The first half between Iran and New Zealand at the 2026 FIFA World Cup ended 1-1 at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood. New Zealand started very fast: in the 7th minute, Elijah Just finished off a Chris Wood pass to put the visitors 1-0 ahead.
Iran took control after that goal and levelled in the 32nd minute, when Ramin Rezaeian made it 1-1 from a Shahriyar Moghanlou assist. Iran found the net again in first-half stoppage time, but Ali Nemati's effort was ruled out for offside, with the assistant referee certain of his call.
The statistics pointed to a balanced half. Possession was almost even (Iran 49%, New Zealand 51%) and both sides had seven shots each. Iran led on expected goals (xG) with 0.79 and were ahead on big chances 2-1. In the second half of a match refereed by Mexico's César Ramos, both teams are expected to push for the advantage over the final 45 minutes.
Image: sports.yahoo.com
Tuna Başkan
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