MIAMI GARDENS: The teams that are ranked 61st, 67th and 85th in FIFA's world rankings all were heavy underdogs in their first matches at the World Cup.
They all played Monday. None of them won. None of them lost, either.
Through five days and 16 matches of soccer's biggest extravaganza ever, the underdogs are proving to be very tough to beat. All four matches on Monday ended in ties - the most in a single day of men's World Cup play since 1958 - and all of them technically could be considered upsets as well.
The biggest win (that wasn't a win) of all saw Cape Verde - ranked No. 67 and in its World Cup debut - hold No. 2 Spain, a favorite to win the whole thing, 0-0 in what easily has been the biggest shocker of the tournament to this point.
"It means everything," said Cape Verde coach Pedro Leitao Brito, who simply goes by Bubista.
The other Monday results:
- No. 85 New Zealand, the lowest-ranked team out of the 48 qualifiers entering the World Cup, tied No. 20 Iran 2-2.
- No. 61 Saudi Arabia tied No. 16 Uruguay 1-1.
- No. 29 Egypt tied No. 9 Belgium 1-1.
For Monday's underdogs, the ties were a pretty big deal. But even they knew what the Cape Verde score meant in the grand scheme of things.
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"The draw involving Spain," Saudi Arabia coach Georgios Donis said, "may be the biggest surprise in this World Cup."
Four years ago, the Saudis opened with a shocking win over eventual champion Argentina.
