Portugal wins UEFA Nations League: Portugal claimed their second UEFA Nations League title on Sunday evening, prevailing 5–3 in a penalty shootout over holders Spain after an absorbing 2–2 draw at the Allianz Arena.
The final, often taut but rarely fluent, came to life in moments rather than spells. Cristiano Ronaldo, whose international longevity has long outpaced ordinary milestones, scored his 138th goal for Portugal—an equaliser that eventually proved instrumental in taking the match to penalties.
Earlier, both sides had traded goals in a first half that promised more than it delivered, with neither able to assert control in a match punctuated more by calculation than courage.
In the shootout, Spain’s Álvaro Morata saw his effort saved—an intervention as much psychological as technical—before Rúben Neves converted the decisive spot-kick with clinical certainty.
Portugal’s route to the final had included a disciplined 2–1 semifinal victory over hosts Germany, Ronaldo once again providing the match-winning contribution. Spain, meanwhile, survived a frenetic 5–4 semifinal against France, with 16-year-old Lamine Yamal scoring twice in a first half that saw Spain take a 4–0 lead, before holding on against a late French rally.
This marks Portugal’s second Nations League triumph, their first coming in 2019. For Spain, it was a second consecutive final loss, and a reminder that promise—like possession—does not always translate into prizes.
While the Nations League remains a relatively new fixture in the international calendar, Portugal’s consistency within it suggests a team well attuned to its demands. And in Ronaldo, still, they possess a figure who, for all his years, continues to bend footballing fate toward his will.
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