Latest news with #AFCAsianQualifiers
Qatar Tribune
3 days ago
- Sport
- Qatar Tribune
Qatar drawn with UAE and Oman for Playoffs of Asian qualifying for FIFA World Cup 2026
tnn/Agencies Kuala Lumpur Al Annabi have been drawn along side the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman for the Playoffs of the AFC Asian Qualifiers for FIFA World Cup 2026. The six-team draw was held at the Asian Football Confederation's headquarters in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday. Qatar will also play host to Group A with matches against UAE and Oman to be played the in a single round-robin format scheduled for October 8 to 14 in the fourth round at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha. The group toppers will book ticket next year's global showpiece in the USA, Canada and Mexico while the second-placed teams from both groups will square off in a two-legged showdown across November 13 and 18. This knockout stage will determine the Continent's representative at the FIFA Playoff Tournament, which offers one final qualifying opportunity. Qatar, being coached by SpaniardJulen Lopetegui, are currently training in Austria, aiming to qualify for the FIFA World Cup on merit after having made their debut as hosts in 2022, advanced to the playoffs after finishing fourth in Group A of the third round of the AFC Asian Qualifiers. UAE, seeking a second appearance at the Finals following their debut in the 1990 edition, finished third in Group A while Oman - hoping for a debut appearance at the global showpiece - finished fourth in Group B. Oman, under the guidance of newly-appointed head coach Carlos Queiroz, are the only side hunting a historic maiden FIFA World Cup appearance. On the other side, Patrick Kuivert's Indonesia got a tough draw as they try to reach the World Cup finals for the first time since 1938. Coached by former Barcelona star and Dutch great Kluivert, Indonesia will play hosts Saudi Arabia and Iraq in Group B. Indonesia have embarked on a recruitment drive of Dutch-born players and backroom staff to bolster their bid for a first World Cup finals berth since becoming an independent nation. Jordi Cruyff, son of Dutch football legend Johan, was in February appointed technical adviser to the Football Association of Indonesia to work alongside Kluivert. Indonesia last qualified for a World Cup while still under Dutch colonial rule and lost 6-0 to Hungary in their only match of that tournament, hosted by France. They will face a difficult task against Middle East giants Saudi Arabia, who have home advantage and will be heavily favoured to top Group B. The Saudis have qualified for the World Cup on seven previous occasions including the last two editions. Iraq have only qualified once in their history, in 1986. A draw was also held to determine the host team of the knockout stage, with the Group A runners-up to host the first leg. Australia, Japan, Jordan, Iran, South Korea and Uzbekistan have already secured their World Cup berths from the Asian confederation. Draw Result (Matches to be played between Oct 8 and 14) Group A: Qatar (H), UAE, Oman Group B: Saudi Arabia (H), Iraq, Indonesia Knockout Stage 13 Nov 1st legcTypeface:> Runners-up Group A v Runners-up Group B 18 Nov 2nd leg: Runners-up Group B v Runners-up Group A
Qatar Tribune
12-07-2025
- Sport
- Qatar Tribune
Al Annabi in Austria
Al Annabi train in AustriaQatar's national football team has arrived in Austria for their overseas training camp and will be preparing under the guidance of their Spanish coach Julen Lopetegui for the fourth stage of the AFC Asian Qualifiers for FIFA World Cup 2026. The preparatory camp in Austrian town of Going am Wilden Kaiser will run until July 27.
ILoveQatar.net
08-07-2025
- Sport
- ILoveQatar.net
Qatar's Ibrahim Al Hassan selected by AFC among Favourite Future Stars of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has selected 11 young players who shone with their national teams during the 3rd round of the AFC Asian Qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Among those players is Qatar team player Ibrahim Al Hassan. The AFC invited fans to vote for their best star. The AFC published a report on its official website on Tuesday, giving fans the opportunity to vote for the future star among the young players who participated with their national teams in the third round of the World Cup qualifiers. The report highlighted the remarkable performance of Qatar team player Ibrahim Al Hassan, who scored his first international goal with the national team against the UAE in the first round of the third round of the qualifiers, in addition to his contribution to the victory over Kyrgyzstan when he came on as a substitute and scored a goal in the third round. The 19-year-old Al Hassan will compete with a number of players who have promising futures with their national teams, including Saudi Arabia's Musab Al Juwayr (22 years old), Abdukodir Khusanov (21 years old), who became the first player from Uzbekistan to play professionally in the English Premier League with Manchester City, Japanese goalkeeper Zion Suzuki (22 years old), Indonesian center-back Justin Hubner (21 years old), and other players who caught the eye during their participation with their national teams in the final stage of World Cup qualifiers. Team Qatar has qualified for the fourth round of the World Cup qualifiers, after finishing fourth in Group A of the third round of the qualifiers. The fourth stage will feature six teams that finished third and fourth in the third round of the Asian qualifiers, including Qatar, Iraq, Oman, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. The AFC previously selected Qatar and Saudi Arabia to host the fourth-round matches, which will be held from Oct. 8-14, 2025. The draw will take place on July 17, with the six teams divided into two groups of three, each competing in a pool format. The top team in each group will qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup.
