England vs DR Congo LIVE: Cipenga stuns Three Lions with early opener

ENG 0-1 COD

On the stroke of halftime, Bellingham rises highest in the box yet again to meet a cross with a powerful header. It looks destined for the back of the net, but Mpasi pulls off another spectacular stop, clawing the header away to preserve DR Congo's lead right before the break!

Massive controversy! England are absolutely furious! Harry Kane is clean through on a breakaway with just the keeper to beat. Lionel Mpasi rushes out and looks to catch Kane's right foot as the captain tumbles in the box. The England fans scream for a penalty, but the referee waves it away, ruling it a dive! Despite apparent contact on the replay, the official is unmoved.

The Leopards nearly double their lead as a dangerous cross from the right finds Yoane Wissa unmarked inside the six-yard box. The forward stretches to apply the finishing touch, but his close-range tap-in crashes against the right side of the crossbar, letting England off the hook.

A breathless first half is winding down in Atlanta. After that frantic sequence of near-misses from Rashford and Kane, the tempo has just started to settle slightly. Thomas Tuchel's men are probing for an opening before the halftime whistle, dominating the ball but finding it incredibly tough to breach Sébastien Desabre’s disciplined defensive block.

How have England not scored here?!  Harry Kane's sliding effort is blocked, and moments later another cross is whipped in from the right. Marcus Rashford latches onto the loose ball on the left side of the box and drills a low shot towards the near post, but Aaron Wan-Bissaka is perfectly positioned to make a brilliant block with his legs on the goal line.

Cipenga is absolutely terrorising the right side of England's defence! The goalscorer showcases brilliant, dazzling footwork down the left flank yet again, easily bypassing his marker to flash a dangerous ball across the face of goal. A frantic, heart-stopping goalmouth scramble follows with the ball bouncing unpredictably inside the penalty box. Fortunately for Thomas Tuchel, a panicked clearance finally spares England's blushes.

Inches away from an equaliser! England finally carve out a massive chance. Declan Rice floats a beautiful, pinpoint ball deep into the penalty box, finding a surging Jude Bellingham. The Real Madrid midfielder connects cleanly, powering a goal-bound header toward the corner, but DR Congo goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi pulls off a spectacular, flying reflex save to punch it away!

Noah Sadiki goes into the book after a heavy, late challenge on a surging Djed Spence down the right wing.

The Leopards are comfortably the better side right now, repeatedly exposing the English defence with dangerous, fluid play down the left flank. Thomas Tuchel's men are uncharacteristically struggling to retain possession, and captain Harry Kane has been entirely isolated, starved of service and completely nowhere in the picture.

Score: England 0 - 1 DR Congo

Frustration boils over for the Real Madrid man. Jude Bellingham goes into the referee's book after a clumsy, late challenge, sliding into Nathanaël Mbuku from behind.

There’s a sharp injection of urgency from England now after their sluggish start. Thomas Tuchel's side are immediately trying to force a response down the right flank, with Djed Spence driving forward to link up with Noni Madueke. The Congolese backline remains incredibly disciplined, quickly smothering the attack and conceding only a throw-in.

Oh my goodness, the stadium has absolutely erupted! Out of nowhere, DR Congo have stunned the Three Lions! It’s a breathtakingly simple, direct attack. A raking, diagonal ball flies all the way from the center-back position right out to Brian Cipenga on the left wing. Cipenga cuts inside, evades the English backline, and fires it home!

Goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi takes far too long on the ball, allowing a charging Jude Bellingham to close him down in a flash. Mpasi just gets his clearance away, with Bellingham coming within a whisker of blocking it directly into an empty net.

We are just two minutes into this Round of 32 clash, and England have immediate intentions of establishing total control.

We are officially underway at the Atlanta Stadium for this historic World Cup 2026 Round of 32 clash.

Starting XI: Lionel Mpasi; Arthur Masuaku, Axel Tuanzebe, Chancel Mbemba, Aaron Wan-Bissaka; Noah Sadiki, Samuel Moutoussamy, Ngal’ayel Mukau; Brian Cipenga, Yoane Wissa, Nathanael Mbuku

Starting XI: Jordan Pickford; Djed Spence, Ezri Konsa, Nico O’Reilly, Marc Guehi; Declan Rice, Elliot Anderson; Jude Bellingham, Marcus Rashford, Noni Madueke; Harry Kane

England topped Group L with seven points, finishing unbeaten to book their place in the knockout stage. The Three Lions began with a 4-2 win over Croatia, played out a 0-0 draw against Ghana, and wrapped up the group stage with a 2-0 victory over Panama.

DR Congo advanced to the Round of 32 as one of the best third-placed teams after collecting four points in Group K. The Leopards opened with a 1-1 draw against Portugal, suffered a 1-0 defeat to Colombia, and sealed qualification with a 3-1 win over Uzbekistan.

Dimitry Bertaud Mpasi (GK); Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Chancel Mbemba, Axel Tuanzebe, Steve Kapuadi, Arthur Masuaku; Noah Sadiki Mukau, Samuel Moutoussamy, Edo Kayembe; Yoane Wissa, Cédric Bakambu.

Jordan Pickford (GK); Djed Spence, Ezri Konsa, Marc Guéhi, James O'Reilly; Elliot Anderson, Declan Rice; Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham, Marcus Rashford; Harry Kane.

It is the first-ever meeting between England and DR Congo in international football. The Three Lions have twice taken on African teams in the knockout stages of a single World Cup before, beating Egypt 1-0 in the 1990 group stage and edging Cameroon 3-2 after extra time in the quarter-finals.

The winner of the England vs DR Congo clash will take on Mexico in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 after Mexico defeated Ecuador in the Round of 32.

• India: 9:30 PM IST – Live on Unite8 Sports 2 (English) and Unite8 Sports 1 (Hindi); live streaming on ZEE5.
• United Kingdom: 5:00 PM BST – BBC One, BBC iPlayer
• DR Congo: 7:00 PM CEST – New World Sport 1, 2, 3, 6 & 7
• United States: 12:00 PM EDT – FOX, FOX One, Telemundo Network, Telemundo App, Peacock