Australia qualifies for 2026 World Cup, Saudi Arabia headed to playoffs

Australia secured its place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Tuesday with a 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia in Jeddah. 

The victory makes the Socceroos the eleventh team to qualify for the tournament. Goalkeeper Mathew Ryan, who plays for French club RC Lens, was once again a key figure in the Australian squad.

The loss means Saudi Arabia will now have to go through the Asian playoff rounds to keep their World Cup hopes alive.

Meanwhile, Palestine’s dream of reaching the World Cup for the first time in history came to a heartbreaking end in Amman. A 1-1 draw against Oman saw them narrowly miss out on a place in the Asian playoffs.

Palestine looked set for glory when Oday Kharoub found the net in the 49th minute after a cross from Adam Kaied. Their chances improved further when Oman’s Harib Al-Saadi was shown a red card in the 73rd minute, reducing the opposition to ten men.

Ranked 101st in the world by FIFA, Palestine held on until the dying moments, only for Oman to equalize from the penalty spot in stoppage time (90+5). The late goal shattered Palestinian hopes and handed Oman the crucial fourth-place finish in Group B with 11 points.

Oman now advances to the next round alongside the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia.