France has ended its penalty shootout curse, advancing to the semifinals of the European Championship with a 5-3 shootout victory over Portugal following a 0-0 draw.
Kylian Mbappé, not Cristiano Ronaldo, will lead his team against Spain in the next round.
Portugal’s Joao Felix missed the decisive penalty, hitting the post, while Theo Hernández secured France’s win with a confident kick.
This marks the end of Ronaldo’s sixth and final European Championship, with his future in international soccer uncertain.
France’s victory breaks a streak of shootout losses, including the 2022 World Cup final and the 2021 European Championship.
Coach Didier Deschamps praised his team’s solid defense, which has conceded only one goal in the tournament, but acknowledged the need for improvement in scoring.
Portugal exits the tournament with unanswered questions, having failed to score in its last three matches.
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