (@MrDomSmith) June 25, 2026
As it stands
21:51 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
A live third-placed table has Ecuador in tenth place.
They will be relying on Cape Verde and Belgium suffering some heavy defeats in their respective final Group games.
HALF-TIME
21:50 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:49 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
45+4 min: Really good switch of play by Raum as he picks out Wirtz in the box but the Liverpool star is not given an inch by Hincapie who makes a fine tackle.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:45 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
45 min: Into FOUR minutes of stoppage time.
LIVE: Ecuador vs Germany
21:44 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
44 min: Pavlovic bundles Valencia to the floor and is shown a yellow card for his troubles. That all came about from a poor Musiala pass which left his team-mate in trouble.
LIVE: Ecuador vs Germany
21:43 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
43 min: Hincapie pulls Sane back and is shown a yellow card.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:42 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
42 min: Musiala makes a brilliant run into the channel, timing it to perfection to avoid being flagged offside. Attempts a wonderful outside of the boot cross into the path of Havertz, but Caicedo spots the danger and makes the clearance.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:39 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
39 min: Safe to say that Germany have weathered that early Ecuador storm and are now beginning to ask questions of the South Americans. Wirtz is getting on the ball a bit more and Nmecha has just had a strong run halted.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:36 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
36 min: Wirtz finds himself in acres of space and he drives with the ball, feeds Musiala who has an effort blocked by Ordonez for a corner.
Wirtz takes the set-piece but it comes to nothing and Ecuador have the chance to break but Hincapie lacks support and has to turn back.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:34 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
34 min: More sloppy passing from Germany, once again in a dangerous area which allows Ecuador to pounce but a brilliant recovery run from Nmecha puts that fire out.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:33 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
32 min: Sloppy pass from Wirtz gifts possession to Ecuador as Angulo takes the ball in and plays in Valencia. His angle is closed down by Tah and the eventual deflected effort breaks kindly for Germany.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:30 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
30 min: Play restarts after the hydration break.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:28 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
28 min: Boos ring out inside the stadium as the hydration break is called.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:25 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
24 min: Ecuador are on the front foot, as they should be, causing Germany some issues but haven’t been able to test Neuer.
At the other end, Raum puts in a brilliant cross which Havertz meets but he can’t get enough power on his header and Galindez makes the save.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:20 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
20 min: Hincapie is adjudged to have fouled Kimmich right by the corner flag and the Arsenal defender’s reaction summed up his frustration. Did well to not boot the ball away, otherwise he’d have been shown a yellow card for dissent.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:17 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
17 min: Nine straight internationals now that Germany have failed to keep a clean sheet. Yes, they have been impressive at the World Cup, but you feel they will need to tighten up defensively if they’re to win the whole tournament.
Ecuador 1-1 Germany
21:14 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
13 min: Nmecha takes aim from range but pulls his effort wide. Galindez had that covered all the way.
GOAL! Ecuador 1-1 Germany | Nilson Angulo ‘9
21:09 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
9 min: The onus is very much on Ecuador here. They have to score and they do!
Nilson Angulo curls home a beauty, that is Ecuador’s first goal at this summer’s World Cup. Manuel Neuer had no chance.
Dom Smith at New York New Jersey Stadium
21:06 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
That was a fantastic goal and such a fast start from Germany, already winners of the group.
Such a composed finish by Sane, which sent the Germans in the ground wild.
GOAL! Ecuador 0-1 Germany | Leroy Sane ‘2
21:03 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
2 min: WHAT A START!
Leroy Sane with a really crisp finish into the bottom corner as Ecuador players complain about a high boot in the build up.
KICK-OFF!
21:00 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Away we go!
As things stand
20:58 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Germany's position in the table cannot change, regardless of tonight's outcome.
Ecuador just need to match Curacao's result to ensure they do not finish bottom of the table, though only a win will maintain hope of reaching the knockouts.
Not long now
20:56 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
The national anthems have been observed, as have the pre-match pleasantries between both sets of players and officials.
Kick-off is next.
HERE WE GO!
20:53 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
The teams are out at the New York New Jersey Stadium.
This means the national anthems are next.
Third place ranking - as it stands
20:50 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
The expanded World Cup 2026 format means the introduction of a round of 32 and for some third-placed teams a chance at knockout glory.
Teams who finish fourth in their groups are eliminated immediately, but eight of the 12 third-placed teams will live to fight another day. And the battle is close.
Arsenal stars reunited
20:48 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Piero Hincapie's permanent Arsenal transfer was confirmed earlier, and tonight he is reunited with Kai Havertz.
Though, club ties will be put on hold for 90 minutes.
Kick-off approaching in New York
20:45 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
15 minutes to go until kick-off at the New York New Jersey Stadium.
Around the grounds
20:40 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
The other game in this group, Curacao vs Ivory Coast, gets underway at the same time as this.
We will keep you posted from events at the Philadelphia Stadium as it could have an impact on Ecuador's qualification hopes.
Which teams are already out of the World Cup 2026?
