Harry Kane scores twice as England beat DR Congo 2-1 to advance at the World Cup

In the 2026 World Cup round of 32, England defeated DR Congo 2-1. DR Congo struck first: in the 7th minute, B. Cipenga finished from a Chancel Mbemba assist to put his team ahead 1-0. At halftime, England still trailed 0-1.

The first half also featured two yellow cards. Jude Bellingham was booked in the 19th minute, and N. Sadiki was shown yellow in the 28th minute. The score did not change again until the later stages of the second half.

In the 75th minute, Harry Kane scored from an A. Gordon assist to make it 1-1. Eleven minutes later, in the 86th minute, Kane scored again, once more set up by A. Gordon, and England moved ahead 2-1. That goal proved to be the winner, completing Kane’s brace.

Match statistics showed England with 60% possession to DR Congo’s 40%. England recorded 2.04 expected goals compared with DR Congo’s 0.80, and led in shots 16-7, including 7 shots on target to 2. England completed 91% of their passes, while DR Congo finished at 82%. England also had 5 corners to DR Congo’s 3, no offsides to DR Congo’s 4, 1 save to DR Congo’s 5, and 10 fouls to DR Congo’s 12.

Going into the match, England had beaten Panama 2-0 in their third group-stage game, while DR Congo had defeated Uzbekistan 3-1 in their third group-stage game.