World Cup Football
Football World Cup > Countries > Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
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The country had a delayed introduction to the world game, as the royal family had forbidden football in the kingdom until 1951.
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Saudi Arabia have participated in three previous World Cups, in 1994, 1998 and 2002.
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Their greatest achievement was reaching the last sixteen in 1994. Shock wins over Belgium and Morocco saw them reach the second round, where Sweden proved too strong and triumphed 3-1.
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Four years later they failed to progress from the group stage after being overpowered by Denmark and eventual winners France.
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Saudi Arabia qualified for their third successive World Cup finals in 2002. Saudi Arabia opened their tournament with an 8-0 loss at the hands of Germany, followed by more moderate defeats to Cameroon and Republic of Ireland.
