Northern Ireland's World Cup hopes 'gone from improbable to impossible' after 4-0 loss to Portugal

Northern Ireland's hopes of reaching the 2027 Women's World Cup were effectively ended after Portugal beat them 4-0 at Inver Park in the first leg of the play-off semi-final on 9 October 2026, with manager Michael McArdle saying the tie had "gone from improbable to impossible".

McArdle, who took over as Northern Ireland manager in March, fielded an undermanned side missing experienced players including captain Simone Magill, Laura Rafferty and Nadene Caldwell, and handed a debut to defender Jane McMaster plus first caps to Kess Elmore and 16-year-old Charlotte Havern off the bench; the team had been considered underdogs going into the first-leg tie.

Northern Ireland trailed 3-0 at half-time after an early penalty from Telma Encarnacao — conceded when McMaster gave away the spot-kick — followed by a finish from Jessica Silva and an own goal by Rebecca Holloway that completed a decisive first-half advantage for Portugal.

Portugal increased the pressure in the second half after Catarina Amado was sent off for a second yellow card with 26 minutes remaining, and Fatima Pinto's goal made the scoreline 4-0; Cora Chambers was dismissed for Northern Ireland in added time after grabbing the hair of Carolina Correia.

McMaster was reported to have "responded well" after giving away the penalty, Kess Elmore was described as lively in the second half and Havern's introduction with 10 minutes remaining was noted as a significant moment for the 16-year-old Cliftonville player.

On the balance between short- and long-term aims McArdle said: "It feels a bit harder on us than the actual game produced," and added, "We're hurting in that aspect. There are lots of positives there, which we'll take and we'll move forward for the longer process. "But in the shorter term, the tie becomes, from a case of being improbable to impossible now, with the four-goal deficit." He also said his players would "hurt for the next 24 hours or so" before regrouping for the return leg.

A play-off final would most likely be against Iceland, who also won their first leg 4-0 in Croatia, and Northern Ireland will be without Chambers for the return after her late dismissal. McArdle said: "It's fundamental, especially for our younger players, to get this exposure," adding, "It's a risk and it's brave, but it's one that will definitely 100% stand strong with us in the long term. "It will give us that sustainable opportunity to qualify for tournaments in the longer run because we need our younger players to get this exposure, but also for a lot of our senior players as well."

Northern Ireland travel to Portimao for the second leg on Tuesday where they must overturn a four-goal deficit to keep their play-off campaign alive; McArdle said: "There's the travel over to Portugal thrown in to allow us to relax a wee bit afterwards. "But once we get there, we'll look forward to Tuesday again. "We're trying to qualify, but there is a longer process as well that we'll use Tuesday night for."