Portugal’s World Cup Opener: A Tribute to Diogo Jota
On a night when Lionel Messi bent another World Cup to his will and Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland joined the show with braces of their own, the spotlight now swings toward Houston and a very different kind of occasion.
Portugal’s first game of this World Cup is not just about points, form or tactics. It is about absence.
It is about Diogo Jota.
The Liverpool and Portugal forward died last year in a car crash, along with his brother André Silva, just days after marrying his long-term partner, Rute Cardoso. Three children left without a father, a dressing room stripped of a friend, and a national team robbed of a player who had always dreamed of walking out at a World Cup.
The shock still hangs in the air for those who knew him. Liverpool players have admitted this season felt like a blur at times, football reduced to background noise as they tried to process a loss that never quite made sense.
Now it is Portugal’s turn to carry that weight into the sport’s biggest arena.
Wristbands, Memory and a Promise
Roberto Martínez named Jota an honorary member of this World Cup squad. Symbolic, yes, but not hollow. The Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, has given every player a bracelet, their own name etched alongside Jota’s. A quiet, constant reminder on the wrist.
The plan is simple and powerful: Portugal will wear them in the opener against DR Congo at NRG Stadium in Houston.
“They made sure that it was a wristband that we could wear on the pitch,” midfielder Vitinha explained to reporters. “He let us choose if we wanted to use it or not, during the day or during the match. We received it with a lot of affection and we chose to use it.”
This is not just a gesture for the cameras. It is a daily negotiation with grief. A squad trying to balance expectation with emotion, performance with pain.
“We feel this and we want to win it, not just because it’s a World Cup and it’s everybody’s dream, but for him as well,” Vitinha told CNN Sports earlier this year.
Jota will not be on the teamsheet in Houston. But he will be everywhere else.
Ronaldo, Legacy and a Midfield Built for Now
Kickoff in Houston comes at 1 p.m. ET. Once the anthems fade and the bracelets are hidden by sweatbands and tape, the conversation will turn, inevitably, to Cristiano Ronaldo.
He is no longer the relentless force of a decade ago, but he remains unavoidable. A five-time Ballon d’Or winner, a man whose World Cup in Qatar ended with him dropped and diminished, now stands at another crossroads.
Drop him again? That would take courage verging on defiance. And after Messi’s hat-trick reminder that genius ages but does not disappear, the temptation to trust Ronaldo’s instincts in front of goal grows stronger.
Around him, this Portugal team feels thoroughly modern. Bruno Fernandes, Vitinha, Bernardo Silva and João Neves form what may be the most complete midfield in the tournament: control, creativity, bite, and brains. The question is no longer whether Portugal has the talent to compete, but whether Ronaldo amplifies that talent or crowds it.
The answer starts to emerge in Texas.
DR Congo’s Threat and a Shadow Off the Pitch
Portugal opens as favorite, but DR Congo is no ceremonial opponent.
Yoane Wissa carries the main attacking threat, a striker capable of punishing any lapse. The rest of the side will lean on structure and compactness, happy to frustrate and counter, to turn a commemorative night into a deeply awkward one for a team already carrying emotional strain.
Beyond the pitch, DR Congo arrives under the cloud of a serious Ebola outbreak back home. Health authorities warn it could become the country’s worst if not contained, with more than 800 confirmed cases and no specific treatments or vaccines for this Bundibugyo strain. The World Health Organization rates the risk very high within the DRC but low globally, while US agencies have introduced entry screening for passengers from the region.
So DR Congo walks into this World Cup with more than tactical headaches. A national side representing a country fighting a different kind of battle, even as it tries to make a mark on the field against one of the tournament’s giants.
England, Croatia and Another Chapter in a Long, Frayed Love Story
If Portugal–DR Congo offers emotion and edge, England–Croatia in Arlington brings history and scars.
At 4 p.m. ET in AT&T Stadium, the Three Lions begin another World Cup with the same old burden: 1966, and the six-decade wait since. The talent is there again. It usually is.
Thomas Tuchel has made one big call already. He has left out headline names such as Cole Palmer and Phil Foden, choosing chemistry over star power. It is a ruthless approach from a manager who has built his reputation on systems, not sentiment.
