The Iraqi Football Association announced today the launch of the national team’s preparation program for the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals with a friendly match against Andorra on May 29, as the team conducts a training camp in Spain from May 18 through June 5.<\/p>\n
In parallel development, the AFC announced Iraq’s placement in the second tier for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup draw, which will be held in Saudi Arabia for the first time.<\/p>\n
The Iraqi Football Association declared that “the national team opens its preparation program for the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals with a friendly match against Andorra on May 29 as part of its training camp scheduled to take place in Spain.”<\/p>\n
The association explained that the training camp will continue through June 5, providing adequate time for comprehensive preparation of the national team at the highest levels.<\/p>\n
A second friendly match against the Spanish national team is scheduled for June 4, offering quality competitive preparation against a top European opponent.<\/p>\n
The preparation plan includes:<\/p>\n
Training camp in Spain from May 18 through June 5
\nFriendly match against Andorra on May 29
\nFriendly match against Spain on June 4
\nIntensive training period before World Cup campaign begins<\/p>\n
The Iraqi Football Association announced that its president Adnan Dirjal and Andorran counterpart Felix Alvarez “finalized all details related to the friendly match.”<\/p>\n
These arrangements were completed “on the sidelines of their participation in the 76th FIFA Congress held recently in Vancouver, Canada.”<\/p>\n
This international coordination reflects the Iraqi Football Association’s commitment to professional and detailed preparation of the national team.<\/p>\n
The AFC announced the distribution of 24 qualified teams for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup across four tiers, with each tier containing six teams.<\/p>\n
Iraq’s national team was placed in the second tier with a world ranking of 57, reflecting the national team’s standing among Asian football powerhouses.<\/p>\n
Saudi Arabia will host the tournament for the first time in its history from December 7, 2026 through February 5, 2027.<\/p>\n
Asian teams were distributed as follows:<\/p>\n
Tier One: Saudi Arabia (61), Japan (18), Iran (21), South Korea (25), Australia (27), Uzbekistan (50)
\nTier Two: Qatar (55), Iraq (57), Jordan (63), UAE (68), Oman (79), Syria (84)
\nTier Three: Bahrain (91), Thailand (93), China (94), Palestine (95), Vietnam (99), Tajikistan (103)
\nTier Four: Kyrgyzstan (107), North Korea (118), Indonesia (122), Kuwait (134), Singapore (147), Lebanon or Yemen<\/p>\n
Following the draw scheduled for next Saturday, the 24 qualified Asian teams will be distributed into six groups with four teams in each group.<\/p>\n
The tournament opening match will feature the host Saudi Arabia, as the hosting nation was placed first in tier one to ensure the opening game.<\/p>\n
This format ensures competitive balance while giving the host nation a prominent role in tournament commencement.<\/p>\n
Team distribution was based on:<\/p>\n
Latest FIFA world rankings as of April 1
\nGlobal ranking position for each team
\nPrevious tournament performance and historical football records<\/p>\n
Iraq’s placement in the second tier presents a favorable opportunity for strong performances in the Asian championship.<\/p>\n
The national team will face significant challenges from strong competitors including Qatar, Jordan, UAE, Oman, and Syria in its group.<\/p>\n
The current ranking reflects the capabilities and potential of the Iraqi national team on the Asian football stage.<\/p>\n
Iraq will face in its group:<\/p>\n
Qatar (World ranking 55) – 2023 Asian Cup guest participant
\nJordan (World ranking 63)
\nUAE (World ranking 68)
\nOman or Syria<\/p>\n
Twenty-three teams have qualified for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup finals, while the final qualifying spot requires determination through a playoff between Lebanon and Yemen.<\/p>\n
Lebanon and Yemen will meet on June 4, 2026 to determine the final qualifier for the Asian championship, adding drama and excitement to the Asian football race.<\/p>\n
The World Cup 2026 represents a major target for Iraqi football, with preparations beginning significantly in advance through quality friendly matches and intensive training camps.<\/p>\n
The 2027 AFC Asian Cup offers another crucial opportunity for the national team to compete at the highest Asian level and establish itself among continental powerhouses.<\/p>\n
The Iraqi Football Association’s preparation steps reflect significant commitment to developing a competitive national team capable of performing at world and continental tournaments. Spain training camps and friendly matches represent genuine progress toward achieving Iraq’s football objectives and tournament goals.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Iraqi Football Association announced today the launch of the national team’s preparation program for the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals with a friendly match against Andorra on May 29, as the team conducts a training camp in Spain from May 18 through June 5. In parallel development, the AFC announced Iraq’s placement in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":33587,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"subtitle":"","format":"standard","override":[{"template":"7","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"left-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"topbottom","share_float_style":"share-monocrhome","show_share_counter":"1","show_view_counter":"1","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"0","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","show_comment_section":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"1","show_post_related":"0","show_inline_post_related":"0"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0"},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"jnews_post_split":{"post_split":[{"template":"1","tag":"h2","numbering":"asc","mode":"normal","first":"0","enable_toc":"0","toc_type":"normal"}]},"footnotes":""},"categories":[83],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33586","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33586","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33586"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33586\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33589,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33586\/revisions\/33589"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33587"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}