| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 5 September 2024 – 10 June 2025 |
| Teams | 18 (from 1 confederation) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 54 |
| Goals scored | 142 (2.63 per match) |
| Attendance | 1,470,050 (27,223 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Yazan Al-Naimat  Almoez Ali (5 goals each) |
← 2022 2030→ All statistics correct as of 19 November 2024. | |
The third round of AFC matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification is played from 5 September 2024 to 10 June 2025. [1]
The eighteen teams that advanced from the second round (nine group winners and nine group runners-up) were divided into three groups of six teams. The teams will play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The top two teams of each group will qualify directly for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, while the third and fourth-placed teams will advance to the fourth round. [2]
From the teams that advance to the fourth round, the two teams with the best results in this round also receive the right to host the fourth round groups. [3]
The following teams finished first or second in their respective second round groups: [4]
The draw for the third round was held on 27 June 2024 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. [4]
The seeding for the draw was based on the FIFA Men's World Rankings on 20 June 2024 (shown in parentheses below). [5]
Each group contained one team from each of the six pots. The draw started with Pot 6 and concluded with Pot 1, with each team drawn being placed in the corresponding position sequentially in Group A, then B, then C. [6]
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 |
|---|---|---|
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| Pot 4 | Pot 5 | Pot 6 |
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The competition schedule is expected to be as follows: [1] [7]
| Matchday | Date |
|---|---|
| Matchday 1 | 5 September 2024 |
| Matchday 2 | 10 September 2024 |
| Matchday 3 | 10 October 2024 |
| Matchday 4 | 15 October 2024 |
| Matchday 5 | 14–15 November 2024 |
| Matchday 6 | 19 November 2024 |
| Matchday 7 | 20 March 2025 |
| Matchday 8 | 25 March 2025 |
| Matchday 9 | 5 June 2025 |
| Matchday 10 | 10 June 2025 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |  |  |  | |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iran (X) | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 5 | +7 | 16 | 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | 25 Mar | 20 Mar | 4–1 | 1–0 | 10 Jun | |
| 2 | Uzbekistan | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 5 | +3 | 13 | 0–0 | — | 1–0 | 10 Jun | 20 Mar | 1–0 | ||
| 3 | United Arab Emirates | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 10 | Fourth round | 0–1 | 5 Jun | — | 5–0 | 3–0 | 1–1 | |
| 4 | Qatar | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 17 | −7 | 7 | 5 Jun | 3–2 | 1–3 | — | 3–1 | 20 Mar | ||
| 5 | Kyrgyzstan | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 13 | −7 | 3 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 10 Jun | 25 Mar | — | 1–0 | ||
| 6 | North Korea | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 9 | −4 | 2 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 25 Mar | 2–2 | 5 Jun | — |
| Iran | 1–0 | Kyrgyzstan |
|---|---|---|
| Report (FIFA) Report (AFC) |
| North Korea | 2–2 | Qatar |
|---|---|---|
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| Kyrgyzstan | 2–3 | Uzbekistan |
|---|---|---|
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| United Arab Emirates | 0–1 | Iran |
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| Qatar | 3–1 | Kyrgyzstan |
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| Iran | 4–1 | Qatar |
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| North Korea | 2–3 | Iran |
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| Qatar | 3–2 | Uzbekistan |
|---|---|---|
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| United Arab Emirates | 5–0 | Qatar |
|---|---|---|
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| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |  |  | |  |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Korea | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 5 | +7 | 14 | 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | 3–2 | 25 Mar | 20 Mar | 10 Jun | 0–0 | |
| 2 | Iraq | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 11 | 5 Jun | — | 0–0 | 1–0 | 20 Mar | 1–0 | ||
| 3 | Jordan | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 9 | Fourth round | 0–2 | 10 Jun | — | 4–0 | 1–1 | 20 Mar | |
| 4 | Oman | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 9 | −3 | 6 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 5 Jun | — | 4–0 | 1–0 | ||
| 5 | Kuwait | 6 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 11 | −6 | 4 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 25 Mar | — | 5 Jun | ||
| 6 | Palestine | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 3 | 1–1 | 25 Mar | 1–3 | 10 Jun | 2–2 | — |
| Iraq | 1–0 | Oman |
|---|---|---|
| Report (FIFA) Report (AFC) |
| Jordan | 1–1 | Kuwait |
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| Report (FIFA) Report (AFC) |
| Palestine | 1–3 | Jordan |
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| Oman | 1–3 | South Korea |
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| Kuwait | 0–0 | Iraq |
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| Jordan | 0–2 | South Korea |
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| Oman | 4–0 | Kuwait |
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| Iraq | 1–0 | Palestine |
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| South Korea | 3–2 | Iraq |
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| Palestine | 2–2 | Kuwait |
|---|---|---|
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| Kuwait | 1–3 | South Korea |
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| Palestine | 1–1 | South Korea |
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| Oman | 0–1 | Iraq |
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| Kuwait | 1–1 | Jordan |
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| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |  |  |  |  |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japan (X) | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 2 | +20 | 16 | 2026 FIFA World Cup | — | 1–1 | 10 Jun | 25 Mar | 20 Mar | 7–0 | |
| 2 | Australia | 6 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 7 | 5 Jun | — | 20 Mar | 0–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | ||
| 3 | Indonesia | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 9 | −3 | 6 | Fourth round | 0–4 | 0–0 | — | 2–0 | 25 Mar | 5 Jun | |
| 4 | Saudi Arabia | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 6 | 0–2 | 10 Jun | 1–1 | — | 0–0 | 20 Mar | ||
| 5 | Bahrain | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 10 | −5 | 6 | 0–5 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 5 Jun | — | 0–1 | ||
| 6 | China | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 16 | −10 | 6 | 1–3 | 25 Mar | 2–1 | 1–2 | 10 Jun | — |
| Saudi Arabia | 1–1 | Indonesia |
|---|---|---|
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| China | 1–2 | Saudi Arabia |
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| Australia | 3–1 | China |
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| Bahrain | 2–2 | Indonesia |
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| China | 2–1 | Indonesia |
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| Australia | 0–0 | Saudi Arabia |
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| Bahrain | 0–1 | China |
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| China | 1–3 | Japan |
|---|---|---|
| Report (FIFA) Report (AFC) |
| Indonesia | 2–0 | Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|
| Report (FIFA) Report (AFC) |
| Bahrain | 2–2 | Australia |
|---|---|---|
| Report (FIFA) Report (AFC) |
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There have been 142 goals scored in 54 matches, for an average of 2.63 goals per match (as of 19 November 2024).
