Other names | Iraq vs Kuwait |
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Teams | ![]() ![]() |
First meeting | 13 November 1964 (56 years ago) |
Latest meeting | Iraq 1–0 Kuwait Friendly |
Statistics | |
Meetings total | 37 |
Most wins | Iraq (17) |
Largest victory | Iraq 3–0 Kuwait Asian Games (18 December 1978) |
Iraq's rivalry with Kuwait was once considered the Arab world's greatest football rivalry of all time. [1] It began in the mid-1970s. [2] In August 2, 1990, the rivalry between the two switched from the football field to the battlefield, during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Because of the Gulf War, Iraq and Kuwait were in complete avoidance and never met for more than a decade. Iraq and Kuwait have played 37 matches against each other with 17 victories for Iraq, 10 draws, and 10 victories for Kuwait.
1972 AFC Asian Cup qualification
1972 AFC Asian Cup qualification
2026 FIFA World Cup qualification
Matches held in Iraq | 8 |
Matches held in neutral venue | 18 |
Matches held in Kuwait | 11 |
Total matches | 37 |
Matches won by Iraq | 17 |
Matches won by Kuwait | 10 |
Goals scored by Iraq | 54 |
Goals scored by Kuwait | 43 |
The Saudi Arabia national football team (SAFF) represents Saudi Arabia in men's international football. They are known as Al-Suqour Al-Arabiyyah and sometimes Al-Suqour Al-Khodhur, a reference to their traditional colours of green and white, and represent both FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
The Iraq national football team represents Iraq in men's international football and is controlled by the Iraq Football Association (IFA), the governing body for football in Iraq. Iraq's usual home venue is the Basra International Stadium.
The Kuwait national football team represents Kuwait and is controlled by the Kuwait Football Association. Kuwait made its only FIFA World Cup appearance in 1982, managing one point in the group stage. In the Asian Cup, Kuwait reached the final round in 1976 and won the tournament in 1980.
The United Arab Emirates national football team represents United Arab Emirates in international football and serves under the auspices of the country's Football Association.
The Indonesia national football team represents Indonesia in international men's football matches since 1945. The men's national team is controlled by the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI), the governing body for football in Indonesia, which is a part of AFC, under the jurisdiction of FIFA. Most of Indonesia home matches are played at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium.
The Jordan national football team represents Jordan in international football. It is under the jurisdiction of the Jordan Football Association. Jordan played five times in the Asian Cup. It reached the finals of a major tournament for the first time in the 2023 edition, finishing as runners-up.
The Bahrain national football team represents Bahrain in international football and is controlled by the Bahrain Football Association, which was founded in 1951 and joined FIFA in 1966. They have never reached the World Cup, but have twice come within one match of doing so. Bahrain won the FIFA's most improved team award in 2004, and finished fourth in the 2004 Asian Cup, beating Uzbekistan in the quarter-finals but losing to Japan in the semi-finals 4–3. Bahrain then lost to Iran in the third-place match, thus finishing in fourth place overall. Bahrain had a golden year in 2019, winning both the WAFF Championship and the Arabian Gulf Cup for the first time, under the stewardship of Hélio Sousa.
The Thailand national football team represents Thailand in senior international football and is controlled by the Football Association of Thailand.
The Qatar national football team, nicknamed "The Maroons", represents Qatar in international football, and is controlled by the Qatar Football Association, which is affiliated with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and comes under the global jurisdiction of world football’s governing body FIFA. They play their home games at Khalifa International Stadium and Jassim bin Hamad Stadium. The latter is considered the home stadium.
The Vietnam national football team represents the Vietnam in men's senior international association football and is controlled by the Vietnam Football Federation, the governing of football in Vietnam. The team's nickname is the Golden Star Warriors.
The Lebanon national football team, controlled by the Lebanese Football Association (LFA), have represented Lebanon in association football since their inception in 1933. The squad is governed by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) continentally, and FIFA worldwide. While Lebanon have yet to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, they have qualified three times to the AFC Asian Cup: they first participated in 2000, when they hosted the event. Lebanon's main venue is the Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium in Beirut; however they also play in other locations such as the Saida Municipal Stadium in Sidon.
The Yemen national football team represents Yemen in men's international football and is administered by the Yemen Football Association.
The Palestine national football team, governed by the Palestinian Football Association, represents Palestine in association football. The squad is governed by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) continentally, and FIFA worldwide.
The South Yemen national football team, recognised as Yemen DPR by FIFA, represented South Yemen in men's international football, playing as one of two Yemeni teams, along with North Yemen.
Al-Shaab International Stadium is an all-seater multi-purpose stadium in Baghdad, Iraq. The 35,700-seater was the home stadium of the Iraq national football team, as well as the largest stadium in Iraq, from its opening on 6 November 1966 until the Basra International Stadium was opened in 2013. It is owned by the government of Iraq.
The Iran and Iraq national football teams are sporting rivals since 1962.
Iraq and Saudi Arabia are two fierce rivals of the Arab world. Their matches are often considered to be one of the most heated rivalries in the world.
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 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.