Austria have played in the World Cup eight times. Their best performance is third place in 1954. They also came fourth in 1934. After failing to qualify for any tournament between 1998 and 2026, they returned at the 2026 finals. Austria qualified for the World Cup finals in 1934, 1954, 1958, 1978, 1982, 1990, 1998, and 2026.

1934

Austria reached the Semi-finals of the 1934 FIFA World Cup. The team lost the match 0-1 to Italy.

1954

Austria reached the Semi-finals of the 1954 FIFA World Cup. The team lost 1-6 to Germany in the match. Austria won the third-place match against Uruguay in that competition.

1958

Austria didn't make it out of Group 4 at the 1958 FIFA World cup.

1978

Austria qualified from Group 3 at the 1978 FIFA World Cup. However, the team didn't not make it out of the second group (Group A) in the competition.

1982

Austria made it out of Group 2 at the 1982 FIFA World Cup. However, the team did not make it out of the second group (Group D) in the competition.

1990

Austria didn't make it out of Group A at the 1990 FIFA World Cup.

1998

Austria didn't make it out of Group B at the 1998 FIFA World Cup.

2026

Austria qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, ending a 28-year absence from the finals since 1998. They were drawn into Group J alongside Argentina, Algeria, and Jordan. Austria opened with a 3–1 win over debutants, Jordan.

However, they lost 2–0 to 2022 FIFA World Cup winner, Argentina. Lionel Messi's double in this game made him the World Cup's all-time leading scorer. A dramatic 3–3 draw against Algeria in their final group game saw Austria finish second, edging Algeria on goal difference to reach the knockout stage for the first time since 1982. Their run ended in the Round of 32, where Spain beat them 0–3.

Date Result Opponent
16 June 3–1 Jordan
22 June 0–2 Argentina
27 June 3–3 Algeria
2 July 0–3 Spain (Round of 32)

Trivia

  • In 1934, in the 3rd place match versus Germany, Austria conceded a goal after 25 seconds by Ernst Lehner - the fastest goal in World Cup history until 1962.
  • Austria did not appear in the 1938 finals after winning the qualifying competition because Austria was annexed by Germany and no team were chosen to replace Austria in the finals. Sweden had a walk over in the first round scheduled match against Austria, and went on to reach the semi-finals.