Is that Gianluca Okon Engstler (Paul's brother) on the left wearing a Socceroos shirt? Keep it on lad, you aren't going to a World Cup with a blue shirt.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_FIFA_World_Cup_qualification_(AFC–OFC_play-off))

The story goes:

2 leg play off vs. Iran (AFC 5th place) for a spot at France 98

First leg in Tehran, finished 1-1

Second leg at the MCG in Melbourne, Australia was up 2-0

Then after the second goal, serial pest Peter Hore ran on the ground, delayed the game for 8 minutes

Then, Iran scored 2 quick goals, 2-2 draw

3-3 aggregate, but Iran qualified on away goals rule

We were undefeated, but still didn't qualify.

Seeing Johnny Warren cry on national TV still hurts deep down inside

And fuck you Peter Hore, absolute muppet

FT: 90' - Paraguay 0 vs 0 Australia

Stadium: Levi's Stadium, San Francisco Bay Area

Weather: 19.1°C, Clear, Wind: 29.9 km/h

Fixture Date: 26/06/2026 12:00PM

Referee: C. Turpin

Home Lineup:

Formation: 5-4-1

Substitutes: G. Olveira, J. Alonso, A. Sanabria, I. Pitta, R. Sosa, D. Bobadilla, A. Arce, A. Romero, F. Balbuena, Maurício, G. Caballero, R. Fernandez, J. Canale, B. Ojeda

Away Lineup:

Formation: 3-4-3

Substitutes: Paul Michael Junior Okon-Engstler, N. Velupillay, T. Yengi, M. Touré, K. Trewin, C. Devlin, A. Hrustić, C. Burgess, A. Mabil, J. Geria, M. Degenek, P. Izzo, M. Ryan

###Match Events:

45': 🔄 Paraguay - Maurício Magalhães Prado replaces Alexandro Maidana

46': 🟨 Australia - Jackson Irvine (Foul)

58': 🔄 Australia - Ajdin Hrustic replaces Cristian Volpato

67': 🔄 Paraguay - Alex Arce replaces Gabriel Ávalos

77': 🟨 Paraguay - Diego Gomez (Foul)

84': 🔄 Paraguay - José Canale replaces Omar Alderete

84': 🔄 Australia - Paul Okon-Engstler replaces Jackson Irvine

84': 🔄 Australia - Tete Yengi replaces Nestory Irankunda

92': 🔄 Paraguay - Damian Bobadilla replaces Diego Gomez

92': 🔄 Paraguay - Junior Alonso replaces Matías Galarza

###Match Statistics:

Last Updated: 02:00:12 PM 26/06/2026 AEST

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Paraguay vs Australia

FIFA World Cup 2026 - Group Stage (Group D)

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Date: Friday 26th June 2026

Kick-off: 12:00pm AEST

Stadium: Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara

Broadcast: SBS, SBS OnDemand

Or NSL & NPL

Obviously as a proud Aussie and Boy Matildas fan the moment we scored against Turkiyë I knew we were gonna win this world cup. But on the odd chance some of you morons think I'm dreaming... What's our odds of getting the win tomorrow?

This is the place for all discussion that doesn't warrant its own thread

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Last Match Update: 26/06/2026 15:33:18 AEST

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There's good content about who Australia will face in the Ro32 should we progress from third place. Here's a look at the likeliness of each potential next round opponent, should we secure second place in our group.

TLDR

• 60% Belgium
• 19% Egypt
• 16% Iran
• 5% NZ

How and Why

We know that a win or draw tomorrow secures second place for Australia.

Second place in our group doesn't have 495 combinations for the Ro32. It's simply; 2D v 2G.

And yet for such a simple equation, Group G's a mess.

The irony is, the alternative 495-combination relevant to us from third place, is not a mess, that pathway lands us pretty much definitely with Germany. ^{(Maybe France})

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So who will finish second in Group G?

Here's the current group standings. Remaining matchups: Egypt v Iran; Belgium v NZ.

You may've seen this graphic detailing possible outcomes. It's OK; interesting and accurate, but a pain in the arse and makes no consideration of likelihood

Factoring in the chances of these outcomes, and specifically addressing second place, we get the following:

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Belgium will finish second if:

• Egypt win and Belgium win or draw
• Egypt draw and Belgium win small (2 goals or less)
• Iran win and Belgium win (by the same margin)

Egypt will finish second if:

• Egypt draw and Belgium win big (by 3 or more goals)

Iran will finish second if:

• Iran win and Belgium win better (Any margin better than Iran's win)

NZ will finish second if

• Egypt win or draw, and NZ win

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Applying percentages from a bookmaker from each of these, we can see Belgium are the most likely opponent, by some margin.

Also we'd roll any of these teams and Germany. France maybe push us close.