UAE to face Qatar, Iran in World Cup qualifiers

The draw for the third round of the Asian qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026 placed the UAE national football team in Group A.

Iran, Qatar, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and North Korea are the other teams in the group.

The draw was held on Thursday in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, in the presence of representatives of the participating teams.

Saudi Arabia will face Japan, Australia, Bahrain, China and Indonesia in Group C, while Group B  includes South Korea, Iraq, Jordan, Oman, Palestine and Kuwait.

The final and decisive round of qualifiers will be held from September 5, 2024 to June 10, 2025.

During the draw, 18 teams were divided into three groups of six teams each.

The top two teams from each group will directly qualify for the 2026 World Cup in Mexico, the United States and Canada, securing six of the eight spots allocated to the Asian Football Confederation.

The remaining two spots will be decided through the Asian play-offs. Additionally, there is a possibility to secure one more spot through the global play-off.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙮 𝙩𝙤 #FIFAWorldCup 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙚𝙨!#AsianQualifiers Round 3 begins on September 5! pic.twitter.com/m8ll6z1Yi5

— #WAC2026 (@afcasiancup) June 27, 2024