Portugal's Goal Festival Seals a Dream 2026 World Cup Spot
16 November 2025
Match Recap
Portugal clinched direct qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup by routing Armenia 9-1 at home, delivering a sensational finale to their European qualifying campaign.
The goals came from Renato Veiga, Gonçalo Ramos, Joao Neves (a hat-trick), Bruno Fernandes (a hat-trick) and Francisco Conceicao, while Eduard Spirtzyan scored Armenia’s lone consolation in the 18th minute.
The victory leaves Portugal on 13 points at the top of Group 6, with Armenia at the bottom on three points.
Portugal were without their talisman Cristiano Ronaldo, who had been sent off in the previous match against Ireland, yet coach Roberto Martinez named a strong lineup: Diogo Costa; Semedo, Dias, Veiga, Cancelo; Vitinha, Joao Neves, Bruno Fernandes, Leao, Silva, Ramos.
Armenia lined up with Avagian, Hovanessian, Makrichen, Serge Moradian, Beloyan, Teknizian, Spirtzyan, Karan Moradian, Agasarian, Ramos and Sirobian.
Early pressure paid off as Fernandes curled a precise free-kick that the Armenian keeper parried, only for Veiga to head in the rebound for a 1-0 Portugal lead.
The visitors equalized soon after when Spirtzyan finished a tidy move on the left, directing a low cross into the net.
Portugal reasserted control, with Ramos touching home after a defender miscue, and Neves added a second moments later from outside the box, firing an arrow into the top corner.
A hard-free kick by Neves struck the crossbar and rebounded into the net, extending the lead to 4-1 before halftime.
In the second period, Fernandes completed his hat-trick and Neves, Conceicao and Ramos added more to seal a historic nine-goal win for the hosts.
Portugal continued to press, with Cancelo and Leao probing as Armenia tried in vain to respond. The final whistle confirmed a remarkable night for Portugal as they topped the group with a big statement ahead of the World Cup finals.
Punchlines
Sniper joke 1: Portugal aimed for the moon and took the Armenian defense with them—nine goals later, the scoreboard filed a police report for excessive scoring.
Sniper joke 2: If football had a firing range, Portugal just lined up a perfect nine-shot montage; Armenia’s goalie is now booked as the league’s most photographed goalkeeper for all the wrong reasons.
