Jordanian national team striker Ali Alwan won the best player award in the Nashama match against Austria, despite Jordan losing 3-1 in the opening of their journey in Group 10 of the 2026 World Cup.
Alwan delivered a remarkable performance during the match, scoring the equalizer for Jordan in the 50th minute, taking advantage of a counter-attack led by Nour Al-Rawabdeh, thus becoming the scorer of the first goal in the history of the Jordanian national team in the World Cup finals.
Following the match, Alwan expressed his pride in what the national team had achieved in its first World Cup appearance, stressing that participation in the World Cup represents a historic achievement for Jordanian football.
Alwan said: "It is true that we lost the match, but we performed well, and this is our first participation in the World Cup, which is an achievement we are all proud of."
The Al-Nashama striker thanked the Jordanian fans who supported the team, adding: "I thank our fans for their great support, and I thank the technical staff and my fellow players for the effort they made on the field."
Alwan stressed that Jordan's chances of qualifying are still alive, emphasizing that the team will continue to fight until the last moments. He said: "We still have two matches ahead of us and the opportunity to qualify is there, God willing, and we will fight until the end."
He added: "I am proud of what the team presented today, and proud that we have written a new page in the history of Jordanian football. We hope to always live up to the expectations of our fans and we promise them that we will do better in the upcoming matches."
Regarding his historic goal, Alwan explained that the feelings were exceptional, saying: "Scoring the first goal for Jordan in the history of the World Cup is a very beautiful and indescribable feeling, but my joy was not complete because of the loss."
He concluded by emphasizing that the individual award is the result of teamwork, saying: "I thank God for this achievement and I hope to continue serving the national team and achieving more successes. The Best Player award is not mine alone, but is the result of the efforts of the whole team, and I dedicate it to my fellow players and to the Jordanian fans who have never stopped supporting us."
Austria took the lead through Romano Schmid in the 20th minute, before Alwan equalized for Jordan at the start of the second half.
After an Austrian goal was disallowed via video technology, the European team regained the lead with an own goal scored by Yazan Al-Arab in the 76th minute, before Marko Arnautovic completed the hat trick from a penalty kick in the 90+12 minute.
The Jordanian national team will face their Algerian counterparts on June 23, and then conclude the group stage against Argentina on June 28.