Qatar Tribune
02-07-2025
- Sport
- Qatar Tribune
Qatar coach names squad for preparatory camp in Austria
Tribune New Network Doha Qatar coach Julen Lopetegui on Wednesday named a 30-member squad for Al Annabi's 17-day preparatory camp in Austria from July 11-27. The players will undergo extensive training besides playing two friendly matches during the camp as they gear up for a critical phase of the fourth round of the AFC Asian Qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The squad has a mix of youth and experience and also includes the recently recalled veteran and captain Hassan Al Haydos. He recently came out of his international retirement to rejoin the national team at the coach's insistence. The training camp will also provide the Spanish coach Lopetegui an opportunity to further fine tune the squad. Al Annabi are preparing for the October 8, 11, 14 qualifiers, where Qatar will compete against five other nations - Iraq, Oman, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates for a direct ticket to the global showpiece. The six teams will be split into two groups of three, with the winner of each group securing automatic qualification for the 2026 World Cup finals, while the second-placed sides will move on to the fifth and final round of qualification. The fourth-round draw will be held on July 17, with matches kicking off in October. Preparatory camp squad: Meshaal Barsham, Marwan Sherif, Salah Zakaria, Shehab Ellethy, Abdulaziz Hatem, Abdullah Youssef, Abdullah Alyazidi, Assim Madibo, Ahmed Suhail, Ahmed Al Rawi, Ahmed Fathy, Ahmed Al Ganehi, Akram Afif, Almoez Ali, Boualem Khoukhi, Edmilson Junior, Guilherme Torres, Hazem Ahmed, Hassan Al Haydos, Homam Al Amin, Ismail Mohammed, Karim Boudiaf, Jassim Jaber, Mohammed Muntari, Mohammed Al Mannai, Mostafa Tarek, Pedro Miguel, Tarek Salman, Youssef Abdelrazzaq, Youssef Aymen. Coach: Julen Lopetegui.
Times of Oman
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Times of Oman
Oman's World Cup hopes remain alive as they hold Palestine to reach playoffs
Muscat: A ten-man Oman's booked their spot in the playoffs of the AFC Asian Qualifiers - Road to 26 Group B as they scraped to a 1-1 draw against Palestine at the King Abdullah Stadium in Amman, Jordan, on Tuesday night. Issam Al Subhi converted a penalty in the injury time to earn a much needed single point to help them reach the fourth round along with Iraq after trailing Palestine for most part of second half. Earlier, Oday Kharoub's powerful header in the 49th minute got Palestine the lead but a never-say-die spirit of Rasheed Jaber-coached Red Warriors' earned them a playoff spot. With thr draw Oman finished with 11 points while Palestine ended with 10 points. Oman went into the match, needing just a draw to advance into the playoffs, thus ended their campaign with 11 points. South Korea (22 points) and Jordan (16) booked direct spots for the 2026 FIFA World Cup from Group B while Iraq (15) and Oman advanced to the playoffs as third and fourth placed teams from the group. For Oman, it was a memorable comeback defeat after they lost 3-0 to Jordan at home last week. Oman escaped an early scare when a header from Palestine player hit the woodwork in the fourth minute of the match. Munther Al Alawi of Oman had the best chance in the first half as he darted into the box dangerously only to find a defender make a last minute save. Both the teams failed to find the target till thr break but Palestine broke the deadlock soon after resumption when off a corner kick, Kharoub's header beat the Oman defence and goalkeeper Faiz Al Rusheidi. Oman tried hard to find the much-needed equaliser but their efforts suffered a blow in the 73rd minute when the experienced midfielder Harib Al Saadi was given marching orders by the Iranian referee for a tackle that earned him his second yellow card. Down by a man, Oman continued to put pressure on Palestine but the equaliser remained elusive till the last minute of the injury time when they earned a spot kick after Oman's Mohsin Al Ghassani was brought down inside the box by Palestine's Ahmad Taha.
