Portugal secured qualification for the round of 16 of FIFA World Cup 2026 in dramatic fashion as they defeated Croatia 2-1 in Toronto on Thursday, with Cristiano Ronaldo finding the back of the net. Portugal will take on Spain in the round of 16 in Dallas on Monday.
After a goalless first half, Croatia's Ivan Perisic opened the scoring in the 53rd minute after he found space inside the box and slotted home a clinical finish as he drilled a low shot across goal into the bottom-right corner.
It took just 15 minutes for Portugal to equalise through Cristiano Ronaldo, who converted a penalty, beating a diving Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic. That was Ronaldo's first-ever goal in the knockout stages of a FIFA World Cup.
More drama unfolds in last minutes of the game
Then, in the fourth minute of second half stoppage time, Goncalo Ramos scored a brilliant header courtesy a Rafael Leao assist as he found the top-right corner to give Portugal a 2-1 lead. This put Portugal closer to the round of 16 stage. However, it didn't end there.
Croatia looked to have equalised at the end, leaving Ronaldo crestfallen on the bench, but the last-gasp effort was ruled offside after a video assistant referee review, prompting the team's supporters in the south end of Toronto Stadium to shower the pitch with debris.
Portugal dominated possession in the first half but struggled to convert their chances on a night when a breeze off Lake Ontario offered reprieve from the sweltering heat that blanketed the city for much of the day.
Ronaldo, booed heavily by Croatia supporters every time he touched the ball, failed to get his head on an early Pedro Neto cross and then he and Bruno Fernandes were unable to take advantage of a deep cross from Joao Cancelo.
Croatia, World Cup runners-up in 2018 and third in 2022, came roaring out of the restart and had Portugal on the backfoot as Mateo Kovacic picked up a loose ball and went through the defenders but his shot hit the side of the net not long before they opened the scoring.
Nikola Vlasic thought he had Croatia's second but was ruled offside after poking the ball in before Portugal stormed back down the field where Rafael Leao drilled a shot from outside the area that slammed off the crossbar.
Ronaldo nearly scored when he coolly flicked the ball over the goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic and into the net but was ruled offside.
The Portugal captain finally got his moment in the 68th moment when he fired a penalty straight down the middle of the goal after Renato Veiga was pulled down in the area by Vlasic.