20:35 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
The World Cup has arrived the business end of the group stage, with a number of teams already seeing their hopes of progress dashed.
An increase from 32 to 48 nations for this summer’s tournament in North America has led to the addition of 24 more games during the first phase, with the top two from each of the 12 four-team groups advancing through to the newly-created round of 32, along with the best eight third-place finishers.
A less well-known but still significant change for this World Cup has been FIFA deciding to use head-to-head records above goal difference as the principal tiebreaker during the group stage.
That means that a number of teams who would previously have gone into the last round of group fixtures still with a slim chance of reaching the knockout rounds now know that they mathematically have no shot.
Here is a list of all the nations that are already definitely out of the 2026 World Cup.
Team news reminder
20:30 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Here is how both teams will line-up today.
Ecuador XI: Galindez; Hincapie, Ordonez, Pacho; Vite, Franco, Caicedo, Yeboah, Valencia, Plata, Angulo
Substitutes: Ramirez, Valle, Torres, Estupinan, Preciado, Porozo, Medina, Alcivar, Valencia, Paez, Minda, Castillo, Rodriguez, J.Caicedo, Arevalo
Germany XI: Neuer; Kimmich, Rudiger, Tah, Raum; Pavlovic, Nmecha; Sane, Musiala, Wirtz; Havertz
Substitutes: Baumann, Nubel, Anton, Thiaw, Goretzka, Leweling, Gross, Stiller, Amiri, Ouedraogo, Woltemade, Beier, Undav
Fan reaction: Havertz selection sparks debate
20:25 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
This dude is still keeping Undav on the bench for Havertz. Maybe there are things Havertz does in training that the rest of us don't see.
— Chief Edozie, Ejanla Designer (@UncleSamad_) June 25, 2026
Fan thoughts: Strong Germany team
20:20 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
GERMANY STARTING XI vs Ecuador! 🇩🇪👀
— Sleeper Football (@SleeperFooty) June 25, 2026
Nagelsmann names a STRONG team, despite having already confirmed top spot in Group E. 😳 pic.twitter.com/oXVyeyIyYL
Fan reaction: Caicedo request
20:15 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Caicedo, can you do something for me?
— Chichi (@chibzyyyy) June 25, 2026
Ecuador changes
20:10 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
The FIFA app has the Ecuador formation down as 3-3-4! Not quite sure they will be as bold, at least not from the start, but there are changes from last time out.
Two in total as Joel Ordonez and Nilson Angulo come in for Pervis Estupinan and Jordy Alcivar.
CONFIRMED ECUADOR TEAM NEWS
20:05 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Lining up for Ecuador...
📋 Nuestros XI que alinearán esta tarde en el MetLife Stadium.
— La Tri 🇪🇨 (@LaTri) June 25, 2026
• #ECUxDEU • #FWC • #UnSoloEcuador • pic.twitter.com/ASOAH9w3Pb
Ecuador team in full
20:00 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Ecuador XI: Galindez; Hincapie, Ordonez, Pacho; Vite, Franco, Caicedo, Yeboah, Valencia, Plata, Angulo
Substitutes: Ramirez, Valle, Torres, Estupinan, Preciado, Porozo, Medina, Alcivar, Valencia, Paez, Minda, Castillo, Rodriguez, J.Caicedo, Arevalo
Germany changes
19:55 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Julian Nagelsmann picked an unchanged team for wins over Curacao and Ivory Coast, and has kept faith in Kai Havertz, Florian Wirtz and Manuel Neuer.
The trio along with the likes of Joshua Kimmich, Felix Nmecha and Jamal Musiala were expected to be rested but they all start in New York.
Nagelsmann has been forced into two alterations with Nico Schlotterbeck ruled out for the remainder of the tournament with an ankle injury and Nathaniel Brown also sidelined with a knock.
Germany team in full
19:50 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Germany XI: Neuer; Kimmich, Rudiger, Tah, Raum; Pavlovic, Nmecha; Sane, Musiala, Wirtz; Havertz
Substitutes: Baumann, Nubel, Anton, Thiaw, Goretzka, Leweling, Gross, Stiller, Amiri, Ouedraogo, Woltemade, Beier, Undav
CONFIRMED GERMANY TEAM NEWS
19:45 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Here is the Germany team selected by Julian Nagelsmann to face Ecuador...
Für Deutschland! 🇩🇪 Das ist unsere Startelf gegen Ecuador 👇️#fifaworldcup #dfbteam 📸 DFB pic.twitter.com/SFAygc9jTw
— DFB-Team (@DFB_Team) June 25, 2026
Ecuador vs Germany LIVE - team news imminent
19:40 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
The teams will be announced shortly!
Stay tuned...
How an obscure club from Ecuador is producing players for the biggest clubs in Europe
19:35 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
To trace your way back to the origins of this story of Ecuador’s football boom, you must travel some 4,660 kilometres to the Andes, arriving in the suburbs of the capital city, Quito, 8,200 feet above sea level in the north of the country.
