Portugal beats Spain 5-3 for bronze at roller hockey world championship in Paraguay

Portugal take bronze after a match of three turnarounds

Portugal beat Spain 5-3 on Sunday, 18 October, in the third-place match at the world championship in Paraguay, and the win secured the bronze medal. Spain, the most decorated team in the sport's history with 18 golds, had lost its semi-final to Argentina, and it leaves the event without a medal after finishing off the podium. Marc Grau gave Spain a first-minute lead, and Gonçalo Alves equalised for Portugal in the fourth minute. Grau scored again in the 20th minute, and Rafael Bessa also struck in the 20th minute to level the match at 2-2 at half-time. After the break, Portugal goalkeeper Xano Edo put the ball into his own net in the 30th minute, but Hélder Nunes in the 31st minute, Rafael Bessa in the 34th and Gonçalo Alves in the 50th gave Portugal the win.

Coaches point to attitude and a smaller goal

Portugal coach Reinaldo Ventura said his side had been playing for a lesser objective, while stressing the team's attitude and its competitiveness. He said:

We fought for a smaller goal, but we were always a very competitive team that tried to improve at every moment.

Ventura added that he was satisfied with his team's attitude but not with the final result, because the players had given everything they could. Goalkeeper Xano Edo described a demanding game that the team did not want to play, because it had wanted to fight for the title. He said:

We kept our pride up in a complicated game, because it was not the one we wanted to play.

The bronze match came after Portugal's semi-final defeat to France, in which it had led by two goals with seven minutes to play before losing in extra time, according to Observador. Ventura said the defeat was still on his players' minds when the team turned to the match against Spain.

France win the final on penalties

France beat Argentina 2-1 on penalties in Luque, Paraguay, after the final finished 2-2 following extra time, and the win was the first world title in the country's history in the sport. The French side was coached by Nuno Lopes, a Portuguese coach, and Carlo Di Benedetto, a player for FC Porto, converted the decisive penalty. Bruno Di Benedetto scored for France in the 36th minute and Carlo Di Benedetto in the 39th, while Argentina had scored in the 20th minute and again in the 47th. Before France's win, Spain held the most world titles with 18, followed by Portugal with 16 and Argentina with six.

Portugal's medal record

Portugal's bronze was its 16th world bronze medal, and it adds to 16 world titles, the last of which came in 2019, and 12 silvers. The team had finished fourth at the 2024 championship in Italy, and SAPO describes Portugal as the current European champion. Spain, which was the defending world champion, finished outside the podium at this event, as it had at last year's European Championship. France's title means the all-time list now includes a first winner from that country, and the final result left Portugal third and France first.