World Cup qualifiers, schedule, more: AFC FIFA 2026. It is likely that the Asian qualification process for the 2026 World Cup will be difficult, at the very least requiring several group stages. Eight teams from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) will be selected directly to the World Cup in 2026, while the ninth team will participate in a series of inter-confederation playoffs in order to qualify for the tournament.
It is estimated that Africa and Europe will be the only continents with more teams participating in 2026 than any other continent.
Despite the fact that each of these players plays for teams that are favorites to advance in the tournament, there is still a fluctuation in their chances of making the World Cup over the next three years, despite the fact that Heung-min Son (Spurs, South Korea), Kaoru Mitoma (Brighton, Japan), and Saman Ghoddos (Brentford, Iran).
There are a number of countries competing to win the World Cup and many of them are listed here as the format, standings, and finally the tables are listed.
Form of qualification for the Asian World Cup 2026 to be held in the Asian region (AFC)
There will be 20 teams in the first round (home and away) during the period of October 11-17, 2023
After that, there will be nine groups of 36 teams and the top two teams from each group will advance to the next round (November 2023 through June 2024).
During the third round of the World Cup, which begins in September 2024, 18 teams will be divided in three groups and will play each other in three matches. It is going to be a four-team playoff with the third-place team and the fourth-place team going head-to-head.
There will be two groups of six teams in the fourth round (starting in October 2025), with the champion of each group going on to the World Cup and the teams finishing second moving on to the fifth round.
In November 2025, the fifth round will take place: two teams will compete; the winner will advance to the interconfederation playoffs
First-round fixtures and results for Asian (AFC) World Cup qualification
October 11
Afghanistan 1-0 Mongolia
Maldives 1-1 Bangladesh
Singapore 2-1 Guam
Yemen 3-0 Sri Lanka
Myanmar 5-1 Macau
Cambodia 0-0 Pakistan
Chinese Taipei 4-0 Timor-Leste
Indonesia 6-0 Brunei
Hong Kong 4-0 Bhutan
Nepal 1-1 Laos
October 17
Mongolia 0-1 (0-2 agg) Afghanistan
Bangladesh 2-1 (3-2 agg) Maldives
Guam 0-1 (1-3 agg) Singapore
Sri Lanka 1-1 (1-4 agg) Yemen
Macau 0-0 (1-5 agg) Myanmar
Pakistan 1-0 (1-0 agg) Cambodia
Timor-Leste 0-3 (0-7 agg) Chinese Taipei
Brunei 0-6 (0-12 agg) Indonesia
Bhutan 2-0 (2-4 agg) Hong Kong
Laos 0-1 (1-2 agg) Nepal
Asian (AFC) 2026 World Cup qualification schedule — Second round
November 16
Australia vs Bangladesh — 4am ET
Japan vs Myanmar — 5:02 am ET
South Korea vs Singapore — 6am ET
Philippines vs Vietnam — 6am ET
Thailand vs China — 7:30am ET
Malaysia vs Kyrgyzstan — 8am ET
Tajikistan vs Jordan — 8am ET
Turkmenistan vs Uzbekistan — 9am ET
Lebanon vs Palestine — 9am ET
Iran vs Hong Kong — 9:30am ET
Iraq vs Indonesia — 9:45am ET
Oman vs Chinese Taipei — 10am ET
UAE vs Nepal — 10:45 am ET
Qatar vs Afghanistan — 10:45am ET
Saudi Arabia vs Pakistan — 11:30am ET
Kuwait vs India — 11:30am ET
Syria vs North Korea — Noon ET
Yemen vs Bahrain — 1pm ET
November 21
Pakistan vs Tajikistan — 4am ET
Myanmar vs North Korea — 4:30am ET
Philippines vs Indonesia — 6am ET
Chinese Taipei vs Malaysia — 6am ET
Bangladesh vs Lebanon — 6:45am ET
Singapore vs Thailand — 7am ET
Vietnam vs Iraq — 7am ET
China vs South Korea — 7am ET
Hong Kong vs Turkmenistan — 7am ET
Uzbekistan vs Iran — 8am ET
Nepal vs Yemen — 8:15am ET
India vs Qatar — 8:30am ET
Palestine vs Australia — 9am ET
Kyrgyzstan vs Oman — 9am ET
Syria vs Japan — 9:45am ET
Bahrain vs UAE — 10:45am ET
Jordan vs Saudi Arabia — 11am ET
Afghanistan vs Kuwait — Noon ET
Asian (AFC) 2026 World
Asian (AFC) 2026 World Cup qualification tables — Second round groups
Group A
Qatar
India
Kuwait
Afghanistan
Group B
Japan
Syria
North Korea
Myanmar
Group C
South Korea
China
Thailand
Singapore
Group D
Oman
Kyrgyzstan
Malaysia
Chinese Taipei
Group E
Iran
Uzbekistan
Turkmenistan
Hong Kong
Group F
Iraq
Vietnam
Philippines
Indonesia
Group G
Saudi Arabia
Jordan
Tajikistan
Pakistan
Group H
United Arab Emirates
Bahrain
Yemen or Sri Lanka
Nepal
Group I
Australia
Palestine
Lebanon
Bangladesh
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