Peru achieved its first victory in the South American World Cup qualifying campaign by defeating Uruguay 1-0 on Friday.

The decisive goal came from Miguel Araujo, who scored with a header in the 88th minute, allowing Peru to climb out of the last position in the South American standings.

Prior to this match, Peru had gone eight qualifiers without a win, marking their first triumph over Uruguay in a qualifier since 2017.

With this win, Peru moved ahead of last-placed Chile.


Uruguay, meanwhile, remains in third place after nine matches, trailing leader Argentina by four points and second-placed Colombia by one. The top six teams will qualify for the 2026 World Cup in North America and Mexico.

In the first half, Uruguay squandered several chances, with Federico Valverde, Darwin Núñez, and Maximiliano Araújo all thwarted by Peru's goalkeeper, Pedro Gallese.

Peru gained momentum in the second half.

“I honestly feel responsible, given the players we had in midfield and attack, for the limited number of goal-scoring opportunities we created in the second half,” commented Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa.

Uruguay will host Ecuador on Tuesday, the same day Peru will take on fourth-placed Brazil.