Round of 32 · Match 11

PortugalvsCroatia

2026-07-02·19:00 local·BMO Field · TorontoPredictions finalised

Snapshot · 2026-07-14Model 1.0.0Final prediction · locked 2 Jul, 20:04 UTCPortugal·Croatia·
Full time · forecast gradedPortugal 2 1 CroatiaThe locked pre-match forecast has been graded against this result.See the calibration recap →

Match signals

Factors that favour each side, from statistical models to group stage form and match conditions. Longer bars = stronger advantage.

PortugalSignal balanceCroatia
97%3%

Portugal are strong favourites at 58% vs Croatia's 18%. Most signals point the same way. Croatia will need to outperform their rating.

📊What the Models Say

5 Portugal
50%Elo Rating Model28%
ModerateModerate

Rates teams by a single strength number updated after every match. Simpler but fast to react. It rates Portugal at 50% to win vs Croatia at 28%.

52%Dixon-Coles Model21%
StrongStrong

Simulates the goal-scoring process using attack and defence strength. The heaviest-weighted model. It rates Portugal at 52% to win vs Croatia at 21%.

52%Hierarchical Poisson22%
ModerateModerate

Groups teams by confederation to share information. Helps for teams with fewer matches. It rates Portugal at 52% to win vs Croatia at 22%.

58%Final Ensemble18%
StrongStrong

The published probability after calibration and adjustments. This is what the model says. It rates Portugal at 58% to win vs Croatia at 18%.

3/3Model Agreement0/3
StrongStrong

All 3 models agree: Portugal is favoured. When models agree, the signal is stronger.

Tournament Form

3 Portugal
8pts (2W 2D 1L)Tournament Record6pts (2W 0D 2L)
SlightSlight

Portugal collected 8 points (2W 2D 1L) vs Croatia's 6 (2W 0D 2L). A stronger tournament record.

1.6/matchGoals Scored1.5/match
Even

Similar attacking output: Portugal 1.6 goals/match, Croatia 1.5.

0.6 conceded/matchDefence1.75 conceded/match
ModerateModerate

Portugal conceded just 0.6 goals/match vs Croatia's 1.75. Tighter at the back.

+5Goal Difference-1
StrongStrong

Portugal's goal difference of +5 is better than Croatia's -1. They outperformed opponents by more.

📈Momentum

1 Portugal1 Croatia
+1.0Tournament Rating Change-19.3
ModerateModerate

Portugal's rating rose +1.0 during the tournament while Croatia's moved -19.3. The tournament has been kinder to Portugal.

-0.0019Player Form Trend+0.0001
SlightSlight

Croatia's players improved their form ratings during the tournament (+0.0001) vs Portugal (-0.0019). Players trending upward.

🏆Team Quality

4 Portugal
1984Overall Strength (Elo)1930
SlightSlight

Portugal is rated 1984 vs Croatia's 1930 (gap: 54). That's a noticeable gap in historical team strength.

1.53 xGExpected Chance Creation0.86 xG
ModerateModerate

The model expects Portugal to create 1.53 expected goals vs Croatia's 0.86. More and better chances projected.

0.43Star Power0.28
SlightSlight

Portugal's top 3 starters are harder to replace (avg VORP 0.43) than Croatia's (0.28). More star power in key positions.

0.050Squad Familiarity0.030
SlightSlight

Portugal's starters play together at club level more often (0.050 cohesion) than Croatia's (0.030). More shared understanding on the pitch.

🌍Match Conditions

2 Portugal
5,761kmTravel Distance7,051km
SlightSlight

Portugal traveled 5,761km vs Croatia's 7,051km. A shorter journey means less fatigue.

5h shiftTimezone Shift6h shift
SlightSlight

Portugal face a 5h timezone shift vs Croatia's 6h. Less jet lag disruption.

17 signals across 5 categories. Signal strength reflects how large the gap is between the two teams on each factor. Signals are descriptive, not prescriptive.

La prévision

Match-outcome probability

  • Portugal win
    49.1%
  • Draw
    27.2%
  • Croatia win
    23.6%

A clash of identities: Portugal's possession-dominant approach meets Croatia's structured-press style in a fixture the model gives to Portugal at 58%.

Likeliest score1–013.2%
First goal0-15'33.0%
Both teams score46.1%
Over 2.5 goals43.0%
Top scorerRonaldo10.5%
Expected goals1.5 - 0.9
Loading pitch visualisation...

Buts et scores

Likeliest score 1–0 (13.2%) · xG 1.5 - 0.9

Expected goals

Portugal
1.53
Croatia
0.86

Mean of the Dixon-Coles joint goal distribution. Same fit that produces the most-likely-scoreline list below.

Most likely scorelines

  • 1–0
    13.2%
  • 1–1
    12.8%
  • 2–0
    10.7%
  • 0–0
    9.8%
  • 2–1
    9.2%

From the Dixon-Coles joint Poisson with the low-score correction. Scorelines are listed in probability order; this is a description of the model's distribution, not a recommendation.

Most likely half-time scorelines

  • 0–0
    30.8%
  • 1–0
    22.5%
  • 0–1
    12.4%
  • 1–1
    10.6%
  • 2–0
    8.9%

Same Dixon-Coles fit as the full-time list above, with rates halved to a 45-minute window and the low-score correction applied to that 1st-half block. The 0-0 row sits higher here than at full-time because fewer minutes have elapsed.

Goal totals

  • More than 0.5 goals
    90.2%
  • More than 1.5 goals
    69.8%
  • More than 2.5 goals
    43.0%
  • More than 3.5 goals
    22.1%
  • More than 4.5 goals
    9.6%
  • More than 5.5 goals
    3.6%
  • Both teams score
    46.1%

Each row is the probability the match finishes with more than the listed number of goals. Both-teams-to-score is the probability each side scores at least once. All values are marginals of the Dixon-Coles joint goal grid that produces the scoreline list above — not market lines or any other operator construct.

Event-typed probabilities

  • Portugal clean sheetOpposing team scores zero42.2%
  • Croatia clean sheetOpposing team scores zero21.5%

Derived from the same Dixon-Coles joint distribution as the scoreline list. These are descriptive event probabilities — see CLAUDE.md §3/§4 (formerly COMPLIANCE.md §4.2.7) for the framing the project uses.

Win-margin probability

  • Portugal by 4+
    3.8%
  • Portugal by 3+
    11.3%
  • Portugal by 2+
    27.6%
  • Portugal by 1+
    52.4%
  • Draw
    27.2%
  • Croatia by 1+
    20.4%
  • Croatia by 2+
    6.8%
  • Croatia by 3+
    1.7%
  • Croatia by 4+
    0.3%

Each row is the probability the match ends with the listed margin or larger in that direction. Marginal of the Dixon-Coles joint goal grid; the “by 1+” rows plus the draw row sum to 1.

Comment le match se déroule

Over 2.5 goals 43.0% · BTTS 46.1%

Game state through the match

0%25%50%75%100%0'15'30'45'60'75'90'
  • Portugal ahead53.1%
  • Level25.8%
  • Croatia ahead21.1%

Probability of each game state at minutes 0, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90 — derived from two independent thinned-Poisson processes with the Dixon-Coles per-team rates. The three lines always sum to 1 at each minute. The right column shows the state at the match's closing minute.

When the first goal arrives

  • 0–15
    33.0%
  • 15–30
    22.1%
  • 30–45
    14.8%
  • 45–60
    9.9%
  • 60–75
    6.7%
  • 75–90
    4.5%
  • No goal
    9.1%

Probability the match's first goal arrives in each 15-minute window. Homogeneous Poisson with combined rate λ = λh + λa from the Dixon-Coles fit; the seven rows (six windows + no-goal tail) sum to 1.

Half-time / full-time grid

Joint probability of half-time and full-time results
HT ↓ / FT →HPortugal winDDrawACroatia win
HPortugal ahead34.1%4.4%1.0%
DLevel16.9%17.3%8.0%
ACroatia ahead2.0%4.3%12.0%

Each cell is P(half-time result, full-time result). All nine cells sum to 1. Derived from a halved-λ Dixon-Coles fit for the first half plus an independent-Poisson second-half convolution.

