West Asian Football Federation

Last updated
West Asian Football Federation
Formation15 May 2001;23 years ago (2001-05-15) [1]
TypeSports organization
Headquarters Amman, Jordan
Membership 12 member associations
President
Prince Ali bin Al Hussein
Parent organization
AFC
Website the-waff.com (in English)

The West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) founded in 2001, is a regional sub-confederation of football, governed under the Asian Football Confederation, for nations in West Asia. The WAFF consists of 12 member associations.

Contents

History

The founding members of the West Asian Football Federation are Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Syria. In 2009, three more associations, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Yemen, joined the federation. Four other West Asian nations, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi Arabia, joined in 2010. [2] Iran left the federation on 10 June 2014, with the creation of the Central Asian Football Association. [3]

Member associations

AssociationJoining yearNational teamTop Tiers League (Men's)
Flag of Bahrain.svg Bahrain 2010 Bahraini Premier League
Flag of Iraq.svg Iraq 2001 (founding member) Iraq Stars League
Flag of Jordan.svg Jordan 2001 (founding member) Jordanian Pro League
Flag of Kuwait.svg Kuwait 2010 Kuwait Premier League
Flag of Lebanon.svg Lebanon 2001 (founding member) Lebanese Premier League
Flag of Oman.svg Oman 2010 Oman Professional League
Flag of Palestine.svg Palestine 2001 (founding member) West Bank Premier League, Gaza Strip Premier League
Flag of Qatar.svg Qatar 2009 Qatar Stars League
Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Saudi Arabia 2010 Saudi Pro League
Flag of Syria (1932-1958; 1961-1963).svg Syria 2001 (founding member) Syrian Premier League
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg United Arab Emirates 2009 UAE Pro League
Flag of Yemen.svg Yemen 2009 Yemeni League
Former member
Flag of Iran.svg Iran 2001–2016 (founding member) Persian Gulf Pro League

Competitions

Current title holders

TournamentYearChampionsTitleRunners-upNext edition [4] Dates
National teams
WAFF Championship 2019 (Final)Flag of Bahrain.svg  Bahrain 1stFlag of Iraq.svg  Iraq 2025 (Final)TBD
WAFF U-23 Championship 2024 Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea 1stFlag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia 2025 19 -25 March
WAFF U-19 Championship 2024 Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia 1stFlag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates 2025
WAFF U-18 Championship 2021 Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq 2ndFlag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon TBDTBD
WAFF U-16 Championship 2024 Flag of the Syrian revolution.svg  Syria 2ndFlag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia TBDTBD
Futsal Championship 2022 Flag of Kuwait.svg  Kuwait 1stFlag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia TBDTBD
Beach Soccer Championship 2022 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates 1stFlag of Oman.svg  Oman TBDTBD
Women's national teams
WAFF Women's Championship 2024 Flag of Jordan.svg  Jordan 6thFlag of Nepal.svg  Nepal 2026 TBD
U-18 Girls' Championship 2024 Flag of Jordan.svg  Jordan 2ndFlag of the Syrian revolution.svg  Syria TBDTBD
U-17 Girls' Championship 2025 Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon 1stFlag of the Syrian revolution.svg  Syria TBDTBD
U-14 Girls' Championship 2023 Flag of the Syrian revolution.svg  Syria 1stFlag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon TBD
Futsal Women's Championship 2022 Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq 1stFlag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia TBD
Club teams
WAFF Club Championship 2025 TBD
Women's club teams
Women's Clubs Championship 2022 Flag of Lebanon.svg Safa 1st Flag of Jordan.svg Orthodox Club 2024 September or October

Titles by nation

After 2024 WAFF U-23 Championship.

