5mins Portugal win another corner. But it comes to nothing.
4mins The Fields of Athenry rings out from the away end, 2,500 or so Irish fans here tonight.
3mins Ireland clear the short corner and Ogbene looks to race clear but he turns back and keeps possession.
2mins Portugal win an early corner.
KICK-OFF!
7.46pm Ireland to get us underway.
7.45pm The stadium is rocking, feels like a huge occasion for the home team. Ireland in the huddle now after Portugal break away from theirs.
7.43pm Two great renditions of the national anthems there, check them out on our Instagram page, in our stories.
7.40pm The teams are now out on the pitch, time for the national anthems. Here is how Ireland seem to be lining up.
IRELAND (5-2-2-1): C Kelleher; S Coleman, J O’Brien, N Collins, D O’Shea, R Manning; J Molumby, J Cullen; F Ebosele; C Ogbene; E Ferguson.
7.39pm The teams are in the tunnel.
7.35pm Just 10 minutes now until kick-off, big night this for Ireland. And Portugal, who are playing their first home game of the campaign.
7.32pm I was one of the fortunate 3,000 or so people allowed into the match in Faro between Portugal and Ireland during Covid times. This is much better
7.29pm Portugal have returned to the dressing room to a chorus of “Hey baby” from the crowd. Ireland are still out doing extra shooting practice.
7.25pm John Fallon reports from the Estádio José Alvalade just before kick-off. He will also provide regular updates in this liveblog so stay tuned.
Our reporter @JFallonExaminer looks ahead to Portugal vs Ireland pic.twitter.com/PU8unUaE9c
— Irish Examiner Sport (@ExaminerSport) October 11, 2025
7.22pm They seem to be doing a good job building up the atmosphere. Don’t think that’s good news for Ireland.
7.11pm For videos from the stadium, feel free to follow us on Instagram and on Twitter.
Not the best of receptions for the Irish team pic.twitter.com/OExR4nbN4f
— Irish Examiner Sport (@ExaminerSport) October 11, 2025
7pm Full time in Budapest and it has finished; Hungary 2 Armenia 0. Bit of a blow already for Ireland’s hopes of finishing second.
6.48pm One for the Kerry fans. Right, I must get a quick cup of tea despite the heat here. I will be providing regular updates from 7pm.
No Patrick Horgan flag spotted in Lisbon yet! pic.twitter.com/NmLGlgpMvc
— Andrew Horgan (@AndrewHorgan) October 11, 2025
6.29pm And the Ireland team has just been announced, few interesting decisions made by Heimir Hallgrimsson,which you can read about below.
6.18pm Boa noite. Welcome one and all to our liveblog from the warm and sunny Estádio José Alvalade.
My name is Andrew Horgan and I am currently in the press box at the home of Sporting Lisbon for the Republic of Ireland’s crucial World Cup qualifier against Portugal.
With one point from their opening two games, Ireland could do with a positive result here to keep their hopes of reaching the finals in North America alive.
That will be a huge ask though given the calibre of the opposition, with Portugal looking to make it three wins out of three.
In the other game in the group it is currently Hungary 0 Armenia 0 which also adds some significance to this fixture.
Kick-off is at 7:45pm so until then, feel free to enjoy the best of our preview pieces below.