Saudis Defeat Argentina in World Cup Shocker

Salem Al-Dawsari of Saudi Arabia, left, celebrates with teammates after scoring their team's second goal against Argentina in the World Cup Tuesday. (Julian Finney/Getty Images)

Tuesday, 22 November 2022 09:47 AM EST ET

Saudi Arabia shocked Argentina in the World Cup Tuesday with a historic 2-1 upset victory.

Argentina's Lionel Messi, in his fifth and final quest for the only major trophy to elude him, scored a 10th minute penalty in a dominant first half display by his team, in which he and Lautaro Martinez also had three goals disallowed for offside.

But Saudi Arabia, the second-lowest ranked team in the tournament after Ghana, threw caution to the wind at the start of the second half, charging at Argentina's defense in front of a frenzied 88,012 crowd.

Sports data company Gracenote called it the biggest upset in the history of the World Cup.

“The most surprising World Cup win ever according to Gracenote was USA’s victory over England in 1950 with a 9.5% chance of victory for the U.S. team but Saudi Arabia’s chance of victory today was estimated at 8.7% so takes over at number one,” Gracenote said in a statement, CNN reported.

This report contains material from Reuters.

© 2026 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.


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Saudi Arabia shocked Argentina in the World Cup Tuesday with a historic 2-1 upset victory.
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Tuesday, 22 November 2022 09:47 AM
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