Michael Gregoritsch gave Austria and coach Ralf Rangnick a direct ticket to the 2026 World Cup.
In Vienna, ex-Freiburg player Gregoritsch sent the Austrians into collective ecstasy with his equalizer (78th). The 1:1 (0:1) against Bosnia-Herzegovina was enough for the hosts to win Group H.
Austria qualified for a World Cup finals for the first time since 1998. Mönchengladbach’s Haris Tabakovic (12th) initially gave the guests the lead. The Bosnians can move up via the playoffs.
After the visitors had taken the lead, Portuguese referee João Pinheiro withdrew the supposed equalizer shortly before half-time (43′): goalscorer Konrad Laimer from FC Bayern had previously lightly pushed opponent Amar Memic in his own half.
The hosts played a power play in the second half, and Gregoritsch, who came on as a substitute in the 59th minute, smashed a cross from Marcel Sabitzer into the net that bounced off the crossbar. Shortly before the end of the game, the former SC Freiburg professional, who now plays for Bröndby IF in Denmark, even scored the winning goal.
Emir Karic and Patrick Wimmer in a duel
Austria went into the final matchday with a two-point lead over the team of former Bundesliga professional Sergej Barbarez. Bosnia is now fighting for its second World Cup participation since 2014 in the playoffs, in which 16 teams will play the remaining four of the 16 European participants in March. The draw will take place on Thursday.