Bosnia beat Qatar 3-1 to bow out with honour in Seattle
Alajbegović, an Abunada own goal and Mahmić sealed it; Al Haydos scored Qatar's only goal.
Bosnia and Herzegovina beat Qatar 3-1 at Seattle's Lumen Field, the noisy home of the Seahawks holding 66,925 spectators, in a third-round Group B clash at the 2026 World Cup. The Balkan side claimed their first win of the tournament and bowed out with their heads held high, while Qatar ended their campaign without a victory.
Bosnia struck early. In the 29th minute, Kerim Alajbegović beat the Qatari keeper from an Ivan Bašić pass, and in the 34th an unfortunate own goal from Mahmud Abunada extended the lead to 2-0. Qatar responded before the break: in the 42nd, Hassan Al Haydos finished after an assist from Edmilson Junior to bring his side back into the game.
The clincher arrived in the second half. In the 80th minute, Ermin Mahmić rounded off a move set up by Dennis Hadžikadunić to make it 3-1 and spark joy among the Bosnian fans. Mahmić himself (82') and Qatar's Ahmed Fathi (78') saw the match's yellow cards.
Sergej Barbarez set up a 4-4-2 that rewarded Bosnian finishing, while Julen Lopetegui lined Qatar up in a 4-3-3 that paid dearly for its lack of efficiency. Kerim Alajbegović, scorer of the opener, was named man of the match.
With this result, Bosnia close Group B on three points and a memorable win, while Qatar leave the 2026 World Cup without a point after three defeats. The group is topped by Switzerland, with Canada qualifying second.