DR Congo Holds Portugal to 1-1 Draw in Houston
(image via Omar Duran)
Houston, Texas hosted its second match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Wednesday afternoon with powerhouse Portugal taking on underdogs DR Congo. The roof was closed at Houston Stadium as Tropical Storm Arthur rolled through the area during the match, an oddity you’d only see in the Bayou City.
Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo started the match, joining Lionel Messi as the only men to appear in 6 different World Cups. It didn’t take long for the Portuguese to get on the board after kickoff. A ball across the field found fullback Joao Cancelo with space. He fired a cross in that Congo cleared, but only as far as Pedro Neto. The Chelsea man put a ball into the middle and diminutive midfielder Joao Neves was first to rise for it and head a shot into the back of the net to put Portugal ahead 1-0 in the 6th minute.
DR Congo weren’t deterred and nearly hit right back. An Aaron Wan-Bissaka whopped a cross in and the clearance landed to Yoane Wissa. The Newcastle striker drilled a shot just wide. Both teams continued to mount attacks throughout the first half. Ronaldo’s best effort came from a Cancelo pass in the 30th minute, but the skipper couldn’t quite get a foot on it.
The Leopards continuted to get chances, looking the more likely team to score. Edo Kayembe had a shot deflected that had to be parried away by Portugal goalkeeper Diogo Costa in the 33rd minute. They would find their breakthrough in first half stoppage time.
The four minutes of stoppage time had been played but DR Congo had one last corner. The corner was played short and Arthur Masuaku played a great ball into the box. Wissa got up and to the ball first, powering a header past Costa into the top corner. Wissa wheeled away in celebration of his country’s first ever World Cup goal as the teams went into half time tied at 1-1.
The second half was more of the same with both teams battling and getting good attacking chances. Portugal had the ball in the back of the net in the 55th minute after a bicycle kick from Joao Cancelo but the flag went off on the fullback for offside. Just a minute later, DR Congo hit the post as Cedric Bakambu smashed a volley off the woodwork. It wouldn’t have counted, however, as the striker was called for a foul.
Cristiano Ronaldo had two good chances in a span of a few minutes. First he hooked a shot wide in the 68th minute, that was just behind him off a pass from Cancelo. In the 73rd minute, substitute Francisco Conceicao played the ball into the captain at the near post but he once again missed the target. Bruno Fernandes, who was right behind Ronaldo, was frustrated that he didn’t leave the ball for him.
Fernandes’ best effort came right on 90 minutes when he shot from distance with his left foot, but it slid just wide of DR Congo’s net. Tomas Araujo picked up a yellow for a shocking challenge in stoppage time, and he was lucky not to see red. Neither team could find a winner in the five minutes of stoppage time and DR Congo came away with a memorable point. Portugal will be asking questions of itself after the 1-1 draw.
