From The Sports Desk: Portugal advances, Croatia sent packing after dramatic finish

Portugal advanced after edging out Croatia 2-1 in a hard-fought match, and Cristiano Ronaldo’s team will now face European champion Spain on Monday.

The spotlight now shifts to Lionel Messi‘s Argentina, which today is looking to bring an end to Cape Verde’s remarkable World Cup run. Our NBC News team will be live-blogging the game, so come join us!

World Cup Recap

Portugal advanced to the round of 16 after a wild 2-1 win against Croatia yesterday in Toronto.

The game was tied 0-0 after a pretty uneventful first half, but the second half more than made up for it. Croatia struck first, with Ivan Perišić scoring in the 53rd minute.

Soon after, Portugal drew a penalty kick off a corner and Ronaldo coolly sent in a goal, the first time he’s scored in a World Cup knockout round.

The game remained tied into stoppage time and seemed destined for extra time until Portugal sent a cross into the box and Gonçalo Ramos headed in the go-ahead goal in the 94th minute.

Croatia’s Josko Gvardiol nearly scored an equalizer about 13 minutes into added time, but the goal was taken away for an offside call via replay review. This probably marked the last World Cup game for Croatia legend Luka Modrić, 40, while Portugal’s star Ronaldo survived to play another game.

Portugal v Croatia: Round Of 32 - FIFA World Cup 2026 — Mateo Kovacic is consoled by Luka Modric of Croatia after a 2-1 loss to Portugal at Toronto Stadium on July 2, 2026.Patrick Smith / FIFA via Getty Images

Portugal will now play European champion Spain in a star-studded clash in Dallas on Monday. The winner of that tie will face either the United States or Belgium in a quarterfinal on July 10.

In yesterday’s other games, one of the tournament favorites, Spain, eased past Austria 3-0 while Switzerland won its first knockout game since 1938 when it beat Algeria 2-0.

World Cup Preview

Argentina’s World Cup clash with Cape Verde in Miami has all the hallmarks of a David-vs.-Goliath contest — although this is one story that’s unlikely to end in a fairy-tale upset.

Led by living legend Messi, Argentina is the defending World Cup champion and has lifted soccer’s biggest prize three times.

Cape Verde, by contrast, is ranked 64th in the world by FIFA, has a 40-year-old goalkeeper and is the only team to reach the round of 32 without winning a match. Cape Verde advanced after recording a draw in all three group games, while Argentina (ranked second by FIFA) won all three of its matches, with Messi playing a starring role.

Lionel Messi #10 of Argentina celebrates scoring his team's third goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group J match between Jordan and Argentina at Dallas Stadium on June 27, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. — Lionel Messi #10 of Argentina celebrates scoring his team’s third goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group J match between Jordan and Argentina at Dallas Stadium on June 27, 2026 in Arlington, Texas.
Ryan Pierse / FIFA via Getty Images

But Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni urged his team not to underestimate its opponent.

“We are not surprised, to be honest,” Scaloni said. “They are a good team. And they are not here by chance. We must respect them. And that’s what we will do.”

If Argentina does progress, it will meet the winner of another of today’s contests, Australia vs. Egypt, played in Dallas.