Ronaldo Makes History as Portugal Defeats Uzbekistan in 2026 World Cup

Portugal played its second match in the 2026 World Cup against Uzbekistan as part of Group 11 competition.

The Portuguese team began its campaign in the tournament, hosted by the United States, Canada, and Portugal with 48 teams participating for the first time, by drawing 1-1 with the Democratic Republic of Congo. Meanwhile, Uzbekistan lost 0-1 to Colombia.

Portugal started the game aggressively, aiming to secure its first victory in this edition of the World Cup.

Cristiano Ronaldo opened the scoring in the sixth minute by converting a precise cross into a goal.

With this goal, Ronaldo became the first player in history to score in six different World Cup tournaments, starting from his debut in 2006.

Nuno Mendes added a second goal in the 17th minute with a remarkable direct free kick that found the net.

Following these two goals, Portugal continued pressing to increase their lead and move closer to securing qualification for the knockout stage.

Messi Extends World Cup Scoring Record

Meanwhile, Lionel Messi, the captain of Argentina, continued his impressive form by extending his lead as the top scorer in the 2026 World Cup after the second round of group matches.

Messi scored twice in Argentina’s victory over Austria on Monday during the group stage's second round.

This brought Messi’s total to five goals in the current tournament, placing him two goals ahead of his nearest competitors in the race for the Golden Boot.

He also continued to make history by becoming the all-time top scorer in World Cup history with 18 goals across all his World Cup appearances.

Messi began the tournament by scoring a hat-trick against Algeria and followed that with two goals against Austria, helping lead Argentina to the knockout rounds.

He appears to be the leading contender for the Golden Boot, especially given his outstanding performance with Argentina, who are aiming to retain their world title for a second consecutive time.