FIFA World Cup 2022 Qatar: Asian Pride

It was the first time that 6 countries from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) made it to the FIFA World Cup. Hosts Qatar, World Cup regulars Japan and South Korea, Australia, Saudi Arabia, and Iran were all part of this historic tournament which also saw some of them produce major upsets against football’s powerhouses.

It was the same bulk of nations who featured in the 2018 edition in Russia, with Qatar the only addition this year. And it also proved to be a much better showing of home support for the Asian nations, as 3 countries progressed to the knockout stage compared to only 1 four years ago – Japan.

It is also the first time that 3 Asian countries made it past the group stage, beating the record of 2 in 2010 and 2002. Let us look at each of the 6 countries’ journeys in the World Cup 2022 and how they fared.

1. Qatar

As the host country, Qatar had automatic qualification to the World Cup. Having won the AFC Asian Cup in 2019, the expectations for the World Cup debutants were ambiguous, being in the same group with 2010 World Cup finalists Netherlands, African wonder boys – Senegal, and Ecuador. It was a diverse group with all countries coming from different continents, but it was Netherlands and Senegal who made it past the group stage. 2019 Asian Cup record breaker Almoez Ali could not impact on the bigger stage as Qatar succumbed to an Enner Valencia-inspired 2-0 defeat in the curtain raiser before losing again to Senegal 3-1. That defeat meant that Qatar was the first country to face an exit at the tournament, but the consolation by Mohammed Muntari would be forever remembered by the Qataris as their first ever World Cup goal. The hosts ended their 2022 World Cup campaign with a 2-0 defeat to Netherlands.

2. Iran

Iran were quite close to qualifying for the knockout stages in the 2018 World Cup in Russia when they were in the same group with Morocco, and European giants Spain and Portugal. A win against Morocco, a slender defeat to Spain and a reputable draw with Portugal were not enough to see them past the group stage. They entered the 2022 tournament with a FIFA ranking of 20th, the highest of all Asian countries and saw themselves in a slightly more favourable group. After a heavy 6-2 defeat to England in the first game, Iran produced an exciting edge-of-the-seat encounter with Wales, scoring 2 late goals deep into stoppage time to earn a hard-fought 2-0 victory. Iran needed only a draw in their final game against USA who needed a win, but the Americans were hungrier as Iran bowed out in the group stages of the World Cup yet again finishing third.

3. Saudi Arabia

They were the lowest ranked of all 6 Asian countries coming into the World Cup but it was not the same Saudi Arabia we saw 4 years ago, who were thrashed 5-0 by Russia in the opening game. This Saudi side, led by coach Herve Renard, produced the first major upset of the competition with a come-from-behind 2-1 win over eventual Champions Argentina. Lionel Messi put Argentina ahead with a penalty in the first half but an inspiring half-time team talk spurred his charges on to produce 2 goals within the first 10 minutes of the second half, including a fabulous shot by Salem Al-Dawsari. The Green Falcons, however, suffered a 2-0 defeat in the hands of Poland before a 2-1 loss to Mexico, which meant that they too said goodbye, but with an injury-stricken team.

4. Australia

Australia qualified for the knockout round for the first time since 2006, and it was also their second ever appearance at that stage of the World Cup. Their opening game saw Craig Goodwin take an early lead against France with a delightful finish but the French came back with a resounding 4 goals to see off the Aussies. The Socceroos’ narrow 1-0 victories against Tunisia and Denmark sent them to the round of 16, where they eventually succumbed to Argentina’s dominance in a 2-1 scoreline.

5. Japan

It was Japan’s seventh consecutive World Cup appearance, and also the first time they reached the knockout phases in consecutive editions. Japan won the hearts of many football fans, not only because of their well-mannered supporters who tidied up stadiums at the end of games, but also their players who displayed strong character on the pitch. And it was such character that produced upsetting wins over previous World Champions Germany and Spain. They came back from a goal down to win 2-1 in both games and despite losing to Costa Rica in their second game, they still marched on to the round of 16 by finishing as group winners and mercilessly knocking Germany out. Their round of 16 tie with Croatia was cruel though, as they were knocked out on penalties. The Blue Samurais could not hold on to their lead, finishing the game at 1-1. They headed out of the tournament but were still being talked about in the subsequent stages, particularly their winner against Spain and how the ball remained in play by the narrowest of margins.

Fun fact: The last Asian country to top its group in the World Cup was co-hosts South Korea in 2002 as they led Group D ahead of USA, Portugal, and Poland.

6. South Korea

Yet another frequent participant in the World Cup with their fourth finish in 2002 being their best showing, South Korea edged Uruguay with a better goal difference to be the third Asian country to qualify for the knockout stage. They held the South Americans to a goalless draw in the opening game and subsequently lost to Ghana 3-2 despite coming back from two goals down to level the score at 2-2 thanks to Gue-Sung Cho’s brace. With only one point in two games, they had to win Portugal to stand any chance of qualifying, and they duly did by overcoming a one-goal deficit and scoring a stoppage time winner to beat the Portuguese 2-1. Captain Heung-Min Son and his fellow Taegeuk Warriors were then kicked out of the round of 16 by Brazil in a 4-1 scoreline. The 5-time World Champions were leading by 4 goals in the first half before substitute Seung-Ho Paik’s half-volley pounded on the top corner of the net in the second half, sending the Korean fans into raptures albeit a consolation goal. 

With the participation expansion of the 2026 World Cup, there will be opportunities for more Asian countries to shine and that is something we are all anxiously waiting to witness!