Dramatic Scene! 41-Year-Old Ronaldo Scores a Penalty to Level the Match After a Goal is Disallowed, Finally Getting His First Knockout Goal and Breaking a 20-Year Jinx

On July 3, Beijing time, a key showdown in the World Cup’s 1/16 finals began. The Portuguese team battled Croatia for a place in the round of 16. In the 67th minute, Ronaldo scored from the penalty spot, leveling the score for Portugal. This marked his first goal in the World Cup knockout rounds.【Watch the World Cup on Migu Video】

Earlier in the group stage, Ronaldo’s performance fluctuated. He scored a brace against Uzbekistan, becoming the first player in history to score in six consecutive World Cups. However, in the tougher matches against Colombia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ronaldo was relatively quiet.

In the 1/16 final match against Croatia, Ronaldo once again answered his critics. In the 61st minute, he scored a one-on-one chance, only for it to be ruled out for offside. However, six minutes later, teammate Vega won a penalty. Ronaldo held his nerve, successfully converting the spot-kick to level the score for Portugal.

Thus, at 41 years old, in what could be his final World Cup, Ronaldo finally scored his first knockout-stage goal. Since 2006, he had played in eight World Cup knockout matches without finding the net.

If he had failed to score in this match, he would have equaled the record set by Dutch legend Dirk Kuyt, who went nine World Cup knockout games without a goal. Ronaldo thankfully avoided that embarrassment.

At the age of 41 years and 147 days, Ronaldo became the oldest goalscorer in World Cup knockout history. This was his 11th World Cup goal, his 146th goal for the national team, and brought his career total to 976 goals, leaving him just 24 shy of the 1,000-goal milestone.

Watch the World Cup on Migu Video! The 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico is in full swing. Go to Migu Video to watch all the matches featuring the 48 teams.