Alireza Beiranvand made seven saves while Iran and Belgium played to a 0-0 draw at the World Cup on Sunday, with Team Melli unable to break through after the Red Devils went down to 10 men in the second half.
Belgium defender Nathan Ngoy received a straight red card in the 66th minute when he miskicked a ball backward and then fouled Mehdi Taremi to prevent the Iran star from getting a clean breakaway scoring chance.
Iran couldn’t capitalize, and Belgium generated better scoring chances down the stretch — but both teams left with their second straight draw in group play.
Neither team will feel good about the result at SoFi Stadium.
During a tumultuous World Cup trip affected by travel restrictions and visa denials from the U.S., Iran will regret missing a golden opportunity to beat a European powerhouse sitting 10th in FIFA’s world rankings while playing before a loud, supportive crowd.
Iran returned to the Los Angeles area for its second straight match in front of a crowd packed with fans from the diaspora supporting Team Melli and decrying the Iranian government with boos of the anthem and hundreds of Lion and Sun flags displayed.
Iran’s World Cup cycle has been chaotic since the U.S. began a war Feb. 28. The Iranians moved their training base from Arizona to Mexico, and the team is operating under travel restrictions requiring them to leave Los Angeles only hours after both matches, infuriating coach Amir Ghalenoei.
Meanwhile, star-studded Belgium has yet to score in two matches at the World Cup, getting on the scoreboard only through an own goal in its opening draw with Egypt.
Belgium is unbeaten in its last 15 competitive matches, but it has not scored on 53 consecutive shots at the World Cup dating to its one goal scored in its three mostly dismal games in Qatar four years ago.
Belgium dominated possession in the first 60 minutes, but Iran had a handful of strong chances stopped by goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who matched Beiranvand’s excellence. Team Melli had the best scoring chances early, including a beautiful set piece for a goal by Taremi — who was ruled offside by video review.
Maxim De Cuyper was denied twice in the second half by Beiranvand, including a golden opportunity in the 86th minute.
With so many preparation obstacles, Ghalenoei leaned on experience against Belgium, sending out the oldest starting 11 at a World Cup match since 1966, according to Opta.
Romelu Lukaku was a surprise addition to Belgium’s starting lineup, playing the first 73 minutes and recording one shot. The Red Devils’ career goals leader missed nearly all of his club season at Napoli with a hamstring injury, and he played as a substitute against Egypt last Monday.
Standout Belgian winger Jérémy Doku missed the match with an illness.
Cape Verde 2, Uruguay 2 — Cape Verde’s magical start to its first World Cup isn’t over. It might just be getting started.
The tiny island nation that stunned tournament favorite Spain last week did it again against Uruguay, coming from behind for a draw.
Kevin Pina scored on a free kick for Cape Verde’s first-ever goal in the World Cup, and Helio Varela scored the equalizer for what has become one of the most surprising teams of the expanded 48-team tournament — a club now with a legitimate chance of getting into the knockout stage.
Cape Verdean fans who watched their squad pull off one of the stunners of the tournament last week by holding Spain to a scoreless draw continued their celebrations when Pina blasted a strike past diving goalie Fernando Muslera for a 1-0 lead in the 21st.
Maxi Araújo and Agustin Canobbio scored late first-half goals minutes apart to put Uruguay ahead, but Varela, minutes after coming into the game, caught Muslera way off his line for the tying goal in the second half and his first international score.
Varela celebrated by hopping into his teammates’ arms and flexing atop their shoulders as Muslera and other Uruguay players dropped their heads in disappointment.
Spain 4, Saudi Arabia 0 — Welcome to the World Cup, Lamine Yamal. Welcome to the World Cup, Spain.
Teenage superstar Yamal scored 10 minutes into his first start on soccer’s biggest stage, and Spain kick-started its campaign by demolishing Saudi Arabia.
The 18-year-old forward slid in at the far post to touch home a low cross for the opening goal in Atlanta. He became the eighth-youngest scorer in World Cup history and more importantly settled Spanish nerves after the team was held to a surprise 0-0 draw by Cape Verde in its opening game.
In a tournament that has already seen Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Harry Kane get off to flying starts, Yamal’s strike saw him join the party.
The Barcelona winger is already considered one the world’s top players and helped Spain win the European Championship in 2024 despite being just 16 years old when the tournament started. He is tipped to take over from Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the sport’s biggest star but came into the World Cup with questions over his fitness after he missed the end of the season with a hamstring injury.
Yamal, who was only used as a second-half substitute against Cape Verde, was thrown in from the start against Saudi Arabia and wasted no time in making his presence felt.
He had already repeatedly sliced through the Saudi defense before turning home Mikel Oyarzabal’s cross.
A full house at Atlanta Stadium was mainly filled with Spain fans who had roared in celebration just at the sight of Yamal emerging for the pre-game warm up. And the cheers were even louder as he raced away to celebrate his goal, dropping to his knees, praying and kissing the turf.
Japan 4, Tunisia 0 — Japan moved one step closer to reaching the knockout stages of the World Cup for the fourth consecutive time after pummeling Tunisia in Group F, securing a milestone victory in the tournament’s 1,000th men’s match.
Japan’s four goals were the most the Samurai Blue have ever scored in a World Cup game, as it comfortably dismantled a Tunisia side that became the first to ever fire its coach after the opening match.
Ayase Ueda scored twice, along with Daichi Kamada and Junya Ito to put Japan level with the Netherlands on four points. The Dutch are currently on top of the group because of having scored one more goal than Japan across its two matches.
Even after leading 2-0 just over half an hour into the match, Japan continued to apply pressure to a disjointed Tunisian defense.
The loss for Tunisia means it is eliminated from the tournament. Japan is guaranteed at least third in the group, which could be enough to advance to the knockout stages.