Colombia vs Portugal: Live Group K Decider in Miami

Colombia and Portugal kicked off their Group K finale at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, on June 27 at 7:30 p.m. ET, with first place in the group still unresolved going into the second half. Colombia entered the match needing only a draw to win the group, while Portugal needed a win to leapfrog them.

The match was still in progress as of the timestamp above. Half-time arrived with the score at 0-0, despite a string of chances at both ends. This article will be updated once full-time confirmation arrives from the official FIFA match centre.

How the two sides arrived at this point

Colombia walked into the final round of Group K with six points from two wins. Daniel Muñoz, Luis Díaz and Jaminton Campaz scored in a 3-1 opening win over Uzbekistan in Mexico City, and Muñoz then settled a tight 1-0 win over DR Congo in Guadalajara with a 76th-minute strike.

Portugal's route was less smooth. Roberto Martínez's side opened with a 1-1 draw against DR Congo in Houston, with João Neves heading them in front before Yoane Wissa equalised in stoppage time, the first World Cup finals goal in DR Congo's history. Portugal responded with a 5-0 win over Uzbekistan, built around two first-half goals from Cristiano Ronaldo.

That brace made Ronaldo the first men's player to score at six different World Cups, stretching from Germany 2006 to this tournament. It also pushed him past Eusébio as Portugal's all-time leading scorer at the World Cup.

Going into kick-off, the maths were simple. A draw or win sent Colombia through as group winners. Only a win kept Portugal's top-spot hopes alive, and the FIFA Matchday 17 preview confirmed those were the exact conditions facing both teams.

Confirmed line-ups and first-half pattern

Néstor Lorenzo made three changes from the win over DR Congo, with Santiago Arias, Deiver Machado and Jhon Córdoba replacing Daniel Muñoz, Johan Mojica and Luis Suárez. Camilo Vargas started in goal behind a back four of Arias, Davinson Sánchez, Jhon Lucumí and Machado. James Rodríguez captained the side through the middle alongside Jhon Arias and Luis Díaz, with Córdoba leading the line and Gustavo Puerta and Jefferson Lerma holding midfield.

Martínez made one change from the Uzbekistan rout, bringing in Rúben Neves for João Neves alongside Vitinha in midfield. Diogo Costa started in goal, with Cristiano Ronaldo at centre-forward supported by Bruno Fernandes, João Félix and Pedro Neto.

Colombia created the better of the early chances. Jhon Córdoba headed a first-minute rebound over the bar, then forced a low save from Diogo Costa with a powerful 17th-minute strike, and Rúben Neves had to clear off his own line midway through the half to deny a second Colombian effort. Portugal's clearest opening came from Bruno Fernandes, who was denied by a smart stop from Camilo Vargas. João Félix also volleyed over late in the half. Neither side could find a breakthrough, and the teams went in level at the break, according to The Guardian's live coverage.

Match officials and venue

Alireza Faghani, the Australian referee who took charge of France's 3-1 win over Senegal earlier in the tournament, was appointed for this fixture. He is assisted by fellow Australians George Lakrindis and Andrew Lindsay, with Saíd Martínez of Honduras as fourth official and Walter López, also of Honduras, as reserve assistant. Jérôme Brisard of France is the Video Assistant Referee, supported by Hernán Mastrángelo of Argentina and Mahmoud Ashour of Egypt.

The match is being played at the venue FIFA lists as Miami Stadium, commercially known as Hard Rock Stadium, in Miami Gardens, Florida. It is the home of the Miami Dolphins and has also hosted Formula 1's Miami Grand Prix and the Miami Open tennis tournament on its surrounding campus, a sign of how the site has been adapted for multiple sports beyond football.

This is the first senior men's international meeting between Colombia and Portugal, according to multiple independent match previews, with no contradictory official record found.

What was happening elsewhere in Group K

DR Congo and Uzbekistan kicked off at the same time in Atlanta, in a match that carried its own weight for third place in the group. Uzbekistan went into that game on zero points and a minus-7 goal difference after two defeats, while DR Congo arrived with one point following their draw with Portugal and their loss to Colombia. Live coverage from Miami noted Uzbekistan had taken the lead in that match, though it too remained in progress at the time of this report and is not treated here as final. Portugal's earlier 5-0 win over Uzbekistan, which set up tonight's permutations, is covered in GlobalExpressTime's half-time report from that match.

What happens next and how to watch

Both Colombia and Portugal have already secured Round of 32 places regardless of tonight's result. What remains open is which team finishes first in Group K, a distinction that shapes the knockout bracket each side will face. Confirmation of the final score, scorers, and group placings will follow once the match concludes and is verified against the FIFA match centre and official Group K standings page.

In the United States, the match is being shown on FOX in English and Telemundo in Spanish, the tournament's confirmed rights holders for English- and Spanish-language coverage in the country, per FOX Sports' how-to-watch guide. At half-time, the only confirmed line on the scoreboard reads Colombia 0, Portugal 0.