Football World Cup 2018 / Qualification (AFC)

The Continental Federation AFC

The associations of the Asian Football Confederation ( AFC ) are entitled to four permanent places for the 2018 World Cup . A team was able to secure a possible fifth place in the final round in intercontinental decision-making encounters.

For qualification , all 46 associations of the AFC had reported that a member of the World Federation FIFA are. Bhutan , bottom of the FIFA world rankings before qualifying starts, are taking part for the first time. Indonesia was excluded on June 3, 2015 (see Group F).

The Asian association drew the first qualifying round on February 10, 2015, in which the 12 weakest teams take part. The first game of this qualification took place on March 12, 2015 in the national stadium of Dili between East Timor and Mongolia . Chiquito do Carmo (East Timor) was the first scorer in this qualification.

FIFA regulations

According to FIFA regulations, the preliminary round matches in the form of group matches and cup matches can be played in home and return matches or, in exceptional cases, in tournament form in one of the participating countries. In the group games, three points are awarded for a win and one for a draw. The following criteria are decisive:

1. higher number of points
2. better goal difference
3. higher number of goals scored
4. higher number of points from the direct encounters between teams with the same points and goals
5. better goal difference from the direct encounters between the teams with the same points and goals
6. higher number of goals from direct encounters between teams with equal points and goals
7. higher number of away goals from direct encounters between teams with the same points and goals if only two teams are affected.

If two teams are equal according to these criteria, a play-off can be scheduled.

In the cup games, if there is a tie after the two games, the higher number of away goals scored counts. If the number of away goals is the same, extra time is played. If no goal is scored in extra time, the match will be decided on penalties . If the same number of goals are scored in extra time, the away team qualifies due to more away goals scored.

mode

The first round of the Asian qualification takes place in the knockout system . In the second round, the six winners and the 34 higher ranked teams will play in eight groups of five in a double round robin format . The eight group winners and the four best runners-up play in the third round in two groups of six for the World Cup starting places on the one hand and are qualified for the 2019 Asian Football Championship on the other . The 24 best, worse-placed teams in the second round play for a further 11 starting places at the Asian Cup.

First round

In the first round, the lowest seeded teams met in the knockout system. The countries listed in positions 35 to 40 of the AFC ranking list (India, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Cambodia, Chinese Taipei and East Timor) were compared to the countries in positions 41 to 46 of Nepal, Macau, Pakistan, Mongolia and Brunei Darussalam and drawn Bhutan. After the draw on February 10, 2015 in Kuala Lumpur ( Malaysia ), the following games took place on March 12, 17 and 23:

	total		First leg	Return leg
India	2-0	Nepal	2: 0 (0: 0)	0-0
Yemen	3: 1	Pakistan	03: 1 (1: 0) 1	00: 0 2
East Timor	0: 6 3	Mongolia	3: 0 W	3: 0 W
Cambodia	4: 1	Macau	3: 0 (0: 0)	1: 1 (1: 0)
Chinese Taipei	2: 1	Brunei	0: 1 (0: 1)	2: 0 (1: 0)
Sri Lanka	1: 3	Bhutan	0: 1 (0: 0)	1: 2 (1: 1)

¹The game took place in Doha ( Qatar ).

²The game has been postponed due to security concerns. It was held on March 23, 2015 in Manama ( Bahrain ).

³Subsequently rated because of ineligible players against East Timor. East Timor originally won the games 4-1 and 1-0. Since the rating was not converted until well after the second round, Mongolia was eliminated.

Second round

The second round took place from June 11, 2015 to March 29, 2016. The group draw took place on April 14, 2015 in Kuala Lumpur ( Malaysia ).

Grouping

Group A	Group B	Group C	Group D
Ver. Arab. Emirates	Australia	China	Iran
Saudi Arabia	Jordan	Qatar	Oman
Palestine	Tajikistan	Maldives	India
East Timor	Kyrgyzstan	Bhutan	Turkmenistan
Malaysia	Bangladesh	Hong Kong	Guam
Group E	Group F.	Group G	Group H.
Japan	Iraq	South Korea	Uzbekistan
Syria	Vietnam	Kuwait	Bahrain
Afghanistan	Thailand	Lebanon	Philippines
Singapore	Indonesia	Myanmar	North Korea
Cambodia	Chinese Taipei	Laos	Yemen

groups

Group A

A total of 5 games against East Timor counted as several players who were not eligible to play were used.

