FIFA WORLD CUP 26™ SF BAY AREA MATCH RECAP: Paraguay 0, Australia 0

Paraguay and Australia pregame flag ceremony at SF Bay Area Stadium during the June 25th match of the FIFA World Cup 26™.

Full-house crowd watches Socceroos capture second place in Group D after physical draw with Los Guaraníes

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (June 25, 2026) — San Francisco Bay Area Stadium hosted its fifth match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup™ as Paraguay drew with Australia 0-0 on Thursday night in their Group D finale before another full house of 68,827 fans—the fifth of five games so far at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium to reach at least 99% capacity.

Both teams had spent considerable time near tonight’s venue by holding their respective Base Camps in the Bay Area—Paraguay in San Jose and Australia in Alameda. In fact, Paraguay was coming off a narrow 1-0 triumph over Türkiye at SF Bay Area Stadium in its last outing. Australia, on the other hand, was looking to return to winning ways after a 2-0 blanking at the United States’ hands in Seattle. With the Americans clinching the group with that victory, second place and the last automatic spot for the knockout stage still remained in the balance. But the onus was on Paraguay to push for the win since the Socceroos possessed a superior goal differential in case of a level score after 90 minutes.

The California sun refused to set at kickoff, treating fans and players alike to a sublime naturally lit summer night. But the ideal weather was juxtaposed by a physically grueling battle between the two combatant teams unwilling to concede an inch on the ground or in the air, with a parade of crunching challenges outnumbering the amount of scoring opportunities in the early going.

Australia almost netted first in the fifth minute when forward Cristian Volpato stormed down the right wing before connecting with midfielder Jackson Irvine in the box. The FC St. Pauli man shot for the near post but Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill did well to tip the ball over the crossbar. The rough-and-tumble war continued in minute 29 when Australia midfielder Connor Metcalfe took a wayward boot to the forehead and sought to eventually bandage it up to stop blood from gushing down his nose.

Meanwhile, The Socceroos dominated possession throughout the first half and took the majority of the shots, but nothing much to cause Gill much discomfort since that initial Irvine foray. That is, until the second minute of stoppage time, when Volpato dribbled into the box from the right wing, cut inside and unleashed a blast on goal that forced the Paraguay netminder to get his hands on it. A few moments later, Jordan Bos again found success on the right side for Australia and flicked a ball for a leaping Irvine, who headed it just over the crossbar. Moments later, referee Clement Turpin blew his whistle to conclude a scoreless first half.

After intermission, Paraguay head coach Gustavo Alfaro brought on Mauricio to bring some order to the midfield, and his presence was gradually felt. In minute 54, Los Guaraníes’ attack awoke from its 45-minute slumber and attempted to pin Australia in its own end—a move that almost yielded instant results when goalkeeper Patrick Beach was not expecting a Aziz Behich pass and had to settle for booting the ball past his own goal line for a corner kick. While the ensuing set piece was cleared, the Paraguayans’ warning shot was fired and acknowledged.

But they were unable to follow that sequence with a substantial salvo, and once again, the Australians went on the front foot for the next few stretches. In minute 78, the swashbuckling Bos was brought down harshly by Diego Gómez, an occurrence that had been far too frequent over the course of the match. The Paraguay midfielder was not only booked, it was his second of the group stage, which meant he would be suspended for the Round of 32 if Los Guaraníes advanced.

In minute 81, Paraguay finally threatened Beach’s net when Julio Enciso reached the edge of the box and fired two successive shots. However, Irvine would block the first and the second was wide left. The Aussies answered on the next goal kick, when second-half substitute Ajdin Hrustić collided with his defender for a 50-50 ball on the right wing in the attacking third, However, it rolled fortuitously forward for Bos, who was there to pick it up and drove deep into the box. The Feyenoord man cut inside to his left but was unable to make clean contact and the ball rolled harmlessly away. In minute 90, Bos again was primed to give Australia the breakthrough, this time slicing between two defenders down the right wing and cutting inside once more. But his attempt to curl it inside the far post was just a bit too strong.

