Saudi Arabia’s national team goalkeeper, Mohammed Al-Owais, delivered a heroic performance in the match against Uruguay at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The goalkeeper, who had previously been beaten by Indonesia national team player Ragnar Oratmangoen, has now set a new record for the most saves in the tournament so far.

The 34-year-old shot-stopper started for Saudi Arabia in their Group H opener against Uruguay at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Tuesday morning (June 16, 2026, WIB).

The tightly contested encounter ended in a 1-1 draw.

Despite conceding once, Al-Owais repeatedly thwarted Uruguay’s golden chances with his lightning-fast reflexes throughout the match.

He made a total of nine saves during the game — the highest number recorded by any goalkeeper in a single match at the 2026 World Cup to this point.

This impressive feat surpassed the previous record held by Cape Verde’s Vozinha, who had made seven saves during his team’s 0-0 draw against Spain.

Thanks to his outstanding display, Al-Owais was named Man of the Match at the end of the game.

Interestingly, Mohammed Al-Owais has a notable connection with Indonesian football.

He is the very goalkeeper who was once beaten by Indonesia’s forward Ragnar Oratmangoen.

That moment occurred during the third round of the 2026 World Cup Asian Qualifiers on September 6, 2024.

In the match held in Jeddah, Al-Owais started as Saudi Arabia’s first-choice goalkeeper but had to pick the ball out of his net after Ragnar Oratmangoen scored in the 19th minute.

The game eventually ended 1-1 after the Green Falcons equalised through Musab Al-Juwayr in the 45+3rd minute.

The draw between Saudi Arabia and Uruguay keeps the competition in Group H wide open.

In the other match, Spain and Cape Verde also shared the spoils with a draw, meaning all four teams still have equal chances of advancing to the knockout stage.

On the second matchday, Spain are scheduled to face Saudi Arabia on Sunday evening (June 21, 2026, WIB), while Uruguay will take on Cape Verde in the early hours of Monday (June 22, 2026, WIB).