São Paulo – The FIFA World Cup completed its opening round on Wednesday (17) without a victory for any Arab national team. Among the eight teams from the region competing in the tournament, being held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, four drew and four lost. All now head into the second round, which began on Thursday (18), seeking better results.
Qatar drew 1–1 with Switzerland and will face Canada in the second round on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. (Brasília time) in Vancouver. Morocco held Brazil to a 1–1 draw and will now take on Scotland on Friday (19) at 7:00 p.m. in Boston. Egypt also drew 1–1 with Belgium. The Pharaohs will face New Zealand on Sunday (21) at 10:00 p.m. in Vancouver. Saudi Arabia drew 1–1 with Uruguay and will play Spain in the second round on Sunday (21) at 1:00 p.m. in Atlanta.
Tunisia suffered a 5–1 defeat to Sweden and will face Japan on Sunday (21) at 1:00 a.m. in Monterrey under a new coach—the team dismissed Sabri Lamouchi during the tournament and appointed Hervé Renard. Iraq also endured a heavy loss, falling 4–1 to Norway. The Iraqis will take on France on Monday (22) at 6:00 p.m. in Philadelphia. Jordan lost 3–1 to Austria and will next face Algeria on Tuesday (23) at midnight in San Francisco. Algeria was beaten 3–0 by Argentina in the opening round.
Although they finished the opening round without a win, some of the Arab teams’ results were viewed positively. Saudi Arabia’s draw with two-time world champions Uruguay came as a surprise. Qatar also impressed by holding Switzerland to a draw. Morocco and Egypt were not considered favorites, but draws were seen as plausible outcomes.
While Morocco entered this World Cup with high expectations after reaching the semifinals in 2022, it faced Brazil, a five-time World Cup champion boasting numerous stars playing in Europe. Egypt found itself in a similar situation. Despite being one of Africa’s leading football nations, it faced favored Belgium.
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Arab highlights at the World Cup
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
