Ghana suffered a 2-1 defeat to Croatia in their final Group L fixture at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Saturday but still progressed to the round of 32 after securing a place among the tournament’s best third-placed teams.
The Black Stars had collected four points from their opening two matches against Panama and England, a tally that was enough to see them rank among the top third-placed sides. Eight teams advance to the knockout stage through that qualification route.
Ghana came into the match looking to maintain their unbeaten run in the competition, but they fell behind in the 31st minute when Petar Sucic unleashed a superb long-range strike that beat the goalkeeper to hand Croatia the lead.
Ghana restored parity in the 73rd minute through Derrick Luckassen, who side-footed a fine finish into the bottom-right corner. The goal was initially disallowed for offside, but after a lengthy VAR review, it was awarded to make it 1-1.
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Just as the Black Stars looked like completing a remarkable comeback, Croatia found the winning goal. Luka Modric, aged 40 years and 291 days, became the oldest player to register an assist at the FIFA World Cup after his corner was headed home by Nikola Vlasic to restore Croatia’s advantage.
Ghana pressed forward in the closing stages in search of another equaliser, but Croatia held firm to claim all three points.
The victory lifted the Europeans above Ghana into second place in Group L, while the Black Stars advanced to the round of 32 as one of the competition’s best third-placed teams
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