2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC third round

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2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC third round
Tournament details
Dates2 September 2021 – 29 March 2022
Teams12 (from 1 confederation)
Tournament statistics
Matches played60
Goals scored122 (2.03 per match)
Attendance639,277 (10,655 per match)
Top scorer(s) Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Wu Lei
Flag of Iran.svg Alireza Jahanbakhsh
Flag of Iran.svg Mehdi Taremi
Flag of Japan.svg Junya Itō
Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Saleh Al-Shehri
Flag of South Korea.svg Son Heung-min
(4 goals each)
2018
2026

The third round [note 1] of AFC matches for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification was played from 2 September 2021 to 29 March 2022. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Format

The twelve teams that advanced from the second round (the seven group winners excluding Qatar and the five best group runners-up) were divided into two groups of six teams to play home-and-away round-robin matches. The top two teams of each group qualified for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and the two third-placed teams advanced to the fourth round. World Cup hosts Qatar won Group E in the second round (which meant they advanced to the 2023 AFC Asian Cup finals) but were not required to qualify for the World Cup.

Qualified teams

Group
(Second round)
Winners Best 5 Runners-up [note 2]
A Flag of Syria.svg  Syria Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China
B Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia
C Flag of Iran.svg  Iran Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq
D Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia
E Flag of Qatar.svg  Qatar [note 3] Flag of Oman.svg  Oman
F Flag of Japan.svg  Japan
G Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates Flag of Vietnam.svg  Vietnam
H Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon

Draw and seeding

The draw for the third round was held on 1 July 2021 at 15:00 MST (UTC+8), in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. [5]

The seeding for the draw was based on a special release of the FIFA Men's World Rankings for Asian teams on 18 June 2021 (shown in parentheses below). [6]

Each group contained one team from each of the six pots.

Note: Bolded teams qualified directly for the World Cup. Italicised teams qualified for the fourth round.

Pot 1Pot 2Pot 3
  1. Flag of Japan.svg  Japan (24)
  2. Flag of Iran.svg  Iran (26)
  1. Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia (35)
  2. Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea (36)
Pot 4Pot 5Pot 6
  1. Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq (70)
  2. Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China (71)
  1. Flag of Oman.svg  Oman (79)
  2. Flag of Syria.svg  Syria (80)
  1. Flag of Vietnam.svg  Vietnam (92)
  2. Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon (98)

Schedule

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Asia, FIFA announced on 12 August 2020 that the upcoming qualifying matches originally scheduled for 2020 were moved to 2021, [7] and on 11 November, the AFC Competitions Committee also announced that the final round of the Asian qualifiers would begin in September 2021 and be finished by March 2022. [8]

MatchdayDateOriginal date
Matchday 12 September 20213 September 2020
Matchday 27 September 20218 September 2020
Matchday 37 October 202113 October 2020
Matchday 412 October 202112 November 2020
Matchday 511 November 202117 November 2020
Matchday 616 November 202125 March 2021
Matchday 727 January 202230 March 2021
Matchday 81 February 20228 June 2021
Matchday 924 March 20227 September 2021
Matchday 1029 March 202212 October 2021

Groups

Group A

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualificationFlag of Iran.svgFlag of South Korea.svgFlag of the United Arab Emirates.svgFlag of Iraq.svgFlag of Syria.svgFlag of Lebanon.svg
1Flag of Iran.svg  Iran 10811154+1125 2022 FIFA World Cup 1–1 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–0
2Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea 10721133+1023 2–0 1–0 0–0 2–1 1–0
3Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates 1033477012 Fourth round 0–1 1–0 2–2 2–0 0–0
4Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq 1016361269 0–3 0–3 1–0 1–1 0–0
5Flag of Syria.svg  Syria 1013691676 0–3 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–3
6Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon 1013651386 1–2 0–1 0–1 1–1 0–3
Source: FIFA, AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
South Korea  Flag of South Korea.svg0–0Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Iran  Flag of Iran.svg1–0Flag of Syria.svg  Syria
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Azadi Stadium, Tehran
Attendance: 0 [note 4]
Referee: Ryuji Sato (Japan)
United Arab Emirates  Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg0–0Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Zabeel Stadium, Dubai
Attendance: 1,513
Referee: Ma Ning (China PR)

South Korea  Flag of South Korea.svg1–0Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Syria  Flag of Syria.svg1–1Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman (Jordan) [note 6]
Attendance: 2,370
Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)
Iraq  Flag of Iraq.svg0–3Flag of Iran.svg  Iran
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)

South Korea  Flag of South Korea.svg2–1Flag of Syria.svg  Syria
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Iraq  Flag of Iraq.svg0–0Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
United Arab Emirates  Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg0–1Flag of Iran.svg  Iran
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Taremi Soccerball shade.svg70'
Zabeel Stadium, Dubai
Attendance: 3,034
Referee: Chris Beath (Australia)

