Published On 18/10/2025
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Last update: 16:49 (Mecca time)
Iraq and the Emirates entered a tunnel after failing to qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup, after the former tied with Saudi Arabia and the loss of “Al-Abyad Al-Emirati” to “Al-Anabi” of Qatar.
The two teams will face off in the Asian playoff in two home-and-away matches:
- UAE x Iraq (first leg next November 13 in Abu Dhabi).
- Iraq x UAE (the return leg will be next November 18 in Basra).
The winner of the aggregate of the two matches will occupy the seat allocated to Asia in the global qualifying round for the World Cup, or what FIFA called the “2026 World Cup Qualifying Qualifying Match Tournament,” which includes 6 teams competing for the last two places in the World Cup.
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Teams participating in the global playoff:
- Two teams from the CONCACAF North American region (not yet determined).
- A team from Asia (the winner of the matches between Iraq and the Emirates).
- A team from Africa (the winner of a special supplement that includes Gabon, Nigeria, Cameroon, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which takes place in Morocco).
- Bolivia qualifies for the play-off from South America (CONMEBOL).
- New Caledonia qualifies for the playoff from the Oceania region.
The difficult road between Iraq and the UAE
The path for the two Asian Arab teams is difficult, but not impossible, and for this reason the fans hope that there will be an eighth Arab team in the American World Cup, enhancing the chances of these teams reaching the furthest point in the tournament, and repeating Morocco’s achievement in the 2022 World Cup or even surpassing it and reaching the final.
The difficulty of the journey between Iraq (57th place according to the FIFA classification) and the Emirates (67th place according to the FIFA classification) begins with the two-legged matches because one of them leaves and the other continues the road. When he arrives in Mexico, which is hosting the World Playoff or the “Elimination Championship,” he must face high-caliber teams, not least Nigeria or Cameroon (the closest to qualifying from the African Playoff) and Bolivia (which qualifies from South America).
The tournament is scheduled to be held during the international break from March 23 to 31, 2026, with the four lowest-ranked teams competing in the semi-finals, while the two highest-ranked teams qualify for the two final matches, and the winners will receive the final two qualifying cards to the World Cup in America, Canada and Mexico.
FIFA classification and African supplement
Based on the October 2025 classification, FIFA determined the African play-off matches in the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, which will be held in Morocco next month:
The four teams are ranked as follows:
- Nigeria: 41st place globally.
- Cameroon: 54th place.
- Democratic Republic of the Congo: 60th place.
- Gabon: 77th place.
Accordingly, the African playoff matches will be as follows:
Semi-finals on November 13, 2025
- Nigeria x Gabon
- Cameroon x Democratic Republic of the Congo
Final on November 16, 2025
CONCACAF qualifiers for the World Cup
After the teams played 4 stages in the three groups of the CONCACAF qualifiers, Suriname, Honduras and Jamaica showed progress.
There are two rounds remaining to determine the top three teams in the groups, who will qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup, while the two best second-placed teams in the three groups will qualify for the qualifying round for the 2026 World Cup.
- Suriname leads Group A on goal difference over Panama
- Jamaica tops Group B, one point ahead of Curacao
- Honduras leads Group C, two points ahead of Costa Rica.
FIFA classification and the chances of Iraq and the Emirates
In summary of all of the above, the qualification scenarios for Iraq and the UAE are not only related to them, but their classification for next February will play a decisive role in this complex process.
Iraq, which occupies 57th place, and the Emirates 67th, are currently preceded by more than one African or CONCACAF team that is nominated to qualify for the World Cup Playoff. If all or some of them qualify, it is possible to move directly to the Playoff Final, and the task will be difficult for the “Emirati White” and the “Lions of Mesopotamia.”
The highest-ranked teams from Iraq and the UAE are:
- Panama (31)
- Costa Rica (45)
- Nigeria (41)
- Cameroon (54)
The highest ranked teams from the UAE are the same as the highest ranked teams from Iraq, in addition to:
- Democratic Republic of the Congo (60)
- Honduras (64)
Since nothing is impossible in football, and football does not recognize numbers, history, or classification, but rather the effort that is made in the minutes of the match, Iraq and the Emirates have entered a tunnel, but certainly the fans of the two teams see a light at the end.