England thrash Latvia to seal 2026 World Cup spot, Ronaldo breaks record for Portugal

New Delhi: England sealed their spot in the 2026 FIFA World Cup as captain Harry Kane netted a brace in a 5-0 away win against Latvia on Tuesday, while Cristiano Ronaldo set a new goal-scoring record, but Hungary grabbed a late 2-2 draw to stop Portugal from qualifying for next summer’s tournament with two games remaining.

England's Anthony Gordon scored the opening goal in Riga before Kane took his goal-scoring tally for club and country this season to 21 goals in 13 matches. The England striker netted his first goal in the 44th minute after Latvia were caught playing out from the back. Kane then converted a penalty, which was awarded after he was pulled back in the area.

Djed Spence's cross was turned into an own goal by Latvia's Maksims Tonisevs in the 57th minute of the match, and substitute Eberechi Eze scored the fifth goal for the Three Lions in the 86th minute. Thomas Tuchel's England are the first European nation to book their place in next year's mega tournament.

Albania are second on 11 points, with Serbia in third place in Group K. England will end their qualifying campaign with a home match against Serbia and a visit to Albania in November.

Cristiano Ronaldo became the all-time top goalscorer in World Cup qualifying history against Hungary in Lisbon. The striker scored his 40th and 41st qualifying goals, surpassing retired Guatemala international Carlos Ruiz, who netted 39 between 1998 and 2016.

Despite his efforts, Portugal were stopped from booking their 2026 FIFA World Cup spot after a 2-2 home draw against Hungary on Tuesday. Dominik Szoboszlai netted a stoppage-time equaliser for Hungary.

Portugal now have to wait until November to seal their spot. They are on 10 points from four matches, and Hungary is on five points; both sides have two games remaining. Ireland are in third spot with four points.

Hungary scored the opening goal in the eighth minute of the match as Attila Szalai rose above Portugal midfielder Bernardo Silva to net in his first competitive goal for the national team.

However, Ronaldo scored the equalising goal for Portugal in the 22nd minute and became the all-time top scorer in World Cup qualifiers. He then netted his 41st World Cup qualifying goal, completing the turnaround in the first-half stoppage time with another tap-in to send Portugal into the break ahead.

Portugal dominated early in the second half, hitting the woodwork twice. But as the game approached the 90-minute mark, Hungary grew into the game, with Szoboszlai also hitting the bar. He scored the equaliser for Hungary from close range in the added time to deny the home fans a celebration.

Other match results from FIFA World Cup Qualifiers

Turkey 4-1 Georgia

Latvia 0-5 England

Andorra 1-3 Serbia

Ireland 1-0 Armenia

Spain 4-0 Bulgaria

Italy 3-0 Israel

Add TV9 English As A Trusted Source

Saudi Arabia 0-0 Iraq

Qatar 2-1 UAE