RankNationGoldSilverBronzeTotal
1Flag of Jordan.svg  Jordan  (JOR)12121135
2Flag of Iran.svg  Iran  (IRI)126119
3Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq  (IRQ)83920
4Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon  (LBN)58417
5Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates  (UAE)3238
6Flag of Syria.svg  Syria  (SYR)261119
7Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia  (KSA)2518
8Flag of Kuwait.svg  Kuwait  (KUW)2013
9Flag of Bahrain.svg  Bahrain  (BHR)12811
10Flag of Qatar.svg  Qatar  (QAT)1124
11Flag of Yemen.svg  Yemen  (YEM)1012
12Flag of Japan.svg  Japan  (JPN)1001
Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea  (KOR)1001
14Flag of Oman.svg  Oman  (OMA)0235
15Flag of Palestine.svg  Palestine  (PLE)0178
16Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia  (AUS)0101
Flag of India.svg  India  (IND)0101
Flag of Nepal.svg  Nepal  (NEP)0101
Totals (18 entries)515162164

FIFA World Rankings

Men's national football team

WAFF Men's National Football Team Ranking by FIFA
Update: 23 June 2022

Women's national football team

WAFF Women's National Football Team Ranking by FIFA
Update: 24 March 2023

Men's national futsal team

Futsal Rankings (as of 6 May 2024) [6]
WAFF FIFA +/−National TeamPoints
135Steady2.svgFlag of Kuwait.svg  Kuwait 1115.99
242Steady2.svgFlag of Iraq.svg  Iraq 1091.27
348Steady2.svgFlag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia 1049.97
453Steady2.svgFlag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon 1032.42
573Steady2.svgFlag of Bahrain.svg  Bahrain 978.69
681Steady2.svgFlag of Jordan.svg  Jordan 968.31
793Steady2.svgFlag of Qatar.svg  Qatar 945.32
896Steady2.svgFlag of Oman.svg  Oman 940.88
9102Steady2.svgFlag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates 925.95
10122Steady2.svgFlag of Palestine.svg  Palestine 863.57

Women's national futsal team

Futsal Women's Rankings (as of 6 May 2024) [7]
WAFF FIFA +/−National TeamPoints
129Steady2.svgFlag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon 981.18
234Steady2.svgFlag of Palestine.svg  Palestine 974.58
337Steady2.svgFlag of Bahrain.svg  Bahrain 962.22
451Steady2.svgFlag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia 899.62
553Steady2.svgFlag of Iraq.svg  Iraq 887.88
655Steady2.svgFlag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates 885.35
762Steady2.svgFlag of Kuwait.svg  Kuwait 863.43
867Steady2.svgFlag of Oman.svg  Oman 848.46

Men's national beach soccer team

AFF Men's National Beach Soccer Team Ranking by BSWW
Update: 8 April 2024

WAFFWorldCountryPoints
17Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates 1955.75
217Flag of Oman.svg  Oman 1172.75
324Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia 696
444Flag of Bahrain.svg  Bahrain 298.5
555Flag of Kuwait.svg  Kuwait 222
657Flag of Palestine.svg  Palestine 199
763Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon 132.75

Controversy

On 29 January 2015, after the defeat of Iraq and the United Arab Emirates during the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, West Asian Football Federation members reportedly sought to remove Australia from the AFC primarily due to "Australia benefiting hugely from Asian involvement without giving much in return". [8]

See also

References

  1. "Chapter 1". Archived from the original on October 4, 2011. Retrieved October 1, 2010.
  2. "WAFF Articles and Definitions". The-waff.com. Retrieved 2016-02-26.
  3. "Central Asians meet Sheikh Salman to create CAFA". aff.org.af. 17 May 2014. Archived from the original on 29 October 2014. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
  4. "Championships". www.the-waff.com. West Asian Football Federation (WAFF). Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  5. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Women's World Ranking". FIFA. 13 December 2024. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
  6. "The FIFA Futsal Men's World Ranking" (PDF). FIFA. 6 May 2024. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  7. "The FIFA Women's Futsal World Ranking" (PDF). FIFA. 6 May 2024. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  8. "Angry Gulf nations leading charge to kick Australia out of Asian Football Confederation". The Sydney Morning Herald. 29 January 2015. Retrieved 2016-02-26.