Five early own goals set alarming FIFA World Cup trend
The ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup has witnessed an unusually high surge of five own goals early in the tournament, already doubling the entire tally from the 2022 edition.
An unexpected defensive trend is rapidly defining the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup, as an unusual flurry of defensive mishaps has seen five own goals recorded across the group stage matches.
This early tally represents a massive statistical surge, more than doubling the total of two own goals recorded during the entire 2022 tournament held in Qatar. The list of unfortunate deflections grew significantly over recent matchdays.
Jordan’s Yazan Abu Al-Arab inadvertently aided Austria, while Iraq’s Ayman Hussein found the wrong net against Norway, compounding a list that already features Egypt’s Mohamed Hany against Belgium, Switzerland’s Miro Muheim against Qatar, and Paraguay’s Damian Bobadilla during their clash with the United States national team.
Historically, tournament defenses have rarely been this vulnerable so early in the competition.
Only one edition in FIFA World Cup history has ever produced more self-inflicted goals—the 2018 tournament in Russia, which set a staggering record of 12 own goals. Analysts are now closely watching to see if this current edition will eclipse that historic high.
