Australia secured their place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America with a 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, while a dramatic late penalty ended Palestine’s hopes of a historic first-ever qualification.
Tony Popovic’s Socceroos sealed the second automatic qualification spot in Group C, joining group winners Japan. Australia needed only to avoid a heavy defeat in Jeddah and delivered with a spirited comeback performance. After falling behind to Abdulrahman Al-Aboud’s 19th-minute strike, the visitors responded with goals from Connor Metcalfe and Mitch Duke, the latter heading home just after halftime. Mathew Ryan then denied Salem Al-Dawsari from the penalty spot late on, preserving the win and clinching Australia’s sixth consecutive World Cup appearance.
“To show that character, resilience and then quality to come back and actually take the lead and win the game, I’m delighted,” said Popovic. “We’ve built a good foundation and now we want to kick on and do something special at the World Cup.”
Saudi Arabia, needing a five-goal margin to overtake Australia, now drop into the fourth round of Asian qualifying alongside Indonesia.
In Group B, Palestine came agonizingly close to advancing, but a stoppage-time penalty saw them draw 1-1 with Oman in Amman. Oday Kharoub’s header early in the second half had put Palestine ahead, but despite Oman going down to 10 men in the 73rd minute, they clawed back a point through Issam Al-Sabhi’s last-gasp spot-kick. The result pushes Oman into the next round at Palestine’s expense.
Elsewhere, Japan thrashed Indonesia 6-0 in Osaka, with Daichi Kamada scoring twice in a commanding performance. South Korea rounded off their campaign with a 4-0 win over Kuwait in Seoul, where PSG’s Lee Kang-in and Tottenham’s Son Heung-min, returning from injury, were among the crowd favorites.
With group-stage qualification concluded, 12 teams remain in contention for the final two Asian spots at the 2026 tournament. Oman, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, UAE, Iraq, and Qatar will compete in the fourth round this October.
Written By Rodney Mbua
