Brazil Held, Qatar Stuns Switzerland, Scotland Scrapes Past Haiti in World Cup Opener Night

The first full night of matches at the 2026 World Cup delivered few one-sided results. Brazil were frustrated by Morocco, Qatar earned a historic late point against Switzerland, and Scotland narrowly beat Haiti in their first World Cup appearance since 1998. The games were played on the tournament's opening stretch of full action, with more matches scheduled for the morning, night and the following day.

Brazil opened with a 1-1 draw against Morocco. In Carlo Ancelotti's first World Cup match as a coach, Ismael Saibari put Morocco ahead in the 21st minute, but Vinicius Junior equalized in the 32nd minute to rescue a point for the South Americans. Neymar, sidelined by injury, was not in the squad and may return for Brazil's second group match against Haiti in six days. The report said he could help add the spark Brazil lacked, and lift Vinicius Junior and Raphinha, who were below their best.

Qatar produced the night's biggest surprise by drawing 1-1 with Switzerland. The 2022 World Cup hosts, playing in a World Cup they reached through qualification for the first time, were outplayed in the first half and conceded only through a Breel Embolo penalty in the 17th minute. Switzerland pressed for a second goal but failed to score, and Qatar struck back through Boualem Khoukhi in the 95th minute for a historic point.

Scotland also struggled more than expected in a 1-0 win over Haiti. Haiti, one of the tournament's weaker teams, made its first World Cup appearance since 1973 and fielded former Maccabi Haifa striker Frantzdy Pierrot, who played the full 90 minutes. Scotland, qualifying for the World Cup for the first time since 1998, did not dominate, and John McGinn scored the only goal in the 28th minute.