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A dramatic draw knocked Iran out of the World Cup
In one of the most exciting and controversial matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage, Algeria-Austria ended in an exciting 3-3 draw, ensuring both teams advanced to the round of 32, while Iran crashed out of the tournament despite finishing the group stage without a single defeat as they settled for three draws.
The Iranian national team needed one of the two teams to win in this match in order to secure qualification among the top 8 teams that took the third position.
But Riyad Mahrez’s late goal for Algeria before Sacha Kaladzic equalized for Austria in the 96th minute ended Team Melli’s hopes of progressing to the next round.
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Iranian sports media focused on the dramatic and surprising nature of the game, highlighting the last-minute goal that decided the fate of the Iranian national team, while some commentators described the final minutes as “ridiculous” or “incomprehensible”.
He wrote a website “Sports Three”Iran’s most popular sports website, “Just One Minute. The man who destroyed Iran’s dream” with the title.
The report focused on Saša Kaladžić, who came on as a substitute in added time and headed home the equalizer less than a minute after coming on, describing him as “the man who changed the history of two teams with one touch”.
He also noted that Iran temporarily regained hope after Mahrez’s goal before things turned completely upside down.
“The funniest”
As for Khabarorzhi newspaper, it published the video of the famous TV commentator Muhammad Hossein Mitaki’s reaction: “Metaki’s reaction to the 3-3 result. It was the funniest thing.”
“I don’t understand the 3-3 goal. We watched for a ridiculous half hour. I can’t say they agreed, but look what happened after the goal in the 94th minute…very strange. They passed the ball between them for 20 minutes, then 3-2, then 3-3. I can say it was funny.”
A bitter exception
The headline on the Pashgah Khabarnagaran Javan website read: “Algeria 3-3 Austria…Iran exit in 96th minute”, emphasizing the timing of the crucial goal.
As for the Intekhab website, it emphasized that Iran had left the tournament “undefeated”, believing that this added to the bitterness of exclusion.
The Iranian team ended the group stage with three draws, with New Zealand (2-2), Belgium (0-0) and Egypt (1-1).
Iran finished 9th with 3 points among the third-placed teams, failing to advance to the round of 32, while Algeria qualified in this list, while Austria finished second in Group 10.
