Ghana Steals It in Stoppage Time — Panama Left Stunned in Toronto

Picture this: it's the 95th minute, the rain is coming down in Toronto, neither team has scored, and Ghana — who were outplayed for most of the night — somehow steal the whole thing with a single gut-punch goal. That's exactly what happened Wednesday evening when Ghana edged Panama 1-0 in a wild World Cup 2026 Group L opener that will go down as one of the most dramatic finishes of the tournament so far.

Here's how it went down. For most of the match, Panama were the better team. They controlled the ball — holding 63% possession to Ghana's 37% — and put up more shots (11 to 8). On paper, they were the side pressing for the win. Ghana barely had a shot on target until early in the second half. To be blunt: Panama probably deserved at least a draw.

But soccer doesn't care about 'probably.' In the closing seconds of stoppage time, Ghana broke forward on a counter. Jordan Ayew spread the ball wide to substitute Brandon Thomas-Asante, who muscled past a defender and drove into Panama's danger zone. He rolled a low pass across the face of goal, and Caleb Yirenkyi — right place, right time — tapped it home. Final score: Ghana 1, Panama 0. It's now the latest regulation game-winning goal in Ghana's World Cup history.

For Ghana, this is about as good a start as they could have hoped for. They came in without star midfielder Thomas Partey, who was denied a visa to enter Canada due to pending sexual-assault charges in England (Partey has denied the accusations). He'll rejoin the squad when the group moves to U.S. soil. Despite the absence, Ghana gutted out three points and now sit joint-top of Group L alongside England, who beat Croatia 4-2 earlier in the day.

For Panama, this one stings — hard. This is only their second-ever World Cup. In their debut in 2018, they lost all three group-stage games without picking up a single point. Wednesday night looked like the moment they'd finally get off the mark, against a Ghana side that was clearly off its best. Instead, they got heartbreak in the 95th minute. It doesn't get much more brutal than that.

Why does this matter to you? If you're following the group-stage race, this result shakes things up right away. Ghana and England are the only teams in Group L with three points, meaning Panama and Croatia — who drew — are already playing catch-up after just one game. Ghana's next game is against England in Foxborough, Massachusetts, and Panama face Croatia back in Toronto. Both matches are on Tuesday, and both are now must-wins for the teams sitting with zero points.

The bigger picture: Group L was supposed to be England's group to cruise through, with Ghana and Panama scrapping for third. But Ghana just showed they're not here to fill out the bracket — they're here to compete. And Panama, despite dominating this match statistically, have nothing to show for it. In tournament soccer, clinical matters more than controlled.