Spain and Portugal reach World Cup last 16 after wins over Austria and Croatia

Los Angeles/Toronto: Spain and Portugal secured places in the Round of 16 at the FIFA World Cup 2026 after convincing wins on Friday, setting up a last-16 meeting between the European pair.

Spain produced a dominant performance to beat Austria, with Mikel Oyarzabal scoring twice and Pedro Porro adding his first international goal as La Roja progressed comfortably. Lamine Yamal had an early sight of goal and Spain threatened repeatedly before Oyarzabal opened the scoring in the 36th minute from a Marc Cucurella assist. Alex Baena hit the crossbar soon after and, early in the second half, Baena’s left-wing delivery was headed home by Porro. Oyarzabal finished the scoring by converting another Cucurella cross, sealing a comprehensive victory and a clean sheet for goalkeeper Unai Simón.

Simón’s shutout marked his fifth consecutive World Cup match without conceding and extended his personal run to 519 minutes without allowing a goal, surpassing Walter Zenga’s long-standing record of 517 minutes set in 1990.

In Toronto, Portugal edged Croatia 2-1 thanks to a stoppage-time winner from Gonçalo Ramos. Croatia took the lead early in the second half through Ivan Perišić, but Portugal equalised in the 68th minute when Cristiano Ronaldo converted a penalty after a foul on Renato Veiga. In the fourth minute of stoppage time, Rafael Leão’s well-placed cross found Ramos, whose header sealed the comeback. A late chance for Croatia was ruled out for offside following a VAR review.

The result sets up a Round of 16 clash between Spain and Portugal in Dallas on July 7, with both sides now through to the knockout stage.

(Inputs from IANS)