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Saudi Arabia	8th	6th	2	0	028: 400	+24	20th
2.	Ver. Arab. Emirates	8th	5	2	1	027: 400	+23	17th
3.	Palestine	8th	4th	2	2	024: 500	+19	14th
4th	Malaysia	8th	2	0	6th	007:290	−22	06th
5.	East Timor	8th	0	0	8th	000:440	−44	00

Game results

06/11/2015	Kuala Lumpur	Malaysia	-	East Timor	3: 0 rating (originally 1: 1)
06/11/2015	Damam	Saudi Arabia	-	Palestine	3: 2 (1: 0)
06/16/2015	Shah Alam	East Timor	-	Ver. Arab. Emirates	0: 3 rating (originally 0: 1)
06/16/2015	Kuala Lumpur	Malaysia	-	Palestine	0: 6 (0: 3)
09/03/2015	Abu Dhabi	Ver. Arab. Emirates	-	Malaysia	10: 0 (7: 0)
09/03/2015	Jeddah	Saudi Arabia	-	East Timor	7: 0 (5: 0)
09/08/2015	Shah Alam	Malaysia	-	Saudi Arabia	0: 3
09/08/2015	al-Ram	Palestine	-	Ver. Arab. Emirates	0-0
08/10/2015	Dili	East Timor	-	Palestine	0: 3 rating (originally 1: 1)
08/10/2015	Jeddah	Saudi Arabia	-	Ver. Arab. Emirates	2: 1 (1: 1)

13/10/2015	Dili	East Timor	-	Malaysia	0: 3 rating (originally 0: 1)
11/09/2015	Amman	Palestine	-	Saudi Arabia	0-0
11/12/2015	Amman	Palestine	-	Malaysia	6: 0 (3: 0)
11/12/2015	Abu Dhabi	Ver. Arab. Emirates	-	East Timor	8: 0 (3: 0)
11/17/2015	Dili	East Timor	-	Saudi Arabia	0:10 (0: 4)
11/17/2015	Shah Alam	Malaysia	-	Ver. Arab. Emirates	1: 2 (0: 1)
March 24, 2016	Abu Dhabi	Ver. Arab. Emirates	-	Palestine	2: 0 (1: 0)
March 24, 2016	Jeddah	Saudi Arabia	-	Malaysia	2: 0 (0: 0)
03/29/2016	Hebron	Palestine	-	East Timor	7: 0 (4: 0)
03/29/2016	Abu Dhabi	Ver. Arab. Emirates	-	Saudi Arabia	1: 1 (0: 1)

Group B

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Australia	8th	7th	0	1	029: 400	+25	21st
2.	Jordan	8th	5	1	2	021: 700	+14	16
3.	Kyrgyzstan	8th	4th	2	2	010: 800	+2	14th
4th	Tajikistan	8th	1	2	5	009:200	−11	05
5.	Bangladesh	8th	0	1	7th	002:320	−30	01

Game results

06/11/2015	Dhaka	Bangladesh	-	Kyrgyzstan	1: 3 (1: 3)
06/11/2015	Dushanbe	Tajikistan	-	Jordan	1: 3 (0: 1)
06/16/2015	Dhaka	Bangladesh	-	Tajikistan	1: 1 (0: 0)
06/16/2015	Bishkek	Kyrgyzstan	-	Australia	1: 2 (0: 1)
09/03/2015	Perth	Australia	-	Bangladesh	5: 0 (4: 0)
09/03/2015	Amman	Jordan	-	Kyrgyzstan	0-0
09/08/2015	Dhaka	Bangladesh	-	Jordan	0: 4 (0: 2)
09/08/2015	Dushanbe	Tajikistan	-	Australia	0: 3 (0: 0)
08/10/2015	Bishkek	Kyrgyzstan	-	Tajikistan	2: 2 (1: 0)
08/10/2015	Amman	Jordan	-	Australia	2: 0 (0: 0)

