Arnautovic scores penalty as Austria beat World Cup debutants Jordan 3-1

Austria were given a scare by FIFA World Cup 2026 debutants Jordan, before securing a win, which was rounded off by a penalty in stoppage time by veteran forward Marko Arnautovic.

Austria's Marko Arnautovic shoots from the penalty spot — Marko Arnautovic's penalty in the 12th minute of stoppage time guided Austria to a 3-1 win over Jordan [Darren Yamashita/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters]

By Al Jazeera Staff and Reuters

Austria marked their ⁠return to ⁠the World Cup after a 28-year absence with a tense 3-1 win ⁠over debutants Jordan in their Group J opener on Tuesday, relying ⁠on a second-half own goal and a last-gasp penalty from Marko Arnautovic to claim the three points.

Austria took the lead on 20 minutes through ‌a Romano Schmid thunderbolt, but were pegged back five minutes after the break when striker Ali Olwan found space in the area and fired a sizzling shot inside the far ⁠post.

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Austria’s veteran target man ⁠Arnautovic slammed a low shot into the net from a goalmouth scramble in the 69th minute, but it was ruled out for handball by teammate ⁠Stefan Posch following a ⁠VAR review.

Seven minutes later, though, Austria were celebrating again as Yazan Al-Arab deflected a Marcel Sabitzer ‌corner into his own net, before Arnautovic slotted home a penalty deep into ‌stoppage ‌time after Saleem Obeid was penalised for handball.

Victory lifted Austria to second place in Group J, behind reigning World Cup winners Argentina, who took the top spot after Lionel Messi’s magical hat-trick steered them to a 3-0 win over Algeria earlier on Tuesday. Jordan sit third in the group, while Algeria are bottom.

SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 16: Marko Arnautovic #7 of Austria applauds fans after the team's 3-1 victory in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group J match between Austria and Jordan at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium on June 16, 2026 in Santa Clara, California. Stu Forster/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Stu Forster / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP) — Marko Arnautovic applauds fans after the team’s 3-1 victory in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group J match between Austria and Jordan at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium on June 16, 2026, in Santa Clara, California [Stu Forster/Getty Images/AFP]

The FIFA World Cup begins on June 11. You can follow the action on Al Jazeera’s dedicated World Cup 2026 page with all the latest news, match build-up and live text commentary, and keep up to date with group standings, real-time match results and schedules.