2026 World Cup: Eustaquio Secures Canada’s Spot in the Round of 16 in the 92nd Minute
Canada earned a historic spot in the Round of 16 at the 2026 World Cup, thanks to a 92nd-minute goal that sealed a 1-0 victory over a tough South African team. The hero of the moment is Stephen Eustaquio, Canadian by birth and citizenship but Portuguese by heritage and career. Having come up through the youth ranks at União Leiria, he played for Torreense, Leixões, Chaves, and Paços de Ferreira before moving to Porto. The Dragões still hold his rights, even though the midfielder, born in 1996, has spent the last few months on loan at Los Angeles FC.
It was a tough match for Canada, partly because it wasn’t played on home soil (the game was held at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles). Yet the action was one-sided after an early attempt by Mokoena for South Africa: Millar had a chance, as did Juventus’ Jonathan David twice, Cornelius with a header that was too weak, and Oluwaseyi, who tested opposing goalkeeper Williams before sending his header too high off a free kick taken by Eustaquio. All of this happened in the first half, which ended with a spectacular triple chance created by Bombito, Cornelius, and Buchanan, but also with a penalty not awarded for a foul by Mudau on Laryea.
The second half followed the same pattern, but once again South Africa created a chance to take a dramatic lead: Appollis tried his luck from distance but narrowly missed the goal. The Bafana Bafana held on with everything they had: Williams made a stunning double save on Oluwaseyi, and Mbokazi made an even more spectacular save on David’s subsequent tap-in attempt. The Juventus forward once again crashes into the opposing goalkeeper, and extra time seems inevitable. Instead, after a difficult save by Crepeau on Appollis, Eustaquio secured a spot in the Round of 16 with a splendid goal on the rebound in the 92nd minute, following yet another save by the South African defense. Now it’s either the Netherlands or Morocco to keep the dream alive.
A victory that also had rapper Drake celebrating; he had announced on social media that he had bet a whopping $770,000 on a Canadian win, at odds of 1.30, which now nets him about a million dollars. The bet was also sparked by a provocation from the famous South African DJ Black Coffee, who had teased the singer in a chat. This time, however, the infamous “Drake Curse” did not materialize: the rapper’s curse—which in the past had struck, among others, Jannik Sinner at the 2025 US Open (who was defeated in the final by Carlos Alcaraz despite the $300,000 Drake had bet on the Italian tennis player)—came to a halt in front of Crepeau’s goal.
Worth noting is the performance of Jonathan David, who once again failed to find the back of the net despite creating numerous chances. The Juventus striker, who arrived at the World Cup after a season with the Bianconeri that fell short of expectations—just 8 goals in 46 official matches, a far cry from his numbers at Lille—had, however, stated before the tournament his desire to remain in Turin: “I have a five-year contract, so as far as I’m concerned, I’m still here.” Setting aside the controversy among Juventus fans, David has already made his mark at the World Cup with a hat trick against Qatar in the group stage, and the hunger for goals he displayed again tonight suggests that a goal could come in the Round of 16.
Jesse Marsch’s Canada finished Group B in second place behind Switzerland, ahead of Qatar and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and now looks forward with renewed confidence to the match against the winner of the Netherlands-Morocco game, scheduled for the night of June 29–30. For the Canucks, this is a historic achievement, accomplished in front of their home crowd—or nearly so—in what is their first World Cup played on home soil. It’s a dream that, thanks to Eustaquio’s magical left foot, continues to live on.