13/10/2015	Bishkek	Kyrgyzstan	-	Bangladesh	2: 0 (1: 0)
13/10/2015	Amman	Jordan	-	Tajikistan	3: 0 (0: 0)
11/12/2015	Canberra	Australia	-	Kyrgyzstan	3: 0 (1: 0)
11/12/2015	Dushanbe	Tajikistan	-	Bangladesh	5: 0 (2: 0)
11/17/2015	Dhaka	Bangladesh	-	Australia	0: 4 (0: 4)
11/17/2015	Bishkek	Kyrgyzstan	-	Jordan	1: 0 (0: 0)
March 24, 2016	Adelaide	Australia	-	Tajikistan	7: 0 (2: 0)
March 24, 2016	Amman	Jordan	-	Bangladesh	8: 0 (5: 0)
03/29/2016	Sydney	Australia	-	Jordan	5: 1 (3: 0)
03/29/2016	Dushanbe	Tajikistan	-	Kyrgyzstan	0: 1 (0: 1)

Group C

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Qatar	8th	7th	0	1	029: 400	+25	21st
2.	China	8th	5	2	1	027: 100	+26	17th
3.	Hong Kong	8th	4th	2	2	013: 500	+8	14th
4th	Maldives	8th	2	0	6th	008:200	−12	06th
5.	Bhutan	8th	0	0	8th	005:520	−47	00

Game results

06/11/2015	Hong Kong	Hong Kong	-	Bhutan	7: 0 (4: 0)
06/11/2015	Times	Maldives	-	Qatar	0: 1 (0: 0)
06/16/2015	Thimphu	Bhutan	-	China	0: 6 (0: 1)
06/16/2015	Hong Kong	Hong Kong	-	Maldives	2: 0 (0: 0)
09/03/2015	Shenzhen	China	-	Hong Kong	0-0
09/03/2015	Doha	Qatar	-	Bhutan	15: 0 (8: 0)
09/08/2015	Shenyang	Maldives	-	China	0: 3 (0: 1)
09/08/2015	Hong Kong	Hong Kong	-	Qatar	2: 3 (0: 1)
08/10/2015	Thimphu	Bhutan	-	Maldives	3: 4 (0: 3)
08/10/2015	Doha	Qatar	-	China	1: 0 (1: 0)

13/10/2015	Thimphu	Bhutan	-	Hong Kong	0: 1 (0: 0)
13/10/2015	Doha	Qatar	-	Maldives	4: 0 (1: 0)
11/12/2015	Times	Maldives	-	Hong Kong	0: 1 (0: 1)
11/12/2015	Changsha	China	-	Bhutan	12: 0 (7: 0)
11/17/2015	Thimphu	Bhutan	-	Qatar	0: 3 (0: 2)
11/17/2015	Hong Kong	Hong Kong	-	China	0-0
March 24, 2016	Wuhan	China	-	Maldives	4: 0 (2: 0)
March 24, 2016	Doha	Qatar	-	Hong Kong	2: 0 (1: 0)
03/29/2016	Xi'an	China	-	Qatar	2: 0 (0: 0)
03/29/2016	Times	Maldives	-	Bhutan	4: 2 (1: 1)

Group D

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Iran	8th	6th	2	0	026: 300	+23	20th
2.	Oman	8th	4th	2	2	011: 700	+4	14th
3.	Turkmenistan	8th	4th	1	3	010:110	−1	13
4th	Guam	8th	2	1	5	003:160	−13	07th
5.	India	8th	1	0	7th	005:180	−13	03

Game results

06/11/2015	Dededo	Guam	-	Turkmenistan	1: 0 (1: 0)
06/11/2015	Bangalore	India	-	Oman	1: 2 (1: 2)
06/16/2015	Dededo	Guam	-	India	2: 1 (1: 0)
06/16/2015	Daşoguz	Turkmenistan	-	Iran	1: 1 (1: 1)
09/03/2015	Tehran	Iran	-	Guam	6: 0 (4: 0)
09/03/2015	Sib	Oman	-	Turkmenistan	3: 1 (2: 0)
09/08/2015	Dededo	Guam	-	Oman	0-0
09/08/2015	Bangalore	India	-	Iran	0: 3 (0: 1)
08/10/2015	Ashgabat	Turkmenistan	-	India	2: 1 (1: 1)
08/10/2015	Muscat	Oman	-	Iran	1: 1 (0: 0)

