AF WC Roundup: Cristiano ends goal drought; Colombia & Croatia seal 3 pts, England draw blank

  /  RichardYan

Welcome to the All-New AF World Cup Roundup, your One-Stop Destination for World Cup News & Updates.

Matchday Highlights

England 0-0 Ghana: Three Lions draw with the Black Stars as Saka & O'Reilly miss crucial chances

England were made to wait in their quest to reach the knockout stages of the World Cup after they were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw against Ghana at Boston Stadium. 

Portugal 5-0 Uzbekistan: Ronaldo joins World Cup party with brace in thumping win

Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to score at six World Cups as his brace helped Portugal get their Group K campaign up and running with a 5-0 rout of Uzbekistan.

Panama 0-1 Croatia: Budimir's strike keeps their qualification dream alive

Budimir's strike from the bench brings the 1st win to Croatia in 2026 World Cup as Panama fail to move one step forward. Here's the match report.

Colombia 1-0 Congo DR: Munoz's deciding goal seals Colombia a place in the Round of 32

Daniel Munoz goal sends Colombia into 2026 World Cup knockout stage as they beat DR Congo

Key Stats Board

Cristiano Ronaldo the first ever player to score in 6 World Cup tournaments

Cristiano Ronaldo has become the first player to score in six different FIFA WorldCup tournaments.

5-0 is Portugal's second largest World Cup win, only trailing 7-0 over North Korea

In the second round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage, Portugal achieved a resounding 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan, marking their second-largest winning margin in FIFA World Cup history, trailing only their 7-0 triumph over North Korea.

Ronaldo ties Manchester United record with 145 goals for Portugal, second only to Real Madrid's 450

In the second round of Group K of the FIFA World Cup in the US, Canada, and Mexico, Portugal defeated Uzbekistan 5-0. Ronaldo scored twice, bringing his FIFA World Cup goals to 10, his national team goals to 145, and his total career goals to 975.

Messi and Ronaldo's World Cup Goal Span: 20 Years and 11 Days Between First and Latest Goals

Data shows that both Messi and Ronaldo have scored their first and latest FIFA World Cup goals exactly 20 years and 11 days apart.

Bellingham reaches 50th England cap & becomes youngest player in team history to reach milestone

Jude Bellingham will reach his 50th cap milestone for the national team.

Standings

Group K Standings: Colombia leads after two wins, Portugal to vie for top spot next round

After Matchday 13, two matches in the second round of Group K of the 2026 FIFA World Cup concluded. Colombia has directly qualified for the top 32 with two consecutive wins, and temporarily leads the group standings. Portugal, after a 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan, moved into second place in the group. The top two teams will directly compete in the next round. 

World Cup Group L Standings: England leads, Panama eliminated

As of June 24th (UTC), all matches of the FIFA World Cup Group L round 2 have concluded, with updated standings now available.

These things happen

OFFICIAL: Michael Oliver in charge of refereeing Norway vs France

According to FIFA's official announcement, Michael Oliver will the referee for the 3rd Round blockbuster match in Group I between Norway and France.

OFFICIAL: Anthony Taylor will be in charge of refereeing Senengal vs Iraq

According to FIFA official announcement, English referee Anthony Taylor will be refereeing the 3rd Round World Cup match in Group I between Senegal and Iraq.

OFFICIAL: Gattuso is appointed as Lazio's new head coach

Accoridng to Lazio's official announcement, Gennaro Gatusso, the former Milan, Napoli and Italy National Team head coach, is Lazio's new head coach. 

Bellingham appears to tell Ghana bench ‘f*** you’ in furious row before being chased off pitch

JUDE BELLINGHAM was chased off the field by Ghana boss Carlos Queiroz after a fiery, sweary row at half-time.

Romano: Atlético Madrid to lodge FIFA complaint against Barcelona over Álvarez deal

Transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano reported that Atlético Madrid will file a formal complaint with FIFA regarding Barcelona's handling of the Álvarez transfer.

Here We Go! Romano: Marco Palestra has reached a verbal agreement with Chelsea to join

According to Romano's latest report, Marco Palestra is about to become a Chelsea player, with a fee over €55m fee + sell-on clause

Partey and Spence: Spurs full-back appears to snub handshake with former Arsenal midfielder

Djed Spence appeared to not shake hands with Thomas Partey before England's match against Ghana.

MU & Arsenal are both tracking midfielder Alex Scott... with Bournemouth set to demand around £60m

Manchester United and Arsenal are tracking Bournemouth's Alex Scott.

Arsenal stance on signing Julian Alvarez after Argentina star drops transfer bombshell

Julian Alvarez has made it clear he wants to leave Atletico Madrid following Argentina's 2-0 World Cup win over Austria

Fans bemused as TV cuts away from England players shaking hands with Partey ahead of Ghana WC clash

Fans were left bemused as the TV cameras cut away from the pre-match handshake when Thomas Partey approached England's players ahead of their clash with Ghana.

What They Say

Ronaldo and Neymar have nothing to prove, says Cancelo

Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar have nothing to prove to their doubters at the World Cup, believes Portugal full-back Joao Cancelo.

Robertson: Being scotland captain means a lot, we want to advance from the group stage

Robertson was interviewed by Romario, discussing Scotland's return to the FIFA World Cup after 28 years. Robertson stated that Scotland's goal is to be the first team in their history to advance from the FIFA World Cup group stage.

Modrić: playing 200 matches for the national team is incredible

On June 24th, in the second round of the FIFA World Cup group stage, Croatia defeated Panama 1-0. After the match, Croatian international Modrić gave an interview with HRT.

Trincão: We are all happy for Ronaldo; He is the best player

Trincão spoke in the mixed zone about Ronaldo's goal and the team's performance this week. He stated that it is a privilege to play alongside Ronaldo, and the team showed significant improvement in their 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan compared to their first match.

Fixtures of the Day

World Cup

Switzerland vs Canada 2026/06/24 19:00 UTC

Bosnia-Herzegovina vs Qatar 2026/06/24 19:00 UTC

Scotland vs Brazil 2026/06/24 22:00 UTC

Morocco vs Haiti 2026/06/24 22:00 UTC

Czech vs Mexcio 2026/06/25 01:00 UTC

South Africa vs South Korea 2026/06/25 01:00 UTC

Related: Colombia Congo DR Croatia Arsenal Chelsea Manchester United Tottenham Hotspur AFC Bournemouth England France Ghana Iraq Milan Lazio Cagliari Norway Panama Sporting CP Portugal Senegal Real Madrid Barcelona Atletico Madrid Villarreal Uzbekistan Al Nassr FC Gennaro Gattuso Messi Modric Ronaldo Cancelo Partey Robertson Francisco Trincão Inter Miami CF Bellingham Spence North Korea Michael Oliver Anthony Taylor Alvarez Alex Scott Marco Palestra
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