▲ Saudi Arabia's Abdulelah Al-Amri scores the opening goal.
Saudi Arabia pulled off an upset in their opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage, drawing 1-1 with inaugural World Cup champions Uruguay after trading a goal each.
Saudi Arabia, ranked 61st in the FIFA world rankings, drew 1-1 with 16th-ranked Uruguay in their opening Group H match of the World Cup at Miami Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
Saudi Arabia, who famously defeated Argentina 2-1 in their Group C opener at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, cemented their reputation as "giant-killers" four years later by drawing 1-1 with Uruguay in their first match of the 2026 World Cup.
With the draw on Tuesday (June 16), Saudi Arabia earned a valuable point. Although they are tied in points with Uruguay, they sit in second place in Group H due to fair play points after receiving one yellow card.
Spain (1 point), who previously played to a scoreless draw against Cape Verde (1 point), took third place due to their higher FIFA ranking.
Notably, with Saudi Arabia's draw, the undefeated run of Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member nations in their opening group stage matches of the World Cup continued.
The "Asian undefeated run," which began with South Korea defeating the Czech Republic 2-1, has now extended to five matches. It continued as Qatar drew 1-1 with Switzerland, Australia beat Turkey 2-0, Japan drew 2-2 with the Netherlands, and finally, Saudi Arabia secured a 1-1 draw against a formidable Uruguay side on Tuesday.
Uruguay took control early in the first half.
In the 5th minute, Maximiliano Araújo's long-range left-footed shot was saved by the goalkeeper, and from the ensuing corner kick, Federico Viñas's header went straight to the goalkeeper, causing Uruguay to miss a scoring opportunity.
Having retreated under Uruguay's early onslaught, Saudi Arabia launched a counterattack in the 17th minute with a long-range shot from veteran winger Salem Al-Dawsari from just outside the left side of the penalty area.
Al-Dawsari was the hero who scored the winning goal in the 2-1 victory over Argentina in the Group C opener at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
After blocking a diving header from Uruguay's Viñas in the 30th minute, Saudi Arabia began to shake Argentina's defensive line with corner kick set pieces.
Saudi Arabia regretted missing a chance in the 38th minute when Abdulelah Al-Amri's right-footed shot from the front of the penalty area following a right corner kick was denied by a super save from Uruguay goalkeeper Fernando Muslera.
Saudi Arabia, who kept knocking on Uruguay's door, finally found the back of the net in the 41st minute, with Al-Amri being the protagonist.
From a right corner kick, Mohamed Kanno attempted a header from the front of the penalty area, which was blocked by the goalkeeper. As the ball loose, Al-Amri quickly rushed in and slotted it home with his right foot, shaking Uruguay's net.
Uruguay, trailing 1-0 at halftime, went all out to hunt for an equalizer at the start of the second half.
Uruguay was left disappointed in the 15th minute of the second half when Manuel Ugarte's long-range shot struck Saudi Arabia's right goalpost.
Uruguay, continuing to ramp up their offensive pressure, finally scored the equalizer in the 35th minute of the second half.
A cross delivered from the left midfield was met with a header by Viña, which was saved by the goalkeeper. However, Maximiliano Araújo quickly rushed in and pushed it in with his left foot to level the score.
Uruguay went in search of a comeback goal but had to settle for a draw, thwarted by a series of super saves from Saudi Arabia goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.