Uruguay and Belgium were held to 1-1 draw in their FIFA World Cup 2026 matches against Saudi Arabia and Egypt respectively on Monday.
Published: June 16, 2026, 11:30 AM IST
Share Article
https://www.india.com/sports/watch-maxi-araujo-leads-record-breaking-show-of-uruguay-in-1-1-stalemate-against-saudi-arabia-belgium-1-1-draw-egypt-8447743/
Uruguay’s Maximilliano Araujo celebrates after scoring against Saudi Arabia in FIFA World Cup 2026 match in Miami. (Photo: IANS)
Saudi Arabia vs Uruguay FIFA World Cup 2026 Group H: Uruguay gave it everything but still had to settle for one point each with Saudi Arabia in their opening Group H match of FIFA World Cup 2026 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Monday as their clash ended in a 1-1 draw. Uruguay put up a record-breaking show in the second half of the game but could only manage an equalizer from World Cup debutant Maximiliano Araujo to take one point from the clash.
Uruguay attempted 22 shots on goal in the second half of their game against Saudi Arabia. The last team to attempt more shots in a half of a FIFA World Cup match was East Germany against Chile in 1974 – 24 – but that came in the first half of the match.
WATCH Maximiliano Araujo score equalizer against Saudi Arabia HERE…
Atuação do Maximiliano Araújo, meia lateral uruguaio, vs a Arábia.
Foi especulado no Chelsea durante o jogo, antes e fazer gol por sinal.
— Leo Menezes (@lmenezescfc) June 16, 2026
But the ‘La Celeste’, former World Cup champions, were not pleased with the final result of the game. “We gave it away. We have to be honest,” Uruguay midfielder Federico Valverde said in Spanish after his side played to a 1-1 draw.
“We gave away the first half. We didn’t play the way we had trained. It wasn’t what we were aiming for. We rushed things too much. We wanted to win the game in the very first minute. Sometimes you need a bit more patience and just play our game. We improved a lot in the second half,” Valverde added.
Uruguay had started strongly with Araujo, making his debut on the World Cup stage, forcing a smart save from Mohammed Al Owais before the Saudi goalkeeper produced an even better stop to deny Federico Vinas’s diving header. Saudi Arabia’s goalkeeper Mohammed Al Owais made 9 saves vs Uruguay – the most by any goalkeeper at the 2026 FIFA World Cup so far.
Only Dominik Livakovic (11 vs Brazil, 2022) has made more saves in a single World Cup game in the last three tournaments.
Abdulelah Al-Amri scored on a rebound in the 41st minute for Saudi Arabia and Araujo got the equalizer in the 80th, firing a rebound past goalkeeper Al-Owais from close range.
With Saudi Arabia defending deep in their own half after the break, Uruguay’s intense pressure finally paid off with 10 minutes left in normal time. The Saudi goalkeeper couldn’t hold onto a sharp header from Viñas, allowing Araújo to capitalize on the loose ball and score.
Belgium held to 1-1 draw by Egypt
A star-studded Belgium team featuring the likes of Romelu Lukaku, Kevin de Bruyne and Thibaut Courtois were held to a 1-1 draw by Egypt in their Group G match of FIFA World Cup 2026 at Lumen Field Stadium in Seattle on Monday.
Lukaku entered the field in the 66th minute against Egypt on Monday and the veteran striker made immediate impact by a scoring chance that led to an equalizing own goal, but that was all Belgium could manage.
“No game’s an easy game in the World Cup,” coach Rudi Garcia said in French.
Belgium were expected to handle an Egypt squad that had never won a World Cup game much more easily than this. But the Red Devils were outmaneuvered in the first half, with the speed of Egypt’s younger players. “We know that we had a bad start in the match,” captain Youri Tielemans said.
For the Pharaohs, Emam Ashour had open the scoring in the 20th minute of the game. But Mohammed Hany conceded an own-goal set up by Belgium’s Lukaku in the 66th minute.