13/10/2015	Ashgabat	Turkmenistan	-	Guam	1: 0 (1: 0)
13/10/2015	Muscat	Oman	-	India	3: 0 (0: 0)
11/12/2015	Tehran	Iran	-	Turkmenistan	3: 1 (1: 0)
11/12/2015	Bangalore	India	-	Guam	1: 0 (1: 0)
11/17/2015	Dededo	Guam	-	Iran	0: 6 (0: 2)
11/17/2015	Ashgabat	Turkmenistan	-	Oman	2: 1 (1: 0)
March 24, 2016	Muscat	Oman	-	Guam	1: 0 (0: 0)
March 24, 2016	Tehran	Iran	-	India	4: 0 (1: 0)
03/29/2016	Kochi	India	-	Turkmenistan	1: 2 (1: 0)
03/29/2016	Tehran	Iran	-	Oman	2: 0 (2: 0)

Group E

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Japan	8th	7th	1	0	027: 000	+27	22nd
2.	Syria	8th	6th	0	2	026:110	+15	18th
3.	Singapore	8th	3	1	4th	009: 900	± 0	10
4th	Afghanistan	8th	3	0	5	008:240	−16	09
5.	Cambodia	8th	0	0	8th	001:270	−26	00

Game results

06/11/2015	Phnom Penh	Cambodia	-	Singapore	0: 4 (0: 3)
06/11/2015	Mashhad	Afghanistan	-	Syria	0: 6 (0: 3)
06/16/2015	Saitama	Japan	-	Singapore	0-0
06/16/2015	Phnom Penh	Cambodia	-	Afghanistan	0: 1 (0: 0)
09/03/2015	Saitama	Japan	-	Cambodia	3: 0 (1: 0)
09/03/2015	Muscat	Syria	-	Singapore	1: 0 (0: 0)
09/08/2015	Phnom Penh	Cambodia	-	Syria	0: 6 (0: 4)
09/08/2015	Tehran	Afghanistan	-	Japan	0: 6 (0: 2)
08/10/2015	Kallang	Singapore	-	Afghanistan	1: 0 (0: 0)
08/10/2015	Sib	Syria	-	Japan	0: 3 (0: 0)

13/10/2015	Kallang	Singapore	-	Cambodia	2: 1 (1: 0)
13/10/2015	Sib	Syria	-	Afghanistan	5: 2 (3: 1)
11/12/2015	Kallang	Singapore	-	Japan	0: 3 (0: 2)
11/12/2015	Tehran	Afghanistan	-	Cambodia	3: 0 (1: 0)
11/17/2015	Kallang	Singapore	-	Syria	1: 2 (0: 1)
11/17/2015	Phnom Penh	Cambodia	-	Japan	0: 2 (0: 0)
March 24, 2016	Saitama	Japan	-	Afghanistan	5: 0 (1: 0)
March 24, 2016	Sib	Syria	-	Cambodia	6: 0 (2: 0)
03/29/2016	Saitama	Japan	-	Syria	5: 0 (1: 0)
03/29/2016	Tehran	Afghanistan	-	Singapore	2: 1 (1: 0)

Group F.

Initially, Indonesia was also assigned to group F. On June 3, 2015, however, Indonesia was excluded by FIFA in consultation with the AFC and the games against the other teams canceled because the Indonesian government had interfered in association matters.

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Thailand	6th	4th	2	0	014: 600	+8	14th
2.	Iraq	6th	3	3	0	013: 600	+7	12
3.	Vietnam	6th	2	1	3	007: 800	−1	07th
4th	Chinese Taipei	6th	0	0	6th	005:190	−14	00

Game results

05/24/2015	Bangkok	Thailand	-	Vietnam	1: 0 (0: 0)
06/16/2015	Taipei	Chinese Taipei	-	Thailand	0: 2 (0: 2)
09/03/2015	Tehran	Iraq	-	Chinese Taipei	5: 1 (1: 0)
09/08/2015	Taipei	Chinese Taipei	-	Vietnam	1: 2 (0: 0)
09/08/2015	Bangkok	Thailand	-	Iraq	2: 2 (0: 1)
08/10/2015	Hanoi	Vietnam	-	Iraq	1: 1 (1: 0)