Comeback probability

  • Portugal trail at HT, avoid defeat at FT
    6.3%
  • Croatia trail at HT, avoid defeat at FT
    5.4%

Joint probability — P(side trailing at half-time AND avoiding defeat at full-time). NOT conditional on trailing at HT. Derived from the same half-time / full-time decomposition that produces the HT/FT grid above; a tied first half is neither a home nor an away comeback opportunity.

PK shootout simulator

If the match ends level after extra time, the model estimates the shootout outcome from each team's Bayesian-smoothed conversion / save rate (Model #15). The bracket simulator uses the symmetric (averaged) ordering; the two what-if scenarios below show how the win probabilities shift when conditioning on which team kicks first.

Symmetric (averaged over both orderings — used by the bracket simulator)
  • Portugal
    46.4%
  • Croatia
    53.6%
If Portugal kicks first
  • Portugal
    57.0%
  • Croatia
    43.0%
If Croatia kicks first
  • Portugal
    35.7%
  • Croatia
    64.3%
Expected paired rounds
4.8
Decided in regulation 5 kicks
74.1%

First-kicker advantage

The first kicker's per-kick conversion rate is scaled by ×1.050 (about +5.0%), stacked on the Markov chain's structural asymmetry. Real World Cup shootouts use a coin toss for kicker order, so on average the order is 50/50 — the symmetric path above is the relevant number for a single fixture. The ordering-conditioned probabilities are a descriptive what-if scenario.

Literature: first kickers win ≈ 60% historically (Apesteguia & Palacios-Huerta, American Economic Review 2010; Vandebroek et al. 2016).

Per-team posteriors: Portugal conv 73.3%, save 28.9%Croatia conv 75.0%, save 30.0%. Smoothed against the global prior with prior strength 20 — see /docs/methodology/.

Équipes et joueurs

Top scorer: Ronaldo (10.5%)

Match detail

Portugal

Model-rated key players: Cristiano Ronaldo (FW) — P(scores) 10.5%; Gonçalo Ramos (FW) — P(scores) 3.7%; João Félix (FW) — P(scores) 3.4%.

How they play

Portugal under Roberto Martínez play a possession dominant game, holding 59% of the ball — among the highest in the tournament field. Their likely shape is a 4-3-3. They apply moderate pressing intensity (PPDA 21.6) and build patiently through midfield with 7.9 passes per attacking sequence. They generate a high volume of shots (13.5 per 90).

What they must execute

To succeed, Portugal must control tempo and territory in midfield — their possession-dominant approach depends on dictating the rhythm of each match. Managing minutes for Cristiano Ronaldo across what could be seven matches will test the coaching staff's rotation planning.

Storylines
Last dance: Cristiano Ronaldo41 at kickoff with 226 caps — probably his final World Cup.
Top scorer: Gonçalo RamosModel's top anytime-scorer for the team — 30% probability of scoring at least once, rank #6 of all players.
Scoring form: Averaged 2.63 xG per match across 15 recent internationals — #3 of 35 in the field for attacking output.

Croatia

Model-rated key players: Ante Budimir (FW) — P(scores) 9.0%; Andrej Kramarić (FW) — P(scores) 3.9%; Igor Matanović (FW) — P(scores) 2.7%.

How they play

Croatia under Zlatko Dalić play a structured press game, holding 54% of the ball — among the highest in the tournament field. Their likely shape is a 4-3-3, though they have also used 4-2-3-1. They apply moderate pressing intensity (PPDA 20.4) and build patiently through midfield with 7.1 passes per attacking sequence. They favour high-quality chances (xG/shot 0.142, among the best in the field).

What they must execute

Croatia need their high press to force turnovers in dangerous areas — if opponents can play through the press, the space left behind is vulnerable. Physical conditioning and squad rotation will be critical to sustain pressing intensity across a long tournament. Managing minutes for Ivan Perišić across what could be seven matches will test the coaching staff's rotation planning.

Storylines
Field-best: Joško GvardiolField's #1 defender in the WC2026 pool by composite rating (0.99).
Last dance: Ivan Perišić37 at kickoff with 152 caps — probably his final World Cup.
Teen starter: Luka Vušković19 at kickoff — 4 caps — projected on the bench, the squad's youngest pick.
Workload going in

Portugal's predicted XI averages 2,098 club minutes over the 2024-25 season (moderate load). Croatia's predicted XI averages 2,049 club minutes over the 2024-25 season (moderate load).

