diff --git a/util/qemu-sockets.c b/util/qemu-sockets.c
index 126cbb603b..095716ecdb 100644
--- a/util/qemu-sockets.c
+++ b/util/qemu-sockets.c
@@ -963,7 +963,7 @@ int socket_dgram(SocketAddress *remote, SocketAddress *local, Error **errp)
 
     default:
         error_setg(errp, "socket type unsupported for datagram");
-        return -1;
+        fd = -1;
     }
     qemu_opts_del(opts);
     return fd;