Portugal — Croatia: the way to the 2026 World Cup, what time to watch, history of meetings

Portugal and Croatia will meet in the 1/16 finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The match will take place on the night of July 2-3 at BMO Field Stadium in Toronto (Canada) and will start at 02:00 Moscow time. For Cristiano Ronaldo and Luka Modric, this tournament may be the last World Cup in their careers. All the details are in the Izvestia article.

Portugal's Way

Roberto Martinez's team started the tournament with a draw against DR Congo (1-1), then defeated Uzbekistan (5-0), but failed to beat Colombia (0-0) in the final round, finishing the group stage in second place in Group K. Despite two draws, the Portuguese retained the status of one of the most technical the teams of the championship, relying on ball control and high-quality play in the center of the field. Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, Vitinha, Bernardo Silva, Rafael Leau and Ruben Dias remain the leaders of the national team. Vitinya stands out in particular, who became the main organizer of the team's game during the group stage.

The Path of Croatia

The Croats started the World Cup with a defeat from England (2:4), but then won two victories — over Panama (1:0) and Ghana (2:1), which allowed them to take second place in Group L. Zlatko Dalic's team is again relying on experience and organization, and Luka Modric remains the key figures. Mateo Kovacic, Josko Guardiola, Andrei Kramaric and Ivan Perisic. After an unsuccessful first round, the Croats noticeably increased their defense and once again confirmed the reputation of a team that knows how to mobilize forces in relegation matches.

Departure time: the World Cup play-off stage has begun

Argentina will play with a lucky newcomer, and Cristiano Ronaldo will face a former teammate.

Previous meetings

The last time the teams met was in November 2024 in the League of Nations and drew 1-1. Before that, Portugal won 2-1 in September of the same year, and Croatia's only success in the history of the confrontation was recorded in the summer of 2024, when it won a friendly match 2-1. The teams crossed paths in the 1/8 finals of Euro 2016, where the Portuguese won in extra time (1-0) and subsequently became champions of the tournament.