13/10/2015	Hanoi	Vietnam	-	Thailand	0: 3 (0: 1)
11/12/2015	Bangkok	Thailand	-	Chinese Taipei	4: 2 (1: 1)
11/17/2015	Kaohsiung	Chinese Taipei	-	Iraq	0: 2 (0: 1)
March 24, 2016	Hanoi	Vietnam	-	Chinese Taipei	4: 1 (3: 1)
March 24, 2016	Tehran	Iraq	-	Thailand	2: 2 (0: 1)
03/29/2016	Tehran	Iraq	-	Vietnam	1: 0 (1: 0)

Group G

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	South Korea	8th	8th	0	0	027: 000	+27	24
2.	Lebanon	8th	3	2	3	012: 600	+6	11
3.	Kuwait	8th	3	1	4th	012:100	+2	10
4th	Myanmar	8th	2	2	4th	009:210	−12	08th
5.	Laos	8th	1	1	6th	006:290	−23	04th

Game results

06/11/2015	Vientiane	Laos	-	Myanmar	2: 2 (0: 1)
06/11/2015	Sidon	Lebanon	-	Kuwait	0: 1 (0: 0)
06/16/2015	Bangkok	Myanmar	-	South Korea	0: 2 (0: 1)
06/16/2015	Vientiane	Laos	-	Lebanon	0: 2 (0: 1)
09/03/2015	Hwaseong	South Korea	-	Laos	8: 0 (3: 0)
09/03/2015	Doha	Kuwait	-	Myanmar	9: 0 (3: 0)
09/08/2015	Vientiane	Laos	-	Kuwait	0: 2 (0: 1)
09/08/2015	Sidon	Lebanon	-	South Korea	0: 3 (0: 2)
08/10/2015	Bangkok	Myanmar	-	Lebanon	0: 2 (0: 1)
08/10/2015	Kuwait City	Kuwait	-	South Korea	0: 1 (0: 1)

13/10/2015	Bangkok	Myanmar	-	Laos	3: 1 (2: 1)
13/10/2015	Kuwait City	Kuwait	-	Lebanon	0-0
11/12/2015	Suwon	South Korea	-	Myanmar	4: 0 (2: 0)
11/12/2015	Sidon	Lebanon	-	Laos	7: 0 (4: 0)
11/17/2015	Vientiane	Laos	-	South Korea	0: 5 (0: 4)
Abge.		Myanmar	-	Kuwait	3-0
March 24, 2016	Ansan	South Korea	-	Lebanon	1: 0 (0: 0)
03/29/2016	Beirut	Lebanon	-	Myanmar	1: 1 (0: 0)
Abge.		Kuwait	-	Laos	0: 3
Abge.		South Korea	-	Kuwait	3-0

Group H.

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Uzbekistan	8th	7th	0	1	020: 700	+13	21st
2.	North Korea	8th	5	1	2	014: 800	+6	16
3.	Philippines	8th	3	1	4th	008:120	−4	10
4th	Bahrain	8th	3	0	5	010:100	± 0	09
5.	Yemen	8th	1	0	7th	002:170	−15	03

Game results

06/11/2015	Bocaue	Philippines	-	Bahrain	2: 1 (0: 0)
06/11/2015	Doha	Yemen	-	North Korea	0: 3
06/16/2015	Pyongyang	North Korea	-	Uzbekistan	4: 2 (4: 0)
06/16/2015	Doha	Yemen	-	Philippines	0: 2 (0: 0)
09/03/2015	Tashkent	Uzbekistan	-	Yemen	1: 0 (0: 0)
09/03/2015	Manama	Bahrain	-	North Korea	0: 1 (0: 1)
09/08/2015	Bocaue	Philippines	-	Uzbekistan	1: 5 (0: 3)
09/08/2015	Doha	Yemen	-	Bahrain	0: 4 (0: 2)
08/10/2015	Pyongyang	North Korea	-	Philippines	0-0
08/10/2015	Manama	Bahrain	-	Uzbekistan	0: 4 (0: 0)

13/10/2015	Pyongyang	North Korea	-	Yemen	1: 0 (1: 0)
13/10/2015	Manama	Bahrain	-	Philippines	2: 0 (0: 0)
11/12/2015	Manila	Philippines	-	Yemen	0: 1 (0: 0)
11/12/2015	Tashkent	Uzbekistan	-	North Korea	3: 1 (1: 1)
11/17/2015	Pyongyang	North Korea	-	Bahrain	2: 0 (1: 0)
11/17/2015	Doha	Yemen	-	Uzbekistan	1: 3 (0: 2)
March 24, 2016	Tashkent	Uzbekistan	-	Philippines	1: 0 (0: 0)
March 24, 2016	Manama	Bahrain	-	Yemen	3: 0 (1: 0)
03/29/2016	Manila	Philippines	-	North Korea	3: 2 (1: 1)
03/29/2016	Tashkent	Uzbekistan	-	Bahrain	1: 0 (0: 0)