Iran  Flag of Iran.svg1–1Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea
Jahanbakhsh Soccerball shade.svg76' Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Son Heung-min Soccerball shade.svg48'
Azadi Stadium, Tehran
Attendance: 0 [note 4]
Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)
United Arab Emirates  Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg2–2Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Zabeel Stadium, Dubai
Attendance: 2,820
Referee: Ryuji Sato (Japan)
Syria  Flag of Syria.svg2–3Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman (Jordan) [note 6]
Attendance: 2,377
Referee: Chris Beath (Australia)

South Korea  Flag of South Korea.svg1–0Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Goyang Stadium, Goyang
Attendance: 30,152
Referee: Ma Ning (China PR)
Lebanon  Flag of Lebanon.svg1–2Flag of Iran.svg  Iran
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Iraq  Flag of Iraq.svg1–1Flag of Syria.svg  Syria
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)

Iraq  Flag of Iraq.svg0–3Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Thani bin Jassim Stadium, Al Rayyan (Qatar) [note 7]
Attendance: 0
Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)
Syria  Flag of Syria.svg0–3Flag of Iran.svg  Iran
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman (Jordan) [note 6]
Attendance: 907
Referee: Ma Ning (China PR)
Lebanon  Flag of Lebanon.svg0–1Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)

Lebanon  Flag of Lebanon.svg0–1Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Iran  Flag of Iran.svg1–0Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Azadi Stadium, Tehran
Attendance: 9,354
Referee: Chris Beath (Australia)
United Arab Emirates  Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg2–0Flag of Syria.svg  Syria
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
Attendance: 2,450
Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)

Lebanon  Flag of Lebanon.svg1–1Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Saida Municipal Stadium, Sidon
Attendance: 6,341
Referee: Adham Makhadmeh (Jordan)
Syria  Flag of Syria.svg0–2Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Rashid Stadium, Dubai (United Arab Emirates) [note 6]
Attendance: 310
Referee: Hiroyuki Kimura (Japan)
Iran  Flag of Iran.svg1–0Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Azadi Stadium, Tehran
Attendance: 0
Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)

South Korea  Flag of South Korea.svg2–0Flag of Iran.svg  Iran
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Seoul World Cup Stadium, Seoul
Attendance: 64,375
Referee: Chris Beath (Australia)
Lebanon  Flag of Lebanon.svg0–3Flag of Syria.svg  Syria
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Iraq  Flag of Iraq.svg1–0Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) [note 7]
Attendance: 1,320
Referee: Ma Ning (China PR)

Iran  Flag of Iran.svg2–0Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Imam Reza Stadium, Mashhad
Attendance: 22,453
Referee: Fu Ming (China PR)
United Arab Emirates  Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg1–0Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
Attendance: 4,223
Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)
Syria  Flag of Syria.svg1–1Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Rashid Stadium, Dubai (United Arab Emirates) [note 6]
Attendance: 3,710
Referee: Ryuji Sato (Japan)

Group B

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualificationFlag of Saudi Arabia.svgFlag of Japan.svgFlag of Australia (converted).svgFlag of Oman.svgFlag of the People's Republic of China.svgFlag of Vietnam.svg
1Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia 10721126+623 2022 FIFA World Cup 1–0 1–0 1–0 3–2 3–1
2Flag of Japan.svg  Japan 10712124+822 2–0 2–1 0–1 2–0 1–1
3Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia 10433159+615 Fourth round 0–0 0–2 3–1 3–0 4–0
4Flag of Oman.svg  Oman 104241110+114 0–1 0–1 2–2 2–0 3–1
5Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China 10136919106 1–1 0–1 1–1 1–1 3–2
6Flag of Vietnam.svg  Vietnam 10118819114 0–1 0–1 0–1 0–1 3–1
Source: FIFA, AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
Japan  Flag of Japan.svg0–1Flag of Oman.svg  Oman
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Australia  Flag of Australia (converted).svg3–0Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Saudi Arabia  Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg3–1Flag of Vietnam.svg  Vietnam
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Mrsool Park, Riyadh
Attendance: 8,331
Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)

Vietnam  Flag of Vietnam.svg0–1Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
China  Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg0–1Flag of Japan.svg  Japan
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Oman  Flag of Oman.svg0–1Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat
Attendance: 8,150
Referee: Hanna Hattab (Syria)

Saudi Arabia  Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg1–0Flag of Japan.svg  Japan
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
China  Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg3–2Flag of Vietnam.svg  Vietnam
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Australia  Flag of Australia (converted).svg3–1Flag of Oman.svg  Oman
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)

Japan  Flag of Japan.svg2–1Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Oman  Flag of Oman.svg3–1Flag of Vietnam.svg  Vietnam
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Saudi Arabia  Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg3–2Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah
Attendance: 54,124
Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)

