Austria ended a 36-year World Cup win drought by beating debutants Jordan 3-1 in San Francisco. Romano Schmid opened the scoring with a brilliant 21st-minute strike, and Jordan responded early in the second half when Ali Olwan curled home an equaliser. Marko Arnautovic thought he had restored Austria’s lead from a corner, but the goal was correctly ruled out by VAR after the ball struck Stefan Posch’s arm. Austria regained the advantage in the 76th minute when Jordan defender Yazan Al Arab turned a corner into his own net, and Arnautovic sealed the victory from the penalty spot deep into stoppage time following a handball by Saleem Obaid.
The win is Austria’s first World Cup victory since 19 June 1990 and comes as they prepare to face reigning champions Argentina on Monday. Jordan, ranked 67th, can take confidence from their competitive showing but must secure points against Algeria to keep alive their hopes of progressing in the group.
