Germany delivered one of the most one-sided results of the tournament so far at Houston Stadium on Sunday, thrashing World Cup debutants Curaçao 7-1 — among the largest winning margins in World Cup history. For Curaçao, a Caribbean nation of just 156,000 people making their historic first World Cup appearance, it was a harsh introduction to the world stage.

Elsewhere, Netherlands and Japan produced a contrasting thriller in Dallas, sharing a dramatic 2-2 draw. Both sides had impressed throughout qualifying, and that quality was on full display as the lead changed hands multiple times. Ivory Coast, meanwhile, edged Ecuador 1-0 in a tightly contested defensive battle between two genuine dark-horse contenders, both of whom were among the meanest defences in their respective qualifying campaigns.

In the day’s final fixture, Sweden routed Tunisia 5-1, with Arsenal striker Viktor Gyökeres scoring a hat-trick. The Stockholm-born forward had been in red-hot form throughout Sweden’s qualifying playoffs — netting a hat-trick against Ukraine and the 88th-minute winner against Poland — and carried that momentum straight into the World Cup, becoming the breakout story of Matchday 4.

Saturday’s results are still reverberating: Brazil drew 1-1 with Morocco, with Ismael Saibari giving the Atlas Lions an early lead before Vinícius Júnior equalised for the five-time champions. Neymar remained sidelined through injury and is expected back for the Haiti fixture on June 19. Elsewhere on Saturday, Scotland beat Haiti 1-0 to top Group C, while Switzerland were held to a 1-1 draw by Qatar after a dramatic stoppage-time equaliser.