Australia  Flag of Australia (converted).svg0–0Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Western Sydney Stadium, Sydney
Attendance: 23,314
Referee: Ko Hyung-jin (South Korea)
Vietnam  Flag of Vietnam.svg0–1Flag of Japan.svg  Japan
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
China  Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg1–1Flag of Oman.svg  Oman
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Sharjah Stadium, Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) [note 9]
Attendance: 1,700
Referee: Sivakorn Pu-udom (Thailand)

China  Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg1–1Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Sharjah Stadium, Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) [note 9]
Attendance: 1,050
Referee: Adham Makhadmeh (Jordan)
Oman  Flag of Oman.svg0–1Flag of Japan.svg  Japan
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Vietnam  Flag of Vietnam.svg0–1Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi
Attendance: 9,669
Referee: Hanna Hattab (Syria)

Australia  Flag of Australia (converted).svg4–0Flag of Vietnam.svg  Vietnam
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Japan  Flag of Japan.svg2–0Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Saudi Arabia  Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg1–0Flag of Oman.svg  Oman
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)

Japan  Flag of Japan.svg2–0Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama
Attendance: 19,118
Referee: Ko Hyung-jin (South Korea)
Vietnam  Flag of Vietnam.svg3–1Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Oman  Flag of Oman.svg2–2Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)

Australia  Flag of Australia (converted).svg0–2Flag of Japan.svg  Japan
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Stadium Australia, Sydney
Attendance: 41,852
Referee: Nawaf Shukralla (Bahrain)
Vietnam  Flag of Vietnam.svg0–1Flag of Oman.svg  Oman
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi
Attendance: 6,923
Referee: Hanna Hattab (Syria)
China  Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg1–1Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia
Zhu Chenjie Soccerball shade.svg82' (pen.) Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Al-Shehri Soccerball shade.svg45+1'
Sharjah Stadium, Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) [note 9]
Attendance: 200
Referee: Mohammed Abdulla Hassan Mohamed (United Arab Emirates)

Japan  Flag of Japan.svg1–1Flag of Vietnam.svg  Vietnam
Yoshida Soccerball shade.svg55' Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Nguyễn Thanh Bình Soccerball shade.svg19'
Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama
Attendance: 44,600
Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)
Oman  Flag of Oman.svg2–0Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)
Saudi Arabia  Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg1–0Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia
Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)

Goalscorers

There were 122 goals scored in 60 matches, for an average of 2.03 goals per match.

4 goals

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal

See also

Notes

  1. On the AFC's official YouTube page, "The AFC Hub," it is referred to as the Final Round.
  2. This would usually be a "Best 4", but because the 2022 FIFA World Cup hosts Qatar won their group (their participation in the second round was to secure a spot in the 2023 AFC Asian Cup), the draw for the third round of the FIFA World Cup's qualification included 5 runners-up instead. [4]
  3. Qatar had already qualified for the 2022 FIFA World Cup as the tournament hosts, but competed in the second round as part of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Asia, the match was played behind closed doors.
  5. 1 2 The Korean FA (South Korea) and Lebanese FA (Lebanon) agreed to switch the order of their home-and-away matches. [9]
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Due to the Syrian civil war, Syria played its home matches at neutral venues.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Due to the security concerns, Iraq played its home matches at neutral venues.
  8. 1 2 Due to the border closures in Australia because of COVID-19 pandemic, Australia played two of their home matches at neutral venues.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Due to the quarantine restrictions in China because of COVID-19 pandemic, China played its home matches at neutral venues.

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References

  1. "AFC Competitions Calendar 2021" (PDF). AFC. 17 September 2021.
  2. "AFC Competitions Calendar 2022" (PDF). AFC. 20 October 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 November 2021. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  3. "INTERNATIONAL MATCH CALENDAR 2020-2024" (PDF). FIFA. August 2021.
  4. "Groups finalised for Qatar 2022 & China 2023 race". China.org.cn. 18 July 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
  5. "2022 World Cup Asian qualifiers Draw: When will be the third round matches played?". Goal. 1 July 2021.
  6. "Asia World Cup qualifying: What's next?". FIFA. 18 June 2021.
  7. "Update on upcoming FIFA World Cup qualifiers in Asia". FIFA. 12 August 2020.
  8. "2022 FIFA World Cup: Asian qualifiers to be completed by March 2022". Olympics.com. 12 November 2020.
  9. "National confirmation... Lebanon outside its land in September" (in Arabic). 2 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  10. "Socceroos to host China PR in Doha". Football Australia. 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  11. "Chinese national football team gears up for World Cup qualifiers". Xinhuanet. Xinhua. 19 August 2021.
  12. Francis, Kieran (15 September 2021). "Socceroos World Cup qualifier against Oman won't be played in Australia". Sporting News.