Spain and Portugal last met in the 2025 Nations League final, where Portugal came out on top 5-3 on penalties after a 2-2 draw following extra time in Munich. Ruben Neves converted the winning spot kick after Alvaro Morata’s effort was saved by Diogo Costa, with Cristiano Ronaldo among the scorers on the night.
The two nations have a long and closely fought history, having met 41 times in total. Spain hold the overall edge with 17 wins to Portugal’s six, with 18 matches drawn between them, including a memorable 3-3 thriller at the 2018 World Cup, when Ronaldo scored a hat-trick capped by a stunning late free kick.
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Both sides arrive at tonight’s rematch having taken contrasting routes to the last 16. Spain were held to a surprise draw by Cape Verde in the group stage before beating Austria 3-0 in the round of 32, Mikel Oyarzabal scoring twice to extend their unbeaten run to 34 matches and register Spain’s first World Cup knockout win since lifting the trophy in 2010.
Portugal, meanwhile, needed a stoppage time winner from Goncalo Ramos to see off Croatia 2-1, after Ronaldo’s penalty had cancelled out an earlier Croatia goal, giving him his first ever World Cup knockout goal in the process.
Given how often this fixture has been decided by fine margins, tonight’s meeting in Arlington looks set to follow the pattern, with both sides having shown just enough quality to make this one of the ties of the round.
Photo: Emmanuele Ciancaglini/Ciancaphoto Studio/Getty Images
