Panama’s participation in the 2026 World Cup ended with a 2-0 defeat against England in the closing of Group L. The Canaleros finished the tournament without scoring points and without qualifying for the next round.
The team led by Thomas Christiansen also became the only one in the competition that did not score a single goal. The offensive drought extended during the 270 minutes they played in the group stage.
During the first half, Panama opted for a defensive approach and generated few dangerous options. Tomás Rodríguez had the opportunity to lead the attack, but failed to trouble the English defense.
The clearest chance came with a shot by José “Pumita” Rodríguez from outside the area, which passed close to Jordan Pickford’s goal. However, the Canalero team could not break its scoring drought and closed the World Cup without celebrating a goal.
The game was decided in the second half, when Jude Bellingham opened the scoring in the 54th minute after a corner kick. England took advantage of the momentum and extended the lead to win 2-0 against a Panama that found no offensive response.
With the victory, the English secured first place in Group L without depending on the result between Croatia and Ghana. Panama, for its part, was unable to generate clear chances in the final minutes to go ahead on the scoreboard.
The defeat also confirmed a negative record for the Canaleros, who have accumulated six defeats in six games played in World Cups. Two of those setbacks have been against England, although this time they avoided a rout like the 6-1 suffered in Russia 2018.
Panama closed its participation in the 2026 World Cup with defeats against Ghana, Croatia and England. The lack of a goal was once again the main problem for the team led by Thomas Christiansen, who finished the tournament without points and without celebrating a single score.