Results of the Gulf teams in the second round of the Asian qualifiers

The second round of the joint Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia will resume on Thursday, with 18 matches being held within the third round.

.

The second round includes 36 teams divided into nine groups, with each group including four teams competing in a divided round-robin league system. The first two teams from each group qualify for the third round of the World Cup qualifiers, and these teams receive tickets to participate in the 2027 Asian Cup.

In the third round, the 18 teams are divided into three groups, with each group including six teams competing in a divided league system of two round-robin stages. The first two teams from each group qualify directly to the World Cup, while the third and fourth teams from each group move on to compete in the fourth round, from In order to determine the last two teams with direct seats for the World Cup, and the team that moves to the Asian playoff to determine the team that qualifies for the global playoff.

The Qatar national team continued to reap victories after defeating Kuwait 3-0 at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, in the third round of the first Group competitions in the second round of the joint Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.

Akram Afif (47 and 68) and Ahmed Al-Rawi (51) scored the winning goals for the Qatari team. The Qatar national team continued to fly at the top of the group standings after raising its score to 9 full points from three matches, compared to 4 points for India, 3 for Kuwait, and a point for Afghanistan.

The fourth round of group competitions will be held next Tuesday, March 26, where Kuwait will meet Qatar in Kuwait, and India will meet Afghanistan in Guwahati.

The first round witnessed Qatar defeating Afghanistan 8-1 in Doha and India defeating Kuwait 1-0 in Kuwait, while the second round witnessed Kuwait defeating Afghanistan 4-0 in Dammam and Qatar defeating India 3-0 in Bhubaneswar.

The Oman national team succeeded in defeating Malaysia 2-0 at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat, in the third round of Group Four competitions in the second round of the joint Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.

Issam Al-Subhi (58) and Mohsen Al-Ghassani (88) scored the winning goals for the Omani national team.

The Omani national team topped the group standings with 6 points from three matches, on goal difference against Kyrgyzstan and Malaysia, while China Taipei’s balance remained devoid of points.

The fourth round of group competitions will be held next Tuesday, March 26, where Malaysia will meet Oman in Kuala Lumpur, and Kyrgyzstan will meet Chinese Taipei in Bishkek.

The first round witnessed Oman defeating China Taipei 3-0 in Muscat and Malaysia defeating Kyrgyzstan 4-3 in Kuala Lumpur, while the second round witnessed Kyrgyzstan defeating Oman 1-0 in Bishkek and Malaysia defeating China Taipei 1-0 in Taipei.

The UAE national team achieved its third consecutive victory after defeating its host Yemen 2-1 at Al Nahyan Stadium in Abu Dhabi, in the third round of Group eight competitions in the second round of the joint Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.

Ali Saleh (24 from a penalty kick) and Sultan Adel (72) scored the UAE’s goals, while UAE player Abdullah Idris (69 by mistake against his team) scored Yemen’s goal.

The UAE maintained its lead in the group standings with 9 full points from three matches, compared to 6 points for Bahrain and 3 for Yemen, while Nepal’s balance is still devoid of points.

The fourth round of group competitions will be held next Tuesday, March 26, where Yemen will meet the UAE in Al-Khobar, and Bahrain will meet Nepal in Riffa.

The first round witnessed the UAE defeating Nepal 4-0 in Dubai and Bahrain defeating Yemen 2-0 in Abha, while the second round witnessed the UAE defeating Bahrain 2-0 in Riffa and Yemen defeating Nepal 2-0 in Kathmandu.

The second match took place in the same group.

The Bahrain national team succeeded in achieving a victory over Nepal with a score of 5-0 at the Bahrain National Stadium in Riffa. The winning goals were scored by: Mahdi Al-Humaidan (2), Sayed Baqir (9), Ali Madan (45 + 4), Ibrahim Al-Khattal (87) and Ismail Abdul Latif (90 + 6 scored from a penalty kick).

The fourth round of group competitions will be held next Tuesday, March 26, where Yemen will meet the UAE in Al-Khobar, and Bahrain will meet Nepal in Riffa.

The first round witnessed the UAE defeating Nepal 4-0 in Dubai and Bahrain defeating Yemen 2-0 in Abha, while the second round witnessed the UAE defeating Bahrain 2-0 in Riffa and Yemen defeating Nepal 2-0 in Kathmandu.

The Saudi national team achieved its third successive victory after defeating its host Tajikistan 1-0 at Al Awal Park Stadium in Riyadh, in the third round of Group Seven competitions in the second round of the joint Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.

Salem Al-Dosari scored the valuable winning goal for the Saudi national team in the 23rd minute of the match.

Saudi Arabia maintained its lead in the group with 9 points from three matches, compared to 4 points each for Tajikistan and Jordan, while Pakistan’s balance remained devoid of points.

The fourth round of group competitions will be held next Tuesday, March 26, where Tajikistan will meet Saudi Arabia in Dushanbe, and Jordan will meet Pakistan in Amman.

The first round witnessed Saudi Arabia defeating Pakistan 4-0 in Al-Ahsa and Tajikistan drawing with Jordan 1-1 in Dushanbe, while the second round witnessed Saudi Arabia defeating Jordan 2-0 in Amman and Tajikistan defeating Pakistan 6-1 in Islamabad.

The Iraqi national team achieved a difficult victory over the Philippines, 1-0, at the Basra International Stadium in Basra, in the third round of Group Six competitions in the second round of the joint Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.

The goalless draw dominated the outcome of the match until the 84th minute, which witnessed the valuable winning goal for the Iraqi team being scored by Muhannad Ali.

The Iraqi national team topped the group standings with 9 full points from three matches, compared to 4 points from three matches for Indonesia, 3 for Vietnam, and a point for the Philippines.

The fourth round of group competitions will be held next Tuesday, March 26, where the Philippines will meet Iraq in Manila, and Vietnam will meet Indonesia in Hanoi.

The first round witnessed Iraq’s victory over Indonesia 5-1 in Basra and Vietnam over the Philippines 2-0 in Manila, while the second round witnessed Iraq’s victory over Vietnam 1-0 in Hanoi and the Philippines tied with Indonesia 1-1 in Manila.