Uruguay vs Cape Verde | FIFA World Cup 2026 — Group Stage | Preview and Prediction

South American giants Uruguay will face World Cup debutants Cape Verde in their second game in Group H of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, to be played on June 22 at Miami Stadium.

For the game, here we present our preview and prediction.

FIFA WC26 | Group H: URU vs CPV | 03:30 IST, June 22, 2026

Uruguay didn’t really start their World Cup campaign well, grabbing only a point against relatively weaker opposition in Saudi Arabia. The Uruguayans went behind in the first half as Abdulelah Al-Amri gave the Saudis a surprise lead. La Celeste reacted well to the setback, however, and upped the ante in the second half, but they found it difficult to breach a solid Saudi defence. Their persistence paid off in the 80th minute when Maxi Araújo fired the ball in at the near post.

Although Uruguay attacked a lot in both halves, they couldn’t score barring the equaliser. Their forwards need to find their finishing touch and be more clinical up front.

As for their opponents, Cape Verde, who are appearing in the World Cup for the first time ever, produced a dogged display against one of the strongest teams in the tournament. Their 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha produced a man-of-the-match performance and kept the Spanish attack at bay, making seven big saves. Their stalemate with Spain means this group is wide open for all four teams.

Although Spain had the majority of possession and created several big chances, they couldn’t break down the stoic Cape Verde defence, leading to a sharing of the spoils.

If Uruguay want to make it through to the next round, this is a must-win game for them. Their key players Darwin Núñez, Federico Valverde, and Rodrigo Bentancur need to make an impact in the attacking third to breach the Cape Verde defence. They do have two key injury concerns in Ronald Araújo, who is out for a few weeks, and Giorgian de Arrascaeta, who will be out for a while with a broken collarbone.

Cape Verde, meanwhile, have some decent players of their own in Dailon Livramento, captain Ryan Mendes, and goalkeeper Vozinha, who can help their team get something out of the game.

On paper, Uruguay are definitely the stronger side and remain favourites to win this game. Cape Verde could hit them on the counter, but the Uruguay midfield trio is capable of deciding the outcome of the game on its own. We believe the South American outfit will secure a comfortable win and the all-important three points here.

Score Prediction: Uruguay 2–0 Cabo Verde
Venue: Miami Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida, USA