Cristiano Ronaldo has waited patiently for his first outing at World Cup 2026 and the sight of Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe all shining in their first apperances of the tournament will have fired up the Portugal leader even more.
In his sixth – and presumably final – World Cup, Ronaldo will look to guide a team with huge strength in depth behind him towards the latter stages despite questions over whether he is now more hindrance than help to head coach Roberto Martinez.
They begin their Group K campaign with a moderately tricky assignment against a DR Congo side that took the long route towards qualification but are expected to put up a reasonable fight in a pool also featuring Colombia and debutants Uzbekistan.
Follow all the action below with kick-off set for midday local time or 6pm BST:
Predicted XIs
Confirmed team news will arrive around 4:45pm BST but here is how both could potentially line up
Portugal XI: D Costa; Cancelo, Dias, Inacio, Mendes; J Neves, Fernandes, Vitinha; Bernardo, Ronaldo, Neto.
DR Congo XI: Mpasi; Wan-Bissaka, Kapuadi, Tuanzebe, Mbemba, Masuaku; Moutoussamy, Sadiki, Mukau; Wissa, Bakambu
Ronaldo red card controversy
A reminder that Ronaldo was sent off in his last competitive match for Portugal – against Ireland in a qualifying defeat in Dublin – but had the last two games of a three-match ban suspended by Fifa … so he would not miss the start of this tournament.
He has since featured in friendlies – which have not quite gone swimmingly.
How to watch
Viewers in the UK can watch the match free-to-air on BBC 1, BBCiPlayer and the BBC Sport website, with coverage starting at 5:30pm BST.
Welcome to the Ronaldo and co show
Hello and welcome to live coverage of Portugal vs DR Congo with the Group K opener getting underway in Houston, Texas at 6pm BST or midday local time.
The attention will be on Cristiano Ronaldo for abundant obvious reasons – he will be the hero or villain in the next month depending on how far Portugal go.
Yet they do face a moderately difficult start to their campaign against a DR Congo side whose form guide suggests no shortage of hard work with a sprinkling of unpredictable talent.
It should be good fun and you can follow every meaningful kick right here.
