Cristiano Ronaldo was in tears after Portugal won the Nations League by beating Spain 5-3 on penalties. The final ended 2-2 after extra time on Sunday.
Ronaldo scored his 138th goal for Portugal during the match, helping to send the game to a penalty shootout. Spain’s Alvaro Morata missed his penalty, and Ruben Neves scored the winner for Portugal, starting big celebrations. The moment was very emotional for 40-year-old Ronaldo.
Spain had come into the final full of confidence after beating France 5-4 in the semi-finals on Thursday. They were also unbeaten since March 2023 and were hoping to win another trophy after last year’s European Championship.
Spain took the lead in the 21st minute when Martin Zubimendi scored his second goal for his country. But Portugal equalised soon after when Nuno Mendes finished off a move that started with Ronaldo.
Spain went ahead again before half-time with a great pass from Pedri setting up Mikel Oyarzabal, who had also scored the winner in last year’s European final against England.
The match was billed as a battle between the old and the new – with veteran Ronaldo facing young Spanish star Lamine Yamal. Yamal didn’t have much impact, while Ronaldo made the most of his chance and scored from close range just after the hour mark.
Ronaldo had to leave the pitch with an injury late in the game. After a tense extra time with no more goals, Portugal scored all five of their penalties to win the shootout and the trophy.
Earlier on Sunday, France beat Germany 2-0 to finish third. Kylian Mbappe scored one goal and assisted another for Michael Olise as France bounced back from a slow first half.
