The Australian men’s football team secured a 5-0 win against Palestine in its FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers match at the HBF Park in Perth, Australia on Tuesday.

The Socceroos ended the second round of their FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign with six wins from six matches and also topped Group I. They scored 22 goals and conceded none. Their biggest win of 7-0 came against Bangladesh in November.

Australia, 24th in the world football rankings, rode on a first-half brace from Kusini Yengi (5’,41’). Adam Taggart (26’), Martin Boyle (53’) and Nestory Irankunda (87’) also got on the scoresheet for the hosts. World No. 93 Palestine hit two shots on target but were outplayed in all departments.

The Socceroos took just five minutes to get on the scoreboard. Yaser Hamed’s challenge on Aziz Behich inside the penalty box saw Australia earning a penalty and Kusini Yengi stepped up to convert from the spot.

The Palestine football team had a strong chance 10 minutes later but Mohammad Rashid’s shot was blocked inside the box.

The hosts doubled their lead in the 26th minute as Martin Boyle was put in a 1v1 situation with the opposition keeper but selflessly passed the ball back to Adam Taggart who converted from close range.

Australia made it 3-0 four minutes before the half-time whistle. Boyle’s run down the right flank opened up the Palestine defence and Yengi showed plenty of composure on the edge of the six-yard box to net his second goal of the night.

Eight minutes into the second half, the hosts increased their lead to four goals. This time, Boyle found the back of the net after Taggart returned the favour to him with a well-timed pass.

Australia were awarded another penalty towards the closing stages with Yaser Hamed adjudged to have handled the ball. The 18-year-old Nestory Irankunda made no mistake from the spot and helped Australia complete a comprehensive 5-0 victory.

The third round of FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers are set to begin in September.