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Jordan failed to get a positive result from their historic first match at the 2026 World Cup, losing 1-3 to Austria in the first round of Group 10 in the early hours of Wednesday.
Al-Nashama came into the match with high ambitions to get off to the perfect start in their first ever World Cup appearance, but the Austrians managed to extend their lead in the first half through Romano Schmid in the 21st minute when he received a perfect pass on the edge of the penalty area and slotted home a superb finish.
Despite the delay, the Jordanian side put in a brave performance and almost equalized once, most notably Ali Alwan’s header that hit the post in the 22nd minute, in addition to several dangerous attempts that were blocked by goalkeeper Alexander Schlager.
At the start of the second half, Ali Alwan wrote his name in the annals of history after scoring Jordan’s first World Cup goal in the 50th minute with a superb strike into the right post of the net to claim a 1-1 draw.
Austria thought they had restored the lead through Marko Arnautovic in the 67th minute, but video technology intervened and disallowed the goal due to a handball in attack.
Jordan’s joy at the draw was short-lived as the Austrians agonizingly pulled one back in the 76th minute, after defender Yazan Al-Arab accidentally turned a corner into his own net, scoring an own goal to give Austria victory.
Al-Nashama tried to come back in the final minutes, but Austria’s defense held on to their lead until the final minute, which saw the Aussies win a penalty from which Marko Arnautovic scored the third goal.
The result moved Austria level with Group 10 leaders Argentina on 3 points apiece, but Latins took the lead after a 3-0 win over Tangon Algeria in the other match.
The second round sees a tight clash between Argentina and Austria to decide top spot in the group, while Jordan face their Algerian counterparts in an Arab showdown that cannot be split in two to keep their qualification hopes alive.