Portugal coverage: 78.0% (9/11 XI matched against the FBref Big-5) · Croatia: 68.0% (9/11).

Set-piece outlook

Portugal historically converts 17.0% of xG from set-pieces, contributing 0.26 expected set-piece goals in this fixture. Croatia converts 14.2% from set-pieces (0.12 expected). Combined, the model expects 0.38 set-piece goals across the 90 minutes.

  • P(Portugal scores set-piece goal) 23.0%
  • P(Croatia scores set-piece goal) 11.6%
  • P(set-piece goal in match) 31.9%

Portugal: Pedro Neto on corners (20 corners), Rúben Neves on free kicks (per fbref 2022 23) · Croatia: Luka Modrić on corners (15 corners), Kristijan Jakić on free kicks (per fbref 2022 23)

Penalty outlook

If a penalty is awarded to Portugal, the model gives 73.3% conversion, 75.0% for Croatia. If this match goes to a shootout, the symmetric (coin-toss averaged) win probability is 46.4% Portugal / 53.6% Croatia.

Portugal primary PK: Cristiano Ronaldo (3/3 in 2021-22, per fbref 2022 23) · Croatia primary PK: Ante Budimir (2/2 in 2021-22, per fbref 2022 23).

Derived from the model's per-fixture forecast joint and supporting reference data (predicted squads, set-piece xG share, PK posteriors, club minutes). See /docs/methodology/ for the full methodology.

Squad depth

Most irreplaceable starters

Portugal

  1. Bruno FernandesAttacking midfieldCover: Francisco Trincão · 0.400.56gap
  2. Diogo CostaGoalkeeperCover: Rui Silva · 0.500.50gap
  3. Bernardo SilvaAttacking midfieldCover: Francisco Trincão · 0.400.24gap

Croatia

  1. Dominik LivakovićGoalkeeperCover: Ivor Pandur · 0.510.40gap
  2. Joško GvardiolCentre-backCover: Martin Erlić · 0.690.30gap
  3. Marin PongračićCentre-backCover: Martin Erlić · 0.690.16gap

Gap = how far a side's rating at the position falls from the starter to his likely in-squad replacement (named under each name). Larger = harder to replace. Descriptive metric, does not feed the published probabilities. Methodology →

Match conditions

  • AltitudeNear sea level78 m
  • Avg temperatureFive-year mean over the tournament window21.2 °C
  • Avg humidity71%
  • Heat stressShade WBGT ~22.9 °CLow heat stress
  • Pitch surfacenatural grass

Natural-grass football stadium.

Heat stress is a shade Wet-Bulb Globe Temperature proxy from the venue's climatology mean temperature and humidity; FIFA mandates cooling breaks at WBGT 32 °C. Evening kickoff (local time). These are long-window averages, not a match-day forecast, and they are not inputs to the forecast.

Top scorers · P(scores in this match)

Per-player scoring rate from Model #5 (`p_score_per_match`). Reflects each player's npxG/90, expected minutes, team xG share, and the average opposing-team defence. See /docs/methodology/.

Recent match form

Last match player ratings

Portugal

vs Colombia · avg 7.7

8
Cristiano RonaldoST
ATK
DEF
PAS
8
Gonçalo RamosST
ATK
DEF
PAS
7
CordobaST
ATK
DEF
PAS

Croatia

vs Ghana · avg 6.9

9
Dominik LivakovićGK
ATK
DEF
PAS
8
Luka SučićCM
ATK
DEF
PAS
8
Ante BudimirST
ATK
DEF
PAS
8
Josip StanišićRB
ATK
DEF
PAS
6
Nikola VlašićAM
ATK
DEF
PAS
6
Martin BaturinaCM
ATK
DEF
PAS
6
HarveyAM
ATK
DEF
PAS
6
J. BrekaloST
ATK
DEF
PAS
6
Player #9ST
ATK
DEF
PAS
6
Player #7AM
ATK
DEF
PAS

Player scores from official highlight analysis of each team's most recent match. Observational, not a model input. Methodology →

Video analysis: player performance

Per-player ratings and event breakdowns from official highlights analysis. Tap a player to see their full match timeline.

Portugal
9
Ronaldo38'–54'

Converted a crucial penalty to equalize for Portugal and was a constant offensive threat, demonstrating leadership.

