Portugal and Croatia meet in World Cup 2026 knockout clash in Toronto

Cristiano Ronaldo and Luka Modric met in Toronto Stadium on Thursday night as Portugal and Croatia opened a World Cup 2026 Round of 32 tie with a place in the last 16 on the line. Kickoff came at 7 p.m. Toronto time, and the winner was set to move on to face Spain or Austria.

Portugal and Croatia were meeting at the World Cup for the first time. Portugal reached the knockout stage by finishing second in Group K, after draws with Congo DR and Colombia and a 5-0 win over Uzbekistan, while Ronaldo came in with two goals in the tournament and was the only player to score in six different World Cups.

Every touch from Ronaldo changed Croatia’s shape, pulling defenders toward him and narrowing the room for Portugal’s runners. For Croatia, Modric’s presence offered the opposite kind of leverage: a veteran midfielder whose decisions could slow the game, keep possession under pressure and force Portugal to defend longer than it wanted to.

The city was under an orange heat warning, with Wednesday and Thursday expected to reach 34 C to 37 C and the humidex forecast at 41 around kickoff before easing to 32 C by 7 p.m. FIFA’s heat rule requires cooling breaks when wet-bulb globe temperature rises above 32 C, and FIFPRO recommends them even between 28 C and 32 C.

Large groups of Portugal supporters marched toward Toronto Stadium on Thursday, while Croatian fans had already turned parts of the city into a public display of color, including a 100-metre checkered flag and red-and-white smoke during the buildup to Croatia’s June 23 match against Panama. Ronaldo last appeared in the city in August 2009, when Real Madrid played Toronto FC in a friendly.