There, you will find very little. What you will find is Club de Alto Rendimiento Especializado Independiente del Valle.
This current crop of Ecuadorian footballers is viewed internally, and by South American football more widely, as the golden generation, the best they’ve ever produced. Independiente del Valle are far and away the biggest reason why.
The club has revolutionised football in Ecuador forever, becoming the country’s unlikely mountainous haven for promising young players, often from real hardship. It is a hotbed of talent and a remarkably reliable production line.
20 years ago
19:30 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Nearly 20 years ago to the date, Ecuador and Germany met in this very slot at the World Cup.
A brace from Miroslav Klose and a strike from Lukas Podolski saw Germany run out 3-0 winners on home soil and top Group A in the process.
Ecuador squad
19:25 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Goalkeepers: Hernan Galindez, Moises Ramirez, Gonzalo Valle
Defenders: Piero Hincapie, Willian Pacho, Pervis Estupinan, Felix Torres, Joel Ordonez, Jackson Porozo, Angelo Preciado
Midfielders: Moises Caicedo, Alan Franco, Kendry Paez, Pedro Vite, Jordy Alcivar, Denil Castillo, Yaimar Medina
Forwards: Enner Valencia, Kevin Rodriguez, Jordy Caicedo, Nilson Angulo, Anthony Valencia, Jeremy Arevalo.
Predicted Germany XI
19:20 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Julian Nagelsmann is expected to rotate his squad considerably with progression already secured, managing the minutes of Kai Havertz, Florian Wirtz and other key first-team players ahead of the knockout stages.
Deniz Undav, in the running for the Golden Boot award, is among those likely to be drafted in along with Antonio Rudiger and Leon Goretzka.
Predicted Germany XI: Baumann; Anton, Thiaw, Rudiger, Raum; Goretzka, Stiller; Sane, Amiri, Beier; Undav
Ecuador struggling for goals
19:15 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
There are two ways to analyse Ecuador's World Cup qualification campaign.
On one hand, finishing second behind Argentina was no mean feat and their defensive record: five goals conceded in 18 games was mightily impressive.
However, scoring just 14 times in qualifying was always going to be an issue and it has proven as such here in North America.
Goalless against Ivory Coast and Curacao, Ecuador must find their scoring boots tonight.
Germany are back
19:10 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Germany are in fine form. They are on a run of 11 straight wins, including two at this summer's major tournament.
The 7-1 demolition of Curacao and the 2-1 victory over Ivory Coast means the 2014 world champions have progressed past the group stage for the first time in 12 years.
Today's settings
19:05 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
The New York New Jersey Stadium, aka the MetLife Stadium, has staged three World Cup 2026 games so far, including a 1-1 draw between Brazil and Morocco.
With a capacity of over 82,000, this stadium will stage next month's final.
Ecuador vs Germany latest match odds
19:00 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Ecuador to win: 10/3
Germany to win: 8/15
Draw: 11/4
Head to head (h2h) history and results
18:55 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Germany are unbeaten in two previous games against Ecuador, winning 3-0 when the nations met in the final group game of the 2006 World Cup.
Ecuador wins: 0
Germany wins: 2
Draws: 0
Score prediction
18:50 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Even in wins over Curacao and, particularly, Ivory Coast, there were cause for concerns for Germany as they looked extremely vulnerable on the counter-attack.
That was with their strongest team, so heavy rotation should provide Ecuador with some hope.
The question is, can Ecuador finally score at this World Cup? We think they will, only issue is we can’t see them scoring more than one to get the win they need.
Draw, 1-1.
Germany team news
18:45 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Germany are without two defenders, Nico Schlotterbeck and Nathaniel Brown against Ecuador tonight.
The news is not good for Schlotterbeck as he has been ruled out for the remainder of the tournament with the torn ankle ligament sustained against Ivory Coast.
However, Brown misses out with a minor adductor issue and should be available for next Monday's last-32 tie.
Ecuador team news
18:40 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Ecuador head into this showdown with a clean bill of health with no injury concerns or players missing through suspension.
Willian Pacho, Piero Hincapie and Moises Caicedo are all expected to feature.
How to watch
18:35 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
TV channel: In the UK, the game will be televised live on BBC One , with coverage starting at 8.30pm BST.
Live stream: UK viewers can also catch the contest live online via BBC iPlayer the BBC website.
Live blog: You can follow all the action right here via Standard Sport’s live blog.
Free highlights: World Cup highlights are available on FIFA’s official YouTube channel, along with BBC iPlayer / ITVX app and their websites.
Ecuador vs Germany LIVE
18:30 , Tashan Deniran-Alleyne
Hello and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of Ecuador vs Germany!
The stakes couldn't be higher for Ecuador as they must beat Germany to have any chance of progressing to the knockout phase.
Germany have already qualified but are targeting three wins from three to end the group stage.
We’ll have all the latest updates, build-up and team news right here ahead of kick-off, which comes at 9pm BST from the New York New Jersey Stadium. Stick with us!
