Stephen Eustáquio didn’t know what time remained when he struck the winner in Canada’s round-of-32 match vs. South Africa on June 28 at SoFi Stadium. The second-minute stoppage-time goal delivered Canada’s first World Cup knockout win in national team history
INGLEWOOD, CA — Stephen Eustáquio didn’t know how much time was left when the ball came to him.
He had been trying to figure out the clock during the final hydration break of Canada’s round of 32 match against South Africa. After that, he said he had no idea what the clock said. All he knew was the match was near the end—and that’s when the ball bounced right to him.
With patience and then speed from his right foot, Eustáquio delivered the goal that changed the night. He found the back of the net, and only afterward learned how much time remained: in the second minute of stoppage time on Sunday, June 28, he broke the scoreless draw inside SoFi Stadium.
The finish was Canada’s first World Cup knockout round win in national team history. The result sent the team into the round of 16 for the first time.
Canadian fans didn’t just celebrate. They surged toward him—on the field and on the bench—as the match’s biggest moment settled into place. For Canada, it wasn’t simply a winner; it was the kind of breakthrough that reshapes expectations.
Coach Jesse Marsch said Eustáquio was the most deserving person on the team to have the moment. “I couldn’t think of a more deserving human being in a group of incredible human beings,” Marsch said. “Maybe Steph is the most deserving to have a moment like that.”
Eustáquio’s rise has been built on choice and consistency. Since electing to play for his home country instead of Portugal, where he grew up, he has become a leader within the squad. The goal also marked his 60th cap with Canada.
He has been named the vice captain, stepping into the primary captain role when star Alphonso Davies isn’t on the pitch. Marsch said Eustáquio understands what it takes to be a “true leader” and called him the most reliable player on the squad.
Right back Richie Laryea described that leadership as something you can see every day. “He’s selfless, he gives 110% every single time he steps on the pitch,” Laryea said. “He leads by example. For him to get that goal. and everything he’s done in this jersey since he started. yeah. I think it’s special.”.
That meaning reaches beyond the stadium lights. In 2023, Eustáquio lost his mother to brain cancer. One year later, his dad died of a heart attack. The losses brought Eustáquio and his brother—Mauro Eustáquio, the Inter Toronto FC coach—closer. The same year his father died, Eustáquio became a father.
After the final whistle, those years of emotion came out during his conversation with Canadian reporters, with tears falling as he talked. “Everything I do is for my family, for my parents, for my girlfriend, for my daughter, for my brother, for my friends,” he said on the broadcast.
Marsch connected the goal directly to that history. “Everything that he’s been through,” he said. “Really happy for him, and I think from somewhere, his parents are looking down, and they saw that.”
Eustáquio said he was “over the moon” about the goal. The celebration turned immediate as fans inside the stadium belted “O Canada” after the whistle. But he insisted he didn’t want to claim the glory alone.
“I feel very happy that I scored the goal that was able to help the team. but you know that shot. I felt that everybody in the team shot that ball with me. ” Eustáquio said. “We feel like we’re our brothers. and at the same time. when we fight for each other. when we play for each other. special things like this can happen.”.
The impact of the goal arrives at a complicated moment for Canadian football. Canada is an odd host nation for the 2026 tournament, coming into the knockout stage as its first World Cup knockout winner in history and now playing the round of 16 for the first time.
The United States. Mexico and Canada all advanced to the round of 32. but the standings meant Canada had less to celebrate going in. The U.S. and Mexico won their groups and still get to play a knockout match on their home soil. while Canada didn’t win Group B. As a result, Canada will have to play the rest of the tournament away from home.
Marsch admitted the group-stage outcome left his team with a disappointment, but he credited the squad for not dwelling on it. He said they pushed through what he described as a rugged matchup with South Africa.
It wasn’t the prettiest football for most of the contest, he acknowledged. Still, as regulation was coming to a close, Eustáquio produced the kind of late swing that turns games—and possibly entire programs—overnight.
“The timing of the goal means that the win is incredibly dramatic, and I think the effect that it will have in Canada and the inspiring of people will be immense,” Marsch said.
Stephen Eustáquio Canada World Cup South Africa SoFi Stadium Jesse Marsch Richie Laryea Alphonso Davies Inter Toronto FC Mauro Eustáquio Los Angeles FC Group B round of 16