Monday night, July 6, 2026, saw two round-of-16 ties at the 2026 World Cup reach their conclusion, each ending painfully for one side: Spain knocked out Portugal with a late killer goal to end Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup journey, while Belgium demolished host nation United States 4-1 to send them out of their own tournament.
Spain 1-0 Portugal: Merino writes the ending, Ronaldo bows out in tears
The "Iberian derby" at AT&T Stadium in Arlington finished 1-0 to Spain, settled by a dramatic goal in the first minute of second-half stoppage time. After Mikel Merino was fouled and a free kick was awarded, and while Bernardo Silva was busy arguing with the referee, Merino quickly played the ball back into motion, surged toward goal, took a pass from Ferran Torres, and slotted it past goalkeeper Diogo Costa with ease — a moment that flipped the entire match. (ESPN)
The goal didn't just end the match — it very likely ended Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup career. The Portuguese superstar had been chasing a quarterfinal appearance in consecutive major tournaments for the first time, having reached that stage at Euro 2024. Ronaldo looked distraught and fought back tears after the final whistle, in a scene many described as the end of an era. (PBS) (WSFA)
With the win, Spain reach a World Cup quarterfinal for the first time since 2010, the year they won their only title — a stat that underlines just how much this Luis de la Fuente-coached generation has achieved this summer. (ESPN)
Belgium 4-1 USA: a brutal round-of-16 exit for the hosts
In the second match, at a stadium in Seattle, the host nation suffered an early shock as Charles De Ketelaere put Belgium ahead in just the ninth minute, before adding a second goal of his own before the break. American midfielder Malik Tillman pulled one back with a superb direct free kick, but the celebrations lasted barely a minute before Belgium restored their two-goal cushion with a third. (ESPN)
The killer blow for the USMNT came in the 57th minute, when a mistake by goalkeeper Matt Freese outside his own box teed up Hans Vanaken to roll in Belgium's fourth, before Romelu Lukaku added a fifth in stoppage time to seal the final 4-1 scoreline. With the result, the United States' home tournament ends at the round of 16, while Belgium move on to face Spain in the quarterfinals. (NPR) (CNN)
What's next?
With both results in, the 2026 World Cup quarterfinals will now feature a direct clash between Spain and Belgium — another test for a "La Roja" generation that keeps proving it can compete for the title, while both Portugal and the USA close their World Cup 2026 chapters with disappointments of very different scale.
Follow Malaab Al-An for every update on the 2026 World Cup quarterfinal picture.