2goals

Match timeline

38'Ronaldo scores for Portugal, but the goal is disallowed for offside.
54'Ronaldo converts the penalty for Portugal.
Croatia
8
Perisic

Opened the scoring for Croatia with a well-placed shot, demonstrating clinical finishing.

7
Vlašić28'–28'

Showed good attacking instincts by scoring, though it was disallowed for offside.

1goals

Match timeline

28'Vlašić scores for Croatia, but the goal is disallowed for offside.
7
Sučić119'–119'

Displayed good attacking awareness and finishing by scoring, even if the goal was negated by an offside call.

1goals

Match timeline

119'Sučić scores for Croatia, but the goal is disallowed for offside.
6
Modrić

Mentioned for sportsmanship at the end of the match, but no specific in-game contributions were highlighted.

Match timeline

Match observations

  • The match was a high-scoring affair, with both teams demonstrating significant attacking intent.
  • Multiple goals were disallowed for offside, adding to the drama and frustration for both sides.
  • The game featured several momentum swings, with each team having periods of dominance.

Sous le capot

Model-by-model comparison

Portugal vs Croatia

Moderate (7.9%)
ModelWeightHomeDrawAway
EloRating-based strength estimate32%
49.6%
22.0%
28.4%
Dixon-ColesGoal-process model with low-score correction63%
52.3%
27.1%
20.5%
Hierarchical PoissonBayesian model with confederation pooling6%
51.7%
26.1%
22.2%
Bayesian stackingLearned-weight combination
54.9%
26.0%
19.2%
Ensemble (published)Uniform average + isotonic calibration
57.6%
24.7%
17.7%
Home spread: 2.7%
Draw spread: 5.1%
Away spread: 7.9%
How each model works
Elo
Each team carries a single strength rating updated after every match by a margin-aware K-factor. Match probabilities come from the logistic function of the rating gap. Elo is fast-adapting but coarse — it sees only who won and by how much, not how the goals were scored.
Dixon-Coles
A Poisson regression on team-level attack and defence parameters, fitted via maximum likelihood with an exponential time-decay weighting. The Dixon-Coles correction adjusts the four low-score cells (0-0, 1-0, 0-1, 1-1) where independent Poisson underestimates dependence. Produces full scoreline distributions, not just H/D/A.
Hierarchical Poisson
A Bayesian Poisson model fitted via MCMC (PyMC) with hierarchical priors that pool attack and defence parameters within confederations. Shrinks small-sample teams toward their confederation mean — helpful for nations with few recent competitive fixtures. Slower to fit but better-calibrated on the tails.
Bayesian stacking
Optimises simplex weights (w_elo, w_dc, w_hp) to maximise the leave-one-out log-score across a walk-forward backtest (Yao et al. 2018). The result is a weighted average of the three component models' probabilities, then isotonic-calibrated. Adds no extra features — just learns which component to trust more from historical accuracy.
Ensemble (published)
Equal-weight average of all three component models, followed by per-class isotonic regression calibration fitted on 24 months of walk-forward out-of-fold predictions. This is the probability published on the site. The uniform mean is deliberately simple — it avoids overfitting to the stacking weights' training window.

Three independent component models feed two combination strategies. The uniform ensemble is the published probability; Bayesian stacking uses learned weights. Amber bars flag >5pp divergence from the published number. Full methodology

Latest news & match context

Team news

No recent headlines for Portugal or Croatia.

Match conditions
Stage:
Round of 32 · Match 11
Date:
2 Jul
Venue:
BMO Field, Toronto
Beyond the model

Ranked by likely importance. None of these feed the forecast: the probabilities rest on team strength, venue conditions and the style matchup.

  1. 1.Elimination stakes: A one-off elimination tie. Motivation, risk appetite and game management under tournament pressure are not model inputs; the forecast rests on team strength and the style matchup.
Availability

Portugal

Portugal come in at close to full strength.

Croatia

Croatia come in at close to full strength.

What it means

Portugal and Croatia both come in at close to full strength, so the forecast rests on baseline team strength rather than late team-news swings.

Availability from the predicted squads and injury feed; forecast adjustments from the model's own decomposition. See /docs/methodology/.

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