Cristiano Ronaldo will get another shot at lifting the World Cup.
The leading men’s international scorer can play in his fifth World Cup after Portugal defeated North Macedonia 2-0 in a European playoff, one of seven spots in soccer’s premier tournament decided on Tuesday.
Thirty-two teams, including the hosts, will play in Qatar starting Nov. 21. As of Tuesday, 27 teams had qualified with two additional spots to be determined on Wednesday. Two intercontinental playoffs will be held in June along with two games to determine the final European berth.
Portugal’s win finalized the eight seeds for Friday’s draw: host Qatar along with Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, England, France, Portugal and Spain.
Pot two will include Croatia, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland and Uruguay, and if they qualify Wednesday, Mexico and the United States.
All eyes were on North Macedonia, vying for its first World Cup berth after it surprisingly eliminated Italy with a 1-0 victory last week. But it wasn’t meant to be for the small country that gained independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991. It will be Portugal’s eighth World Cup and sixth in a row.
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