On October 14th at 11:45 a.m. Pacific Time, the eighth round of Group K of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Europe qualifiers began. England swept Latvia 5-0 away at the Riga Dogava Stadium, extending their winning streak to six games without conceding a single goal. They qualified for the 2026 World Cup two rounds early and became the first European team to qualify. Gordon scored the opener in the 26th minute, followed by Kane's goals in the 44th minute and in first-half stoppage time to extend England's lead. Spence forced an own goal from Tonishevs in the 59th minute, and Eze sealed the victory in the 84th minute.

In this match, England defenders Kwaan-Ansah and Alexander-Arnold were sidelined due to injury, leaving Henderson in midfield. Captain Kane, Saka, and Gordon formed the front three. For Latvia, forward Gutkovski led the starting lineup. Less than a minute into the game, Saka received a cross from the right side of the penalty area, and Kane pushed the ball into the open net from the back post. However, Saka was offside when he received the ball, so Kane's goal was disallowed. In the 6th minute, Anderson's shot from the top of the penalty area was blocked by a defender. A minute later, Gordon crossed from the left side of the penalty area, and Kane's shot from just outside the six-yard box went wide of the left post.

In the 11th minute, Saka's shot from the right side of the penalty area was blocked by a defender. Kane then organized another attack, and Anderson's long-range shot went wide. In the 13th minute, Saka passed the ball to Skelly, who shot from the right side of the penalty area, but the shot was blocked by a defender. In the 14th minute, Rodgers passed the ball to Saka, who shot from the right side of the penalty area into the far corner, but it went wide of the left post. In the 16th minute, Stones played a pass to Gordon, whose shot from the edge of the box went wide of the right post.

In the 26th minute, England took the lead. Stones played a long pass from the backcourt, and Gordon won possession from the left side of the frontcourt. He cut inside from the left side of the penalty spot and shot into the far corner, 1-0! Gordon scored his second A-League goal.

In the 29th minute, Jurkovskis sent a cross, and Valslavans's shot from inside the penalty area was blocked by a defender and went wide. In the 31st minute, Valslavans' cross from the right side of the penalty area was blocked by Konsa's arm inside the box, but the referee made no comment. Subsequently, Siganiks was given a yellow card for a foul on Spence. In the 35th minute, Anderson played a pass, and Kane's shot from the edge of the box was blocked by a defender and went wide. Two minutes later, Rice passed the ball, and Gordon's shot from inside the penalty area went wide of the right post. In the 39th minute, Anderson passed the ball, and Kane's low shot from the edge of the penalty area went wide of the right post. In the 41st minute, Balodis was given a yellow card for a challenge on Saka. In the 42nd minute, Rodgers passed the ball to Anderson, who fired a shot from the left side of the penalty area wide of the right post.

In the 44th minute, England extended their lead when Kane's low shot from the right side of the penalty area found the bottom left corner, 2-0!

In the 45th minute, Rice crossed for Kane, who headed the ball in, but Latvian goalkeeper Zvidris saved it. In the first minute of stoppage time, during an England corner kick, Serno Modis brought down Kane, prompting the referee to award a penalty. VAR later intervened, upholding the penalty and giving Serno Modis a yellow card. In the third minute of stoppage time, Kane converted the penalty, giving England a 3-0 lead. This was Kane's 76th A-level goal in his career, surpassing Kuwaiti legend Abdullah and Japanese star Kamamoto Kunimo to rank 13th on the world's all-time scoring list.

At halftime, England led Latvia 3-0 away from home.

At the break, Latvia brought on Tonishevs for Jurkovskis. In the 55th minute, Valslavans passed the ball, and Gutkovski's shot from the edge of the penalty area went wide of the left post. In the 59th minute, Spence crossed from the right in the frontcourt. Substitute Tonishevs was dribbled by teammate Zvidris, and his clearance turned into an own goal, giving England a 4-0 lead over Latvia.

In the 60th minute, England brought on Henderson, Eze, and Bowen for Rice, Rogers, and Saka, respectively. In the 62nd minute, Eze's cross from the left corner caused chaos, and Gordon's shot from the right side of the six-yard box was blocked by a defender. In the 64th minute, Eze's low shot from the edge of the penalty area was saved by Latvian goalkeeper Zvidris. In the 66th minute, Latvia brought on Daskovic for Valslavans. In the 67th minute, Konsa passed the ball, and Bowen's shot from the right side of the penalty area went wide of the left post. A minute later, Tonishevs' shot from the right side of the penalty area was blocked by a defender.

In the 69th minute, Gordon passed the ball, and Anderson's shot from inside the penalty area was blocked by a defender. In the 71st minute, England brought on Rashford and Burn for Gordon and Stones, respectively. Subsequently, Latvia brought on Regoza and Saveevs for Gutkovski and Vapne, respectively. In the 75th minute, Eze's cross found Kane's shot from inside the penalty area, but it was saved by Zvidris. In the 77th minute, Spence's shot from the left side of the penalty spot went wide of the near post. In the 83rd minute, Bowen assisted, and Anderson's shot from the edge of the penalty area was blocked by a defender.

In the 84th minute, England sealed the victory. Eze cut inside from the left, shot from the left side of the penalty spot, and fired into the bottom right corner, 5-0! Eze scored his second goal in the A-League tournament.

In the 87th minute, Regoza and Konsa had an altercation, each receiving a yellow card. In the 88th minute, Latvia brought on Grabovskis for Ikonniks. In the 90th minute, Zelenkovs passed the ball, and Grabovskis' shot from inside the penalty area was blocked by a defender. In the first minute of stoppage time, Kane's free kick from the edge of the box went over the crossbar. Ultimately, England defeated Latvia 5-0 away, advancing to the 2026 World Cup two rounds early.

Starting lineups:

• Latvia (5-4-1): 1-Zvidris / 13-Yurkovskis (46 minutes, 19-Tonishevs), 4-Veps, 2-Baroudis, 5-Cernomordis, 14-Ciganiks / 8-Valslavans (66 minutes, 7-Daskovics), 17-Vapne (73 minutes, 22-Savyevs), 15-Zelenkovs, 10-Ikoniks (88 minutes, 6-Grabovskis) / 9-Gutkovskis (73 minutes, 23-Regza)
• England (4-3-3): 1-Pickford / 3-Skelly, 2-Konsa, 5-Stones (71 minutes, 12-Burne), 14-Spence / 4-Rice (60 minutes) 8-Henderson), 21-Anderson, 15-Rodgers (60 minutes, 10-Eze) / 7-Saka (60 minutes, 20-Bowen), 9-Kane, 17-Gordon (71 minutes, 11-Rashford)