England became the first country from Europe to qualify for the 2026 World Cup on Tuesday but Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal will have to wait after conceding a stoppage-time equalizer against Hungary.
England won 5-0 at Latvia, with Harry Kane scoring twice in the first half, to assure first place in its group with two matches to spare. England will be appearing at an eighth straight World Cup.
Portugal looked set to join the English in next year’s
tournament in North America after two goals from Cristiano Ronaldo established a 2-1 lead over Hungary in Lisbon. A win would have guaranteed Portugal a first-place finish but Dominik Szoboszlai made it 2-2 in the first minute of added-on time.
Ronaldo at least left the match with another scoring record. He now has 41 goals in World Cup qualifiers, breaking a tie for 39 he had with Guatemala player Carlos Ruiz.
Italy guaranteed itself at least a place in the playoffs after beating Israel 3-0 in a match laced with tension, played amid a hefty police and military presence, and preceded by a pro-Palestinian march attended by an estimated 10,000 people.
The match was placed in the highest risk category despite a breakthrough ceasefire deal that has paused two years of war in Gaza.
The second-placed Azzurri moved three points behind Norway, which has a much healthier goal difference. Both teams have two matches left next month, including a game against each other in Italy in the final round of qualifiers.
Spain stayed top of its group, three points clear of Turkey, by beating Bulgaria 4-0. Turkey also won, 4-1 at home to Georgia.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
