Preview: Saudi Arabia vs Uruguay - prediction, team news, lineups

Hard Rock Stadium will host Saudi Arabia against Uruguay on Monday evening, as both countries get their respective 2026 World Cup campaigns underway.

The two teams are competing in Group H this summer alongside Spain and Cape Verde, and it is shaping up to be a fascinating battle to reach the knockout round.

Match preview

Saudi Arabia have been regulars in World Cups since 1994, featuring in every tournament to this point apart from 2010 and 2014, when they failed to qualify for the finals.

The national team's last two World Cups have ended in group-stage exits, and they have only actually reached the round of 16 on one occasion, which came back in 1994.

Georgios Donis' side will enter this match off the back of a goalless draw with Senegal in their final pre-World Cup friendly, while they also played Puerto Rico and Ecuador as part of their preparations for the tournament, beating the former 1-0 and losing 2-1 to the latter.

Spain are the overwhelming favourites to finish top of Group H, but second in the section is very open, while third could also be enough to reach the knockout round.

Saudi Arabia have tackled Uruguay on three previous occasions, and both teams have posted one win, including a 1-0 success for the latter at the 2018 World Cup.

Uruguay can no longer call upon the likes of Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani, but the South Americans still have a lot of talent, and a win over Saudi Arabia on Monday would put them in an excellent spot to reach the knockout round of the competition.

Marcelo Bielsa's side have not actually played since their March friendlies, with a 1-1 draw against England at Wembley followed by a goalless draw with Algeria.

La Celeste have a rich history in the World Cup, winning the tournament in 1930 and 1950, while they actually made the semi-finals as recently as 2010.

Uruguay were present in the quarter-finals of the 2018 tournament, but they went out in the group stage of the 2022 competition, so there is plenty of room for improvement this summer.

La Celeste will be aiming to make it back-to-back wins over Saudi Arabia at a World Cup, and the fact that their second game is against Cape Verde on June 21 means that a win here would put them in a commanding spot to be present in the round of 32.

Saudi Arabia form (all competitions):

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Uruguay form (all competitions):

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Team News

Saudi Arabia will be without the services of Nawaf Al Aqidi (muscle) for their opening match of the 2026 World Cup, but the Green One are otherwise in strong shape.

Salem Al-Dawsari is the captain and leading goalscorer in the squad with 34, and Saudi Arabia will be looking to the number 10 for inspiration in their clash with Uruguay.

Four players capable of operating as a centre-forward have been named in the squad, but the starting position through the middle is expected to be handed to Firas Al-Buraikan, who has 16 goals in 72 appearances for his country.

As for Uruguay, Jose Gimenez (ankle), Ronald Araujo (calf), Giorgian de Arrascaeta (calf), Matias Vina (muscle) and Sebastian Caceres (head) could all be unavailable for selection.

Of those considered doubts, Caceres is the most likely to be involved, with the 26-year-old potentially starting alongside Santiago Bueno at the back, especially if both Gimenez and Araujo miss out.

Federico Valverde is the team's standout player and will operate in midfield, while Manuel Ugarte, Rodrigo Bentancur and Darwin Nunez are also set to feature from the first whistle.

Saudi Arabia possible starting lineup:

Al-Owais; Abdulhamid, Al Tambakti, Lajami, Bu; Kanno, Al-Khaibari; N Al-Dawsari, Al-Juwayr, S Al-Dawsari; Al-Buraikan

Uruguay possible starting lineup:

Muslera; Varela, Caceres, Bueno, Olivera; Valverde, Ugarte, Bentancur, M Araujo; Vinas, Nunez

We say: Saudi Arabia 1-2 Uruguay

This is a tough match to call, as cases can be made for either to win it - we came close to backing a draw but have just settled on Uruguay, who have a lot of talent in midfield and attack.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.