Maeda scores first World Cup goal as Japan holds Sweden 1-1

Daizen Maeda’s first World Cup goal put Japan in position to seize Group F control, but Anthony Elanga’s reply six minutes later left Japan and Sweden tied 1-1 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The result kept Japan’s qualification path alive and forced Sweden to answer immediately after Maeda had rewarded Japan’s repeated attacking pressure.

Maeda scored in the 56th minute to give Japan a 1-0 lead in a match that carried direct knockout-round consequences. Japan had already opened the group stage with a 2-2 draw against the Netherlands, so the goal against Sweden carried more weight than a simple breakthrough. It briefly lifted Japan into the kind of position that could have changed the shape of Group F, where the Netherlands were also chasing the top spot.

Sweden did not let that edge last long. Elanga equalized in the 62nd minute, six minutes after Maeda’s strike, and the match settled into a draw that reflected how little room there was for error in a group where every point mattered. Japan finished Group F with 5 points and Sweden with 4, enough to send both sides into the knockout round.

The standings underscored how thin the margins were. Japan’s draw with the Netherlands had already kept the group open, and the point against Sweden preserved that position while preventing a late collapse in the standings. For Sweden, the equalizer ensured survival in the competition; for Japan, Maeda’s finish provided the key moment in a match that could have narrowed the race for first place before Elanga changed it again.