Asian Cup holders Qatar level in injury time to draw 1-1 with Switzerland in World Cup 2026 opening game.By The Associated PressPublished On 13 Jun 202613 Jun 2026Boualem Khoukhi scored an equalising goal on a header in the fourth minute of stoppage time, and Qatar spoiled a dominant day by Switzerland in a 1-1 draw in Group B of the World Cup.Several of the Qatari players fell to the ground on Saturday in celebration of the late goal, as others ran to each other to embrace.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listBreel Embolo scored for Switzerland from the penalty spot in the first half just over a week after being cleared to enter the US following a visa delay, but the Swiss failed to capitalise on multiple other scoring chances.In the 13th minute, Embolo was fouled by Qatar goalkeeper Mahmoud Abunada, who received a yellow card on the play. Abunada lay face down and appeared motionless for a couple of minutes before he began to move his legs and was able to stand up again.When Embolo calmly sent his penalty into the upper left corner in the 17th minute, it sent the red-clad Swiss fans into a dancing frenzy in the stands of San Francisco Bay Area Stadium.The 29-year-old forward applied for an urgent visa at the United States embassy in Bern on June 3, one day after he was denied boarding the team’s flight to travel for his third World Cup because of a 2018 criminal conviction that was only finalised in April.Switzerland dominated the possession game on an unseasonably warm June afternoon — with sprinklers running during a first-half break. Qatar’s Boualem Khoukhi scores their first goal past Switzerland’s Gregor Kobel [Eloisa Lopez/Reuters]There were thousands of empty seats scattered throughout Levi’s Stadium, home of the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers. …
