DPR Korea and Spain soar into knockouts as Colombia held

• DPR Korea and Spain secured their last-16 berths

• Portugal held Colombia as China PR shared spoils with Nigeria

• Golden Boot Race | Every Player of the Match

DPR Korea and Spain became the latest sides to book their place in the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Poland 2026™ knockout phase. The reigning champions defeated a spirited Costa Rica in Lodz, while La Rojita stormed through after putting 11 past New Caledonia.

The second round of group-stage matches closed out with defences standing tall in a pair of scoreless draws. Portugal held firm to deny Colombia, while China PR were unable to find a way past Nigeria.

Group E

DPR Korea 4-0 Costa Rica

DPR Korea goals: Pak Ok-I (26), Choe Yon-A (55 & 85 pen), Ho Kyong (90+6) Player of the Match: Choe Rim-Jong (DPR Korea)

A brace from Chon helped DPR Korea to a dominant victory over ten-player Costa Rica which confirmed their spot in the knockouts.

The reigning champions looked to have took an early lead when Kang Ryu-mi tapped home from a corner, but a VAR review confirmed she had strayed into an offside position. Han Chol-hak's side continued to dominate and got the breakthrough soon after, with neat interplay leading to captain Pak squirming a shot under goalkeeper Ashley Quesada from just inside the box. Samantha Pitty was then sent off for a deliberate handball in the area. Pak stepped up to take the resulting spot-kick, but was foiled by a superb Quesada save.

Chon doubled DPR Korea's lead shortly after the break with a well-place header, before the No10 added a third through a late penalty after she was hauled down in the area by Fabiana Alfaro. Further gloss was added to the scoreline as Ho put the finishing touch on a flowing move an inch-perfect curler. The victory secures the AFC giants of their place in the next round, while Costa Rica's hopes rest on their final-day clash with Portugal.

What they said...

"We knew it would have been a tough match even before kick-off. They have character, they’re the reigning champions. I think that when we were reduced to ten players, the passion and determination the girls showed to defend this country became even more evident. We tried to hold out for as long as possible."

 Ana Aguilar, Costa Rica coach

Colombia 0-0 Portugal

Visa Player of the Match: Nair Pina (Portugal)

A strong defensive performance helped Portugal earn a draw against Colombia. The South Americans had the bulk of the chances in what was a hard-fought first half, as Portugal goalkeeper Nair Pina was kept on her toes by attackers Valerin Loboa and Maithe Lopez.

Pina’s finest stop of the evening came just shy of the hour mark when she denied Loboa, who was through on goal. Colombia continued to push for a winner, but Sintia Cabezas was denied by the post in the closing minutes, completing a frustrating night for the 2024 quarter-finalists.

Colombia now sit on four points heading into their group finale against DPR Korea, while Portugal picked up their first point of the tournament and next face Costa Rica.

What they said...

"I’m feeling very positive after this match. The team supported one another right through to the end against a European side like Portugal, who played very well. This generation of the Portuguese team is very strong. We worked hard and did everything we could to win; the only thing missing was a goal in this match. I’d like to congratulate my team, because we played a more balanced game than against Costa Rica and put in a very strong performance." Carlos Panigua, Colombia coach

"We have to improve our ability to dominate the match, not only to defend. Most teams don't like to have the ball, so they try a lot of long-distance passes, which is uncomfortable for us. We need to dominate the game more. I admit that we weren't expecting Colombia to be so aggressive in their long-balls, but I think we have every reason to believe in improvement." Marina Gomes, Portugal coach

Group F

Spain 11-0 New Caledonia

Spain goals: Pau Comendador (10, 49), Marisa Garcia (17, 45+1), Celia Segura (33, 46, 53, 65 pen), Alba Cerrato (43), Carla Julia (89), Rosalia Dominguez (90+4) Visa Player of the Match: Celia Segura (Spain)

It was a day for the record books as Spain secured their place in the knockout stages for a fifth consecutive tournament after putting an incredible 11 goals past New Caledonia. With her quartet, Celia Segura has moved joint top of the adidas Golden Boot standings. 

La Rojita's triumph is the highest margin of victory at Poland 2026, eclipsing Argentina's 8-0 win over Benin. It is also the joint-highest margin of victory in tournament history, matching France's 11-0 victory over Fiji in 2024, in addition to being the joint-highest scoring match ever at the global showpiece.

Alongside Segura's four-goal haul, Pau Comendador and Marisa Garcia netted braces, with Alba Cerrato, Carla Julia and Rosalia Dominguez also finding the net against the struggling debutants.

What they said...

"It was a game in which we wanted to get into our rhythm and get a confidence boost to keep winning. Everyone expected Spain to score a lot of goals in this match. In the end, we focus on ourselves. We know what we have to do. We wanted to score a lot of goals and that's what we did. I'm very happy. I never expected this to happen. The more I can help the team, the better." Celia Segura, Spain midfielder

"First of all, I want to congratulate New Caledonia on their first appearance at a FIFA U-20 World Cup. We know it's their first experience and I'm sure they'll learn from it. I'm very happy because we maintained our standards and our concentration for the full 90 minutes. We wanted to compete throughout the 90 minutes and, in the end, the girls made a great effort to do that." David Aznar, Spain coach

"I’m emotional because we faced a great nation like Spain. It mainly makes me feel happy. These are tears of joy, but also a little sadness because when you’re competitive, conceding so many goals always hurts. Honestly, we expected it, but my team tried to give everything we had, and I think that’s what we did." Kenza Kenon, New Caledonia captain

"I think the instructions were clear from the start: of course, we were going to suffer, but we had to keep fighting until the end. I think the players really showed that mentality throughout the match. We knew that Spain were going to take control of the game, but we had to remain competitive. From the first minute to the 92nd minute, we couldn’t give up." Leon Waitronyie, New Caledonia coach

China PR 0-0 Nigeria

Visa Player of the Match: Jiaxin Huang (China PR)

China PR followed up their 5-0 triumph over New Caledonia with an entertaining draw against Nigeria that they will be frustrated not to have won. The Asian side twice hit the crossbar – first through Li Chenyu after just 82 seconds and then from Xue Sifan early in the second half. Unbeaten, China PR remain on course to punch their ticket to the knockout phase for the first time since 2006, when they reached the final.

It was a much better performance from Nigeria after their opening setback to Spain, with forward Seimeyeha Janet Akekoromowei looking particularly dangerous. Despite being unable to break down a determined China PR defence, the Falconets keep alive their hopes of reaching the knockouts in every U-20 showpiece since the inaugural edition in 2002, and will next face New Caledonia.

What they said...

"The situation in our group is very obvious because Spain is a very top team so the match between us and Nigeria is key for the positioning in the Round of 16. Even though we missed some chances in the game, ultimately I am very satisfied with the result." Wang Jun, China PR coach "The honest truth is that we came to win, but I think China also showed some resilience in the game. It was not a bad game for both sides, but the little chances we created, we could not take them again. But honestly, I saw improvement in my team in the Spanish game, so we're getting better. So, it's not the result we actually wanted to win, but we did not play out." Moses Aduku, Nigeria coach