At BC Place in Vancouver, Switzerland made history with a 2-0 win over Algeria in their Round of 32 contest, their first knockout game in more than 70 years.

This victory happened on a soggy Thursday evening in British Columbia. Switzerland’s last knockout match victory in the FIFA World Cup™ occurred in 1954, far before any of the players now on the team were born.

Back in 1954, after finishing level with Italy, they hosted the tournament and won a play-off game that decided who would advance from the group stage.

Since then, Switzerland has had achievements in other fields such as winning the Eurovision Song Contest three times, taking home Olympic Gold in sports like fencing and judo, and boasting four Nobel Prize-winning scientists.

But they hadn’t been able to triumph in World Cup knockout games until now. Breel Embolo and Dan Ndoye scored goals that helped Vancouver beat Algeria 2-0.

Ndoye, in the photo, said after the game how significant this victory was for Switzerland. It feels wonderful, very amazing. Winning now was very urgent for us. One page of history we created for our country, we want to keep this since it is what we have been dreaming about.

Everyone in the nation has dreamed of this; therefore, we want to keep them dreaming. This is great, he answered, but we want more. Celebrating this win, he said they would turn attention to their following opponent.

Switzerland’s attack has been strong; star player Johan Manzambi is absolutely vital. The fifth unique goalscorer for the squad, Ndoye, said they had trouble giving up goals in their last three games.

Defender Manuel Akanji said he was proud of the team’s performance after they won and kept their first clean sheet, stressing the need for a good defence. Though he appreciated Algeria’s strong play, he thought their experience was essential for their performance.

Having defeated co-host Canada, the side is getting ready for a Round of 16 game against either Colombia or Ghana now in western Canada. Ndoye said he would answer more than a hundred congratulatory messages he got.

Thinking back on his career, Ndoye remarked, “As a youngster, I saw the top teams compete in the most prestigious event. It’s amazing to represent my nation, and the next game will be one in which we want to inspire our country’s pride.”