Read 3 minutesUpdated: June 29, 2026 03:22 AM IST
Stefan Eustaquio’s late 92nd-minute winner helped the current FIFA World Cup co-hosts beat South Africa to become the first team to reach the last 16. The match looked set to go to extra time or penalties when Eustaquio fired his shot to the right of South African goalkeeper Ronwen Williams at the Los Angeles Stadium.
“You guys are Canadian heroes! Canadian heroes!” Canada coach Jesse Marsh could be heard saying to his players in confusion after the final whistle.
It was a battle between two teams that have never reached the knockout stages of a World Cup before – and Canada will now continue their World Cup journey. They will face the winner of Netherlands vs Morocco in the last 16.
It was a heartbreaking end to the South African campaign. Ronwen Williams made five saves for South Africa while their opponents had 12 attempts, including seven on target. But eventually, his resistance was broken as Eustaquio’s shot went wide.
“We worked so hard to get this win. We wanted to give this win to all Canadians. We just believed and kept pushing. It was an amazing goal, but when I shot, I felt like everyone shot with me. Everyone put some power into it and it went into the back of the net, so I’m very happy,” added Eustaquio.
“We will try to make Morocco and the Netherlands [Canada’s potential last-16 opponents] Look at our game and they thought, if they go ahead, they will have the toughest match in this World Cup. I think we did an amazing job and it will be an amazing game next week. “
Canada finally got a boost in the 75th minute when star Alphonso Davies came on as a substitute. He made his first World Cup appearance after a hamstring injury kept him out of the group.
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The playmaking Bayern Munich defender missed group play after suffering a hamstring injury for the third time this year, but eventually returned to the same stadium where he tore a knee ligament in March 2025 in a CONCACAF Nations League game.
Davies immediately made his best pass of the day to give Promise David a golden opportunity, but he finished it.
(with input from AP)