Remarks

1. ↑ Game rating 3: 0 [1]
2. ↑ East Timor played its home game against Ver. Arab. Emirates in Malaysia, as there was no suitable venue in Dili .
3. ↑ The game was abandoned in the 87th minute when the score was 1: 2 from the point of view of Malaysia after objects were thrown onto the field. It was subsequently rated as 3-0 in favor of Saudi Arabia.
4. ↑ Game rating 0: 3 [2]
5. ↑ The game was originally supposed to be played on October 13, 2015, but was then postponed to November 9, 2015. Source = Palestine versus Saudi Arabia and Malaysia on neutral ground , In: FIFA.com of November 4, 2015
6. ↑ ^{a b} Due to the uncertain situation in Palestine, the games were played on neutral ground.
7. ↑ The Maldives played their home game against China in China because the Rasmee Dhandu Stadium was not playable.
8. ↑ ^{a b c d} Afghanistan has played all of its home games in Iran. Source = Mir Farhad Ali Khan: Crisis-Hit Countries Can Play World Cup Qualifiers in Iran , In: Persianfootball.com from April 29, 2015.
9. ↑ ^{a b c d} Syria has played all of its home games in Oman.
10. ↑ The game was brought forward due to the 2015 Southeast Asian Games being held in June . Source = Tien Dat: FIFA reschedules Vietnam, Thailand match ( Memento of the original from March 3, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , In: DtiNews.vn of April 28, 2015. 
11. ↑ ^{a b c} Iraq has played all of its home games in Iran. Source = Mir Farhad Ali Khan: Crisis-Hit Countries Can Play World Cup Qualifiers in Iran , In: Persianfootball.com from April 29, 2015.
12. ↑ Kuwait was suspended by FIFA on October 16, 2015 and was not allowed to participate in any international matches until December 2017. Sources = "Suspension of the Kuwait Football Association as of 16 October 2015" , In: Fifa.com of 16 October 2015, "Lifting the suspension of the Kuwait Football Association" , In: Fifa.com of 6 December 2017
13. ↑ ^{a b c} Myanmar has played all of its home games in Bangkok. Source = FIFA confirms Afghanistan, Myanmar choice of neutral venues for World Cup qualifiers ( Memento of the original from May 18, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , In: GreenfieldReporter.com of May 11, 2015. 
14. ↑ Kuwait played their home game against Myanmar in Qatar for reasons unknown.
15. ↑ ^{a b} The game scheduled for November 17, 2015 was initially postponed indefinitely due to the suspension of Kuwait and then on January 13, 2016, because it did not take place, FIFA rated Myanmar 3-0 because it did not take place. Source = Sanction against Kuwait for not playing in the preliminary round of the FIFA World Cup , In: FIFA.com from January 13, 2016.
16. ↑ ^{a b c d} Due to the suspension of Kuwait on April 6, 2016, the games scheduled for March 24 and 29, 2016 were rated 3-0 for Laos and South Korea by FIFA. Source = Kuwait's matches against Laos and Korea Republic forfeited , In: FIFA.com, April 6, 2016.
17. ↑ ^{a b c d} Yemen has played all of its home games in Doha. Source = FIFA confirms Afghanistan, Myanmar choice of neutral venues for World Cup qualifiers ( Memento of the original from May 18, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , In: GreenfieldReporter.com of May 11, 2015. 
18. ↑ Since Yemen had used the suspended Mudir Abdurabu Ali Al Radaei in the first encounter against North Korea, the 0: 1 (0: 0) lost game was subsequently rated 0: 3 in favor of North Korea. Source = FIFA sanctions Yemen after the game against North Korea , In: Sport1.de from July 6, 2015

Ranking of the runners-up

In addition to the eight group winners, the four best runners-up also qualify for the third round. In order to make all runners-up in the group comparable, the games of the runners-up against the bottom of the group are not taken into account in groups of five.