With time running out, Paraguay had one last chance to emerge victorious at the death. In the third minute of stoppage time, a poor Australia clearance ended up at the feet of Andrés Cubas. His incisive pass through the left channel found Álex Arce, who hastily shifted the ball to Mauricio dead center at the edge of the box. But his subsequent shot was gobbled up by Beach, who preserved the clean sheet and second place for the Socceroos.

After capturing second place in Group D, Australia will travel to Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas, to face Group G’s second-place finisher in a Round of 32 encounter Friday, July 3, at 11 a.m. PT. Meanwhile, the Paraguayans’ fate is yet to be determined due to other results, though if they advance, they will have one of three possible opponents for the Round of 32: Germany at Boston Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on Monday, June 29; the Group I winner (either France or Norway) at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Tuesday, June 30; or the Group K winner (either Colombia or Portugal) at Kansas City Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, on Friday, July 3.

The sixth and final 2026 FIFA World Cup™ match in San Francisco Bay Area Stadium will be a Round of 32 clash between Group D winners the United States and Group B third-place Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday, July 1, at 5 p.m. PT. It will mark the first time the Americans will play in a World Cup knockout stage match on home soil since 1994, when they were edged 1-0 in the Round of 16 by Brazil in the Bay Area at Stanford Stadium.

Paraguay 0 – 0 Australia

2026 FIFA World Cup™ | Group D

Thursday, June 25, 2026

San Francisco Bay Area Stadium; Santa Clara, Calif.

Weather: 71°F Sunny

Attendance: 68,827 (100% capacity)

Michelob ULTRA Superior Player of the Match: Aiden O’Neill (AUS)

Match Officials: 

Referee: Clement Turpin (FRA)

AR1: Nicolas Danos (FRA)

AR2: Benjamin Pages (FRA)

4th Official: Oshane Nation (JAM)

VAR1: Jerome Brisard (FRA)

VAR2: Willy Delajod (FRA)

VAR3: Hamza El Fariq (MAR)

Scoring Summary:

None

Misconduct Summary:

AUS – Jackson Irvine (caution) 46’

PAR – Diego Gómez (caution) 77’ 

PARAGUAY (Head Coach Gustavo Alfaro; 5-4-1): Orlando Gill (GK); Alexandro Maidana (Mauricio HT), Omar Alderete (José Canale 84’), Gustavo Gómez (C), Gustavo Velázquez, Juan José Cáceres; Julio Enciso, Matias Galarza (Junior Alonso 90+2), Andrés Cubas, Diego Gómez (Damian Bobadilla 90+2’); Gabriel Ávalos (Álex Arce 67’).

Substitutes not used: Gatito Fernández (GK), Gastón Olveira (GK), Fabian Balbuena, Ramón Sosa, Antonio Sanabria, Alejandro Romero Gamarra, Braian Ojeda, Gustavo Caballero, Isidro Pitta.

POSS.: 41%; SHOTS: 7; SOG: 2; CORNERS: 1; OFFSIDES: 0; FOULS COMMITTED: 9

AUSTRALIA (Head Coach Tony Popović; 3-4-3): Patrick Beach (GK); Lucas Herrington, Harry Souttar (C), Alessandro Circati; Jordan Bos, Jackson Irvine (Paul Okon-Engstler 84’), Aiden O’Neill, Aziz Behich; Cristian Volpato (Ajdin Hrustić 58’), Nestory Irankunda (Tete Yengi 84’), Connor Metcalfe.

Substitutes not used: Mathew Ryan (GK), Paul Izzo (GK), Milos Degenek, Jason Geria, Mohamed Touré, Awer Mabil, Cameron Devlin, Kai Trewin, Cameron Burgess, Nishan Velupillay.

POSS.: 46%; SHOTS: 12; SOG: 5; CORNERS: 3; OFFSIDES: 0; FOULS COMMITTED: 6