He still has plenty to work with. Declan Rice to anchor, Jude Bellingham to surge and stitch, Harry Kane to finish and lead. The spine looks strong enough to carry a deep run.
Standing in the way is a familiar tormentor. Croatia, led still by the 40-year-old Luka Modrić, who continues to dictate games with the calm of a man who has seen every possible scenario and solved most of them. This is the team that dumped England out in the 2018 semifinals, another chapter in a rivalry that always seems to leave England nursing a bruise.
For a soccer-obsessed nation, this is not just a group game. It is a test of whether the scars of past tournaments have hardened into resilience or calcified into fear.
Iran’s Visa Headache Eases
Not every World Cup story is written in goals and tackles.
Iran has endured more logistical turbulence than most, forced to base itself in Mexico and shuttle into the US for games amid ongoing political tensions. One player, winger Mehdi Torabi, discovered after the first match that his visa had expired.
That could have ended his tournament on a technicality. Instead, the US State Department stepped in.
“This issue has been resolved,” an official told CNN’s Jennifer Hansler. Torabi now has a new multi-entry visa, clearing him to play in as many matches as Iran can reach.
For a squad already juggling geopolitics and football, one problem is at least off the table.
Ghana, Panama and a Chance to Reset
At 7 p.m. ET, BMO Field in Toronto hosts Ghana against Panama, a match that may not dominate global headlines but could define both teams’ tournaments.
Panama returns to the World Cup for just the second time, still scarred by 2018: three games, three defeats, and a 6-1 hammering by England. The goal this time is simpler and more modest—win a point, any point. The opener against Ghana might be their best shot.
Ghana, once tipped as Africa’s likeliest first world champion, has stalled since that infamous 2010 quarterfinal exit. The Black Stars have not escaped the group stage at a World Cup since, and this squad lacks some of the star wattage of previous eras.
They do, however, have Antoine Semenyo, in electric form for Manchester City and capable of dragging games his way. If he carries club sharpness into the tournament, Ghana has every chance of opening with three points.
They must do it without Thomas Partey in Toronto. The 33-year-old midfielder had his visa application rejected, a decision upheld by a Canadian federal judge earlier this week, according to the Associated Press. Partey is awaiting trial on rape charges in the United Kingdom but will be available for Ghana’s remaining two group games in the US.
It is a complicated backdrop to a crucial fixture. On the pitch, Ghana needs clarity. Off it, the noise will not fade quickly.
Uzbekistan’s Debut and Colombia’s Old Magic
The World Cup’s final debutant steps onto the stage in Mexico City.
At 10 p.m. ET in the Estadio Azteca, Uzbekistan faces Colombia, chasing a slice of history: of the four newcomers at this tournament, none has yet managed a win in its opening match. The White Wolves, led by 2006 World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro, believe they can be the first.
They are not here to make up the numbers. Defender Abdukodir Khusanov, now a regular for Manchester City and already hardened by Premier League and Champions League football, gives them a genuine top-level anchor at the back.
Across from them stands a Colombia side steeped in tournament experience. James Rodríguez, the breakout star of 2014, remains the creative heartbeat, still able to pick passes others do not see. Luis Díaz, one of the most in-form wingers on the planet this season, offers pace and chaos on the flank.
It is a classic World Cup contrast: fresh faces against familiar ones, a rising nation against a team that knows this stage inside out.
Messi’s Relentless March and a Record in Sight
Amid all this, Messi quietly continues to rewrite the sport’s record books.
His hat-trick against Algeria not only lit up the night but pulled him level with Miroslav Klose for the most goals in World Cup history. He answered the milestone with characteristic humility, but the numbers tell their own story.
He has now scored five World Cup goals from outside the box, matching Brazilian great Rivellino. Another strike from distance, another record on his own.
At this point, you wonder which mark he will not touch.
From Houston to Arlington, Toronto to Mexico City, today’s slate offers everything: grief and tribute, rivalry and revenge, debut dreams and old masters chasing one last run.
Messi has set the tone. Now it is Ronaldo’s turn, England’s turn, Ghana’s turn, Uzbekistan’s turn.
Whose story will the day belong to?
