Germany opened their World Cup campaign in dominant fashion on Sunday, hammering debutants Curaçao 7-1, while Japan rallied for a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands and Iran marked their long-awaited arrival in the United States with a call for unity.
Curaçao, the smallest nation by population ever to reach the tournament, briefly stunned four-time champions Germany in Houston when Livano Comenencia struck an early equaliser, giving the Caribbean nation of about 160,000 people its first World Cup goal.
The early promise did not last. Germany quickly took control, with Felix Nmecha putting them ahead before Kai Havertz scored in both halves, including a penalty, as the Europeans underlined their superiority.
Despite their pedigree, Germany have struggled for consistency at recent tournaments. The win marked the first time since their 2014 title run that they have opened a World Cup with victory.
"It took us a few minutes to get back into the game after they equalised. Curaçao can play football too, as we saw, and I'm curious to see how they'll fare in the group going forward," Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann said.
"I'm very satisfied with us scoring seven goals and our performance for the most part. A winning start is always important, and we're glad we managed it," he added.
Curaçao will hope to get more from their remaining Group E matches against Ecuador and Ivory Coast.
"It is not embarrassing to lose like that against such a team," their coach Dick Advocaat said.
In other matches on Sunday, Japan came from behind twice to earn a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands.
Skipper Virgil van Dijk put the Dutch ahead with a header at the home of the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas, only for Keito Nakamura to quickly level. Crysencio Summerville then restored the lead with a curled finish into the bottom corner shortly after the hour.
Japan earned a point with an 89th-minute deflected equaliser credited to Daichi Kamada.
In Philadelphia, a last-gasp 90th-minute goal from Manchester United's Amad Diallo gave Ivory Coast a 1-0 victory over Ecuador in Group E.
In the late match on Sunday, Sweden opened their campaign in Group F with a 5-1 rout of Tunisia in Monterrey, Mexico.
Sweden, who only reached the tournament via the playoffs thanks to their Nations League performances, ran the north Africans ragged and secured the win through two goals from Yasin Ayari and one each from Alexander Isak, Viktor Gyökeres and Mattias Svanberg.
"Great goals, five goals, solid, and we could have scored more," Sweden coach Graham Potter said. "Full credit to the players. They were fantastic."
Off the field, attention turned to Los Angeles where Iran's players arrived in the United States after months of uncertainty in the build-up to the tournament following heightened tensions between the United States and Iran.
Iran, who relocated their training camp to Tijuana in Mexico from Arizona due to diplomatic issues, take on New Zealand in Group G on Monday.
The team has had to leave some support staff in Tijuana after the United States refused visas for certain administrative and management personnel.
At an eve-of-match press conference, held just over an hour after Tehran and Washington announced a peace deal to end the conflict, Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei said political tensions and visa issues had hampered his team's preparations.
However, Ghalenoei insisted his players would not "pay attention to any of the hype."
Protests are planned outside SoFi Stadium on Monday by members of the Iranian diaspora opposed to the nation's hardline government, with some threats that the team could walk off the pitch if anti-government banners are displayed.
"We are here to perform a good match, a high-quality match. We don't pay attention to any of the hype and anything that goes on around us," Ghalenoei said in response to a question from Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The coach said his team are at the World Cup to "represent the respectable people of Iran, be it Iranians inside Iran or the Iranian diaspora."
"We are not political people. Football is separate from politics," he said.
