Last night, Argentina’s Lionel Messi became the first player ever to appear in six different World Cups, and to boot, he scored a hat trick to tie Miroslav Klose as the all-time leading goal scorer in the competition. This afternoon, Cristiano Ronaldo is set to become the second player to reach that six-tournament threshold.
At 12 p.m. ET (11 a.m. local) in Houston, Ronaldo’s Portugal will open its 2026 World Cup campaign against DR Congo. The Leopards are making their first appearance in the tournament since 1974, while the Seleçao das Quinas will compete for the seventh consecutive time.
Throughout the World Cup, DraftKings Network will be highlighting some of the stars of the tournament, tracking their performances in all of their matches. Here’s how Ronaldo performed against DR Congo:
Portugal vs. DR Congo odds
Portugal is a -350 favorite to take all three points at DraftKings Sportsbook, and the Leopards are +1100. There are +450 odds that the teams will play to a draw.
Cristiano Ronaldo prop bets, odds
- 1st Goalscorer: +245
- Anytime Goalscorer: -140
- 2+ Goals: +320
- 3+ Goals: +1700
- Shots: 3+ (-700), 4+ (-265), 5+ (-120), 6+ (+170)
- Shots on Target: 1+ (-800), 2+ (-160), 3+ (+195), 4+ (+500)
- Assists: 1+ (+450), 2+ (+5000)
- Offsides: 1+ (-220), 2+ (+190)
Tracking Cristiano Ronaldo
Follow along as DKNetwork tracks Ronaldo’s and Portugal’s performance against DR Congo! This section will be updated.
FT: The referee has blown the whistle, and DR Congo claims a well-earned point! A very quiet World Cup opener for Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal, and what a great moment for a nation that hasn’t participated in this tournament since 1974!
90’+4: The Seleçao das Quinas look to have wasted their final chance of the game! They earned a corner, and Ronaldo set up in front of goal, but Mpasi claimed the out-swinging pass with ease!
90’+2: Fernandes finally threaded one through to Ronaldo, but his header was ineffective! That’s three shots (-700) for him, but nothing to write home about overall from him as time continues to tick down.
88′: That was a reasonable chance for Portugal there! Ronaldo was free at the back post, but João Cancelo’s cross was cut out brilliantly by Lionel Mpasi!
84′: Gonçalo Ramos is on now and Vitinha is off for Portugal as Roberto Martínez’s men switch to a two-striker formation. Could this be the answer for Portugal to find a winner? The Leopards certainly aren’t playing for a draw, and it looks like the Seleçao das Quinas aren’t satisfied with one point, either.
81′: Ronaldo operating a high press! He hasn’t been great today, and a draw would be a poor result for the Seleçao das Quinas overall, but he certainly still has the passion!
74′: Do you get déjà vu? Bruno Fernandes threaded a beautiful pass inside to a driving Conceição, who centered it to Ronaldo. The 41-year-old once again missed wide to the right!
68′: Finally a shot for Ronaldo! Conceição darted into the box and found Ronaldo, who was waiting in the right side of the box, and he just missed wide of the mark instead of letting it go to Bruno!
66′: I’ve lost count of the number of times Portugal has swung a pass in to Ronaldo, and it’s never reached him before being parried away by a Congolese defender. The latest was caught by Leopards goalie Lionel Mpasi.
55′: João Cancelo scored a wonderful bicycle kick, but he was offside! It remains 1-1, but that was the best chance that Portugal has had since it scored in the sixth minute! Also the best pass that Bruno Fernandes has made all game.
53′: So far this half, the best chance by far has gone to DR Congo’s Cedric Bukambu, though he was offsides. The Seleçao das Quinas have tried to feed a few passes in to Ronaldo this past minute, but the Leopards have defended tremendously.
46′: We are back! Portugal has made a substitution to bring Francisco Conceição on to replace Bernardo Silva, who really hasn’t played well today. Let’s see if the changes can result in anything, or if the draw (+450) holds!
45’+5: OH, DR CONGO EQUALIZED! THIS GOAL HAD BEEN COMING FOR QUITE SOME TIME, AND YOANE WISSA SMASHED HOME A BEAUTIFUL HEADER FROM CLOSE RANGE. THE HALFTIME WHISTLE WILL BLOW MOMENTARILY, BUT THE LEOPARDS ARE LEVEL! WHAT AN ASSIST BY ARTHUR MASUAKU! PORTUGAL 1, DR CONGO 1! THIS IS WHY WE LOVE THE WORLD CUP AND THIS IS WHY WE LOVE THIS SPORT!
38′: Nearly half of the match is gone, and Ronaldo hasn’t even attempted a shot! He isn’t playing badly, timing his runs well, but Portugal’s midfield (especially Bruno Fernandes) hasn’t quite been clicking.
32′: Chancel Mbemba picks up a yellow card for the Leopards after inadvertently striking Pedro Neto in the neck with his elbow and grabbing his shirt. Portugal has a free kick in a fairly friendly position along the left wing. The ensuing free kick didn’t result in anything.
28′: Neto made a great run down the right sideline and crossed it into the middle for Ronaldo, who was right in front of goal! It was deflected out of bounds by DR Congo captain Chancel Mbemba. Some great sequencing there for the Seleçao das Quinas, the ensuing corner resulted in nothing.
24′: The referee has whistled for the hydration break now after a quiet last eight minutes of action, with not much going for either side. Portugal has controlled most of the possession, but the Leopards have really settled into the match after a horrific first six minutes. The European side definitely has the upper hand, but the Central Africans shouldn’t be counted out!
16′: A nice sequence of one-two passes between Ronaldo and Pedro Neto there! It didn’t result in anything thanks to some excellent defending by DR Congo, but that’s Ronaldo’s biggest involvement in the attack so far!
13′: Bernardo Silva gets booked for a yellow card for the Seleçao das Quinas, the first of this match! Ronaldo didn’t look incredibly pleased with that decision from the referee.
11′: Yoane Wissa nearly equalized for the Leopards, narrowly hooking one past the left post! Some signs of life here for the heavy underdogs.
6′: GOAL GOAL GOAL, PORTUGAL! JOÃO NEVES BANGS HOME A WONDERFUL HEADER OFF THE CROSS FROM PEDRO NETO AND THE SELEÇAO DAS QUINAS ARE UP ONE ALREADY! DOMINANCE FROM PORTUGAL SO FAR!
2′: The first touch for Ronaldo is met by massive cheers from the crowd! DR Congo basically hasn’t touched the ball so far.
1′: And we have kickoff here in Houston!! Portugal (-350 ML) will start with possession. Ronaldo’s sixth World Cup, OFFICIAL.
Additional World Cup Coverage
For additional World Cup coverage from the DraftKings Network, check out the World Cup landing page here:
- 2026 World Cup Group K Preview: Predictions, Odds, Top Scorers
- Portugal 2026 World Cup Preview: Predictions, Betting Odds
- Will Cristiano Ronaldo be Portugal’s leading goalscorer at the World Cup?
- Portugal vs. DR Congo prediction, pick for Wednesday 6/17/26
NOTE: Prop bet rulings are subject to official scoring and could change after the match.
