Saudi National Team Postpones Advancement to 2026 World Cup Final Qualifiers

Saudi national team players celebrate a victory at the World Cup qualifications. File Photo/ Asharq Al-Awsat

The Saudi national football team has postponed its qualification to the decisive third round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
This came following a 1-1 draw with host Tajikistan in a match played on Tuesday evening in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, for the fourth round in Group Seven as part of the second round of qualifiers.
The Saudi national team opened the scoring with a header from Feras Al-Brikan after a precise cross from Mohammed Al-Brik in the 46th minute, SPA reported.
However, the home team applied pressure to equalize, which Tajikistan succeeded in through its player Rustam Soirov in the 80th minute, resulting in a 1-1 draw.
With this draw, the Saudi team raised its tally to 10 points, leading the group. Nevertheless, it still needs one point to officially advance to the final qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.
Meanwhile, Tajikistan's team increased its points to five, securing second place in the group.