Switzerland lost control of top spot in Group B at the 2026 World Cup after conceding late against Qatar. A 94th-minute goal meant a 1-1 draw in Santa Clara. Granit Xhaka criticised Switzerland’s display, stressing that the team must accept the situation and reassess ambitions for the rest of the tournament.
The game had appeared settled by Breel Embolo’s penalty, which put Switzerland in front. However, repeated missed chances left the match open. Qatar stayed in contention and punished Switzerland deep into stoppage time, leaving Xhaka and teammates frustrated after failing to turn dominance into three points.
Qatar collected the first World Cup point in the country’s history, secured by captain Boualem Khoukhi. Khoukhi’s goal came timed at 93:59.
It is recorded as the third-latest group-stage equaliser at World Cups since 1966, behind Silvestre Varela in 2014 and Luis Hernandez in 1998.
Despite dropping points, Switzerland created far more opportunities across the match. The team registered 26 attempts on goal, yet only Embolo’s penalty found the net. That total represents Switzerland’s highest shot count in any World Cup fixture since records began in 1966, but still did not produce a victory.
Those 26 attempts also matched the most shots by any side without winning a World Cup game since 1966. The previous example came when Germany lost 2-1 against Japan in 2022, also having 26 shots. Xhaka felt Switzerland’s failure to convert chances made a Qatar response almost certain in the closing stages.
Xhaka reflected on how match management slipped away during the second half. "If you don’t take your chances up front, you’ll concede them," said Xhaka. "Maybe we also lost a bit of patience, thinking we absolutely had to score the 2-0. We have to be clever and experienced enough to see out the game with a 1-0 lead. We knew they were waiting for their moment. And they had it in the 94th minute. We lost our rhythm at the end of the second half. That can’t happen at this level. Now we have to get back down to earth and face reality. And the reality is that we’re not at all ready to talk about a title or our best World Cup yet. "
Switzerland’s official account later underlined the disappointment by posting the full-time result in several languages. The message reflected a sense of missed opportunity after Qatar’s late strike, which overturned Switzerland’s control of Group B and left the section more open heading into the remaining fixtures.
Schluss. Wir spielen Remis Fin. On fait match nul. Fine. Pareggiamo. pic.twitter.com/pAJRolJgI9Nati (@nati_sfv_asf) June 13, 2026
World Cup 2026 Group B: Lopetegui praises Qatar mentality and resilience
Qatar head coach Julen Lopetegui highlighted the scale of the achievement after securing the late point. Lopetegui pointed to Switzerland’s position in European football, the quality of individual players, and the stability of the coaching setup, stressing how those elements made the result especially demanding for Qatar.
"Switzerland are one of the best teams in Europe right now, with significant solidity, continuity in the coach, and top players in top leaguesthat’s important," Lopetegui told DAZN. "It’s true that for that to happen, a series of circumstances have to align, and they did. We knew how to suffer in difficult moments, we didn’t panic when we were losing, which was important, and in the end, we got that reward of a goal that gave us a point we’d never had before. Being here was a dream, achieving something positive today was a dream, we’ve achieved it, and we’ll continue dreaming. It’s a right we’ve earned, knowing the difficulty and knowing that we are inferior to our rivals. "
The draw leaves Switzerland under pressure to respond in later Group B matches, while Qatar gain confidence from their first World Cup point. Xhaka’s words suggest Switzerland will now focus on realism rather than title talk, as both teams move forward with contrasting emotions but clear knowledge of their current level.
