Senegal Make World Cup History With Dramatic Collapse Against Belgium

Senegal's dramatic exit from the 2026 FIFA World Cup has seen the Teranga Lions enter the tournament's history books for an unfortunate reason after their stunning collapse against Belgium in the Round of 32.

The West African side appeared to be cruising into the Round of 16 after establishing a commanding 2-0 lead with only a few minutes of normal time remaining.

However, Belgium produced an incredible comeback to win 3-2 after extra time, ending Senegal's World Cup campaign in heartbreaking fashion.

The defeat set an unwanted milestone, making Senegal the first team in FIFA World Cup history to be knocked out of the knockout stage after leading by two goals as late as the 85th minute.

Habib Diarra gave Senegal the advantage in the first half before Ismaila Sarr doubled the lead shortly after the break with an impressive finish.

Their performance looked good enough to secure qualification as Belgium struggled to create meaningful opportunities for most of the match.

Belgium, however, refused to give up. Romelu Lukaku sparked the comeback with a late goal before captain Youri Tielemans headed home the equaliser just minutes later to send the thrilling encounter into extra time.

The decisive moment came deep into stoppage time when Belgium were awarded a penalty following a Video Assistant Referee review.

Tielemans stepped up to convert the spot-kick, completing a remarkable turnaround and sending Belgium into the last 16.

Senegal's elimination added to a disappointing day for African teams after DR Congo also surrendered a lead before losing to England.

Following the latest results, only Ghana, Cape Verde, Egypt and Morocco remain in the competition as Africa's hopes of lifting the World Cup trophy continue to rest on four nations.