The Arab teams have excelled so far in the double qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup, which reached its fifth and penultimate stage after 8 teams qualified compared to 5 teams from the east and west of the continent.
There are 5 seats left competing for 11 teams, including two Arab teams, Kuwait and Syria, which if they achieve victory in the sixth and final round next Tuesday, the number will rise to 10 teams, which favors the Arabs in reaching the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Finals.
So far, 13 teams have officially qualified for the third stage of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers and the 2027 Asian Finals, namely Qatar (first group), Japan (second), South Korea (third), Oman (fourth), Iran and Uzbekistan (fifth), and Iraq (sixth). Saudi Arabia and Jordan (seventh), the Emirates and Bahrain (eighth), and Australia and Palestine (ninth).
The sixth and final round next Tuesday will witness the strongest and fiercest struggle for the last 5 cards, competed by 11 teams.
The strongest and most fierce struggle will be in Annabi’s first group, where 3 teams have the chance to qualify and accompany Annabi: India and Afghanistan, each with 5 points, and Kuwait, with 4 points.
Although Kuwait fell to fourth place, it has a great chance of qualifying if it wins in the last round over Afghanistan in Kuwait, and Qatar wins over India in Doha, while Syria’s task seems very difficult in the second group, as it occupies second place with 7 points compared to 6 points for North Korea, which is competing with it. It is hard to qualify, and Kuwait will meet Japan, the leader of the group, in Hiroshima, while North Korea seems to have a greater chance as it meets in its stadium and among its fans with Myanmar.
In the second group, China and Thailand are competing for second place, and China’s task (8 points) is difficult, as it is hosting South Korea, the leader, while Thailand (5 points) hosts the Singaporean team.
In the fourth group, Kyrgyzstan (10 points) and Malaysia (7 points) compete, and Kyrgyzstan meets Oman (12 points) in a double struggle, whether for the top spot in the group for the two teams or to snatch the qualification card for Kyrgyzstan, while Malaysia meets Chinese Taipei in Kuala Lumpur.
In Group Six, Indonesia (7 points) competes with Vietnam (6 points), and Indonesia has a greater chance as it hosts the Philippines, while Iraq hosts the Vietnam team.