5 goals
4 goals
3 goals
2 goals
1 goal
Craig Goodwin Lewis Miller Nishan Velupillay Behram Abduweli Lin Liangming Xie Wenneng Thom Haye Ragnar Oratmangoen Rafael Struick Sandy Walsh Saleh Hardani Youssef Amyn Ibrahim Bayesh Wataru Endō Ko Itakura Junya Itō Daichi Kamada Takefusa Kubo Daizen Maeda Kaoru Mitoma Yukinari Sugawara Noor Al-Rawabdeh Musa Al-Taamari Odilzhon Abdurakhmanov Khristiyan Brauzman Alimardon Shukurov Jong Il-gwan Kang Kuk-chol Kim Yu-song Ri Il-song Abdullah Fawaz Akram Afif Lucas Mendes Musab Al-Juwayr Bae Jun-ho Hwang Hee-chan Joo Min-kyu Khaled Ibrahim Marcus Meloni Ali Saleh Husniddin Aliqulov Jaloliddin Masharipov Eldor Shomurodov Otabek Shukurov Oston Urunov 1 own goal
Cameron Burgess (against Japan) Harry Souttar (against Bahrain) Justin Hubner (against Japan) Mehdi Taremi (against North Korea) Shogo Taniguchi (against Australia) Tamirlan Kozubayev (against Qatar) Ali Lajami (against China) Jung Seung-hyun (against Oman)This page provides the summaries of the AFC fourth round matches for 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification.
The 2012 AFC Cup group stage was contested by a total of 32 teams. They included:
The second round of AFC matches for 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification was played from 24 May 2015 to 29 March 2016.
The third round of AFC matches for 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification was played from 1 September 2016 to 5 September 2017.
The third round of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup qualification was played from 26 March 2017 to 27 March 2018.
The 2017 AFC Cup group stage was played from 20 February to 31 May 2017. A total of 34 teams competed in the group stage to decide the 11 places in the knockout stage of the 2017 AFC Cup.
The 2018 AFC Cup knockout stage was played from 7 May to 27 October 2018. A total of 11 teams competed in the knockout stage to decide the champions of the 2018 AFC Cup.
The 2019 AFC Champions League knockout stage was played from 18 June to 24 November 2019. A total of 16 teams competed in the knockout stage to decide the champions of the 2019 AFC Champions League.
The 2019 AFC Cup group stage was played from 25 February to 26 June 2019. A total of 36 teams competed in the group stage to decide the 11 places in the knockout stage of the 2019 AFC Cup.
The AFC second round of 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification, which also served as the second round of 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification, was played from 5 September 2019 to 15 June 2021.
The third round of AFC matches for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification was played from 2 September 2021 to 29 March 2022.
The third round of 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification was played from 8 to 14 June 2022 in six centralised venues. It was originally scheduled for 30 March 2021 to 29 March 2022, but the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) changed the dates on multiple occasions due to postponements of matches in the second round, impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in Asia.
The 2021 AFC Cup group stage was played from 14 May to 24 August 2021. A total of 38 teams should have competed in the group stage to decide the 12 places in the knockout stage of the 2021 AFC Cup.
The 2022 AFC Cup group stage was played from 18 May to 30 June 2022. A total of 39 teams competed in the group stage to decide the 12 places in the knockout stage of the 2022 AFC Cup.
The 2024 AFC U-20 Women's Asian Cup qualification is a women's under-20 football competition that will determine the participating teams in the 2024 AFC U-20 Women's Asian Cup final tournament. Players born on or after 1 January 2004 are eligible to participate.
The 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup qualification was an international men's under-20 football competition which was held to decide the participating teams of the 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup. It was held as under-20 tournament for the first time after rebranding by AFC.
The 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualification was an international men's under-17 football competition which was held to decide the participating teams of the 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup. It was held as under-17 tournament for the first time after rebranding by AFC.
The second round of 2026 FIFA World Cup AFC qualification, which also served as the second round of 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification, began on 16 November 2023 and was completed on 11 June 2024.
The 2023–24 AFC Cup group stage was played from 18 September to 11 December 2023. A total of 36 teams competed in the group stage to decide the 11 places in the knockout stage of the 2023–24 AFC Cup.
The 2024–25 AFC Champions League Two group stage will be played from 17 September to 5 December 2024. Top two teams from each group qualify for the knockout stage.
Our man in Tokyo says both teams requested a delay to the kick-off and were rejected by the Asian Football Confederation. That's pretty ordinary, and there are a few alternative words as well— Socceroos team bus set out at 4:37pm from Bunkyo and arrived in Saitama 6:46pm - Two hours and nine minutes. JFA and FA requested a delay to kickoff but AFC declined— Joey Lynch
[photos of Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo]
By Car: Urawa interchange - 10 minutes, Iwatsuki interchange - 15 minutes, Tokyo Station - 40 minutes, Haneda Airport - 50 minutes