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points	group	Group fifth
1.	Iraq	6th	3	3	0	013: 600	+7	12	F.	-
2.	Syria	6th	4th	0	2	014:110	+3	12	E.	Cambodia
3.	Ver. Arab. Emirates	6th	3	2	1	016: 400	+12	11	A.	East Timor
4th	China	6th	3	2	1	009: 100	+8	11	C.	Bhutan
5.	North Korea	6th	3	1	2	010: 800	+2	10	H	Yemen
6th	Jordan	6th	3	1	2	009: 700	+2	10	B.	Bangladesh
7th	Oman	6th	2	2	2	006: 600	± 0	08th	D.	India
8th.	Lebanon	6th	1	2	3	003: 600	−3	05	G	Laos

Third round

The eight group winners and the four best runners-up qualified for the third round. The draw, in which the teams were drawn into two groups of six, took place on April 12, 2016 in Kuala Lumpur ( Malaysia ).

Grouping

Group 1	Group 2
Iran	Australia
South Korea	Japan
Uzbekistan	Saudi Arabia
China	Ver. Arab. Emirates
Qatar	Iraq
Syria	Thailand

groups

Group 1

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Iran	10	6th	4th	0	010: 200	+8	22nd
2.	South Korea	10	4th	3	3	011:100	+1	15th
3.	Syria	10	3	4th	3	009: 800	+1	13
4th	Uzbekistan	10	4th	1	5	006: 700	−1	13
5.	China	10	3	3	4th	008:100	−2	12
6th	Qatar	10	2	1	7th	008:150	−7	07th

Game results

09/01/2016	Seoul	South Korea	-	China	3: 2 (1: 0)
09/01/2016	Tashkent	Uzbekistan	-	Syria	1: 0 (0: 0)
09/01/2016	Tehran	Iran	-	Qatar	2: 0 (0: 0)
09/06/2016	Shenyang	China	-	Iran	0-0
09/06/2016	Paroi	Syria	-	South Korea	0-0
09/06/2016	Doha	Qatar	-	Uzbekistan	0: 1 (0: 0)
10/06/2016	Suwon	South Korea	-	Qatar	3: 2 (1: 2)
10/06/2016	Xi'an	China	-	Syria	0: 1 (0: 0)
10/06/2016	Tashkent	Uzbekistan	-	Iran	0: 1 (0: 1)
10/11/2016	Tashkent	Uzbekistan	-	China	2: 0 (0: 0)
10/11/2016	Tehran	Iran	-	South Korea	1: 0 (1: 0)
10/11/2016	Doha	Qatar	-	Syria	1: 0 (1: 0)
11/15/2016	Seoul	South Korea	-	Uzbekistan	2: 1 (0: 1)
11/15/2016	Kunming	China	-	Qatar	0-0
11/15/2016	Paroi	Syria	-	Iran	0-0

03/23/2017	Changsha	China	-	South Korea	1: 0 (1: 0)
03/23/2017	Malacca	Syria	-	Uzbekistan	1: 0 (0: 0)
03/23/2017	Doha	Qatar	-	Iran	0: 1 (0: 0)
03/28/2017	Seoul	South Korea	-	Syria	1: 0 (1: 0)
03/28/2017	Tehran	Iran	-	China	1: 0 (0: 0)
03/28/2017	Tashkent	Uzbekistan	-	Qatar	1: 0 (0: 0)
06/12/2017	Tehran	Iran	-	Uzbekistan	2: 0 (1: 0)
06/13/2017	Malacca	Syria	-	China	2: 2 (1: 0)
06/13/2017	Doha	Qatar	-	South Korea	3: 2 (1: 0)
08/31/2017	Wuhan	China	-	Uzbekistan	1: 0 (0: 0)
08/31/2017	Seoul	South Korea	-	Iran	0-0
08/31/2017	Malacca	Syria	-	Qatar	3: 1 (1: 1)
05.09.2017	Doha	Qatar	-	China	1: 2 (0: 0)
05.09.2017	Tehran	Iran	-	Syria	2: 2 (1: 1)
05.09.2017	Tashkent	Uzbekistan	-	South Korea	0-0

Group 2

table

Pl.	country	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Japan	10	6th	2	2	017: 700	+10	20th
2.	Saudi Arabia	10	6th	1	3	017:100	+7	19th
3.	Australia	10	5	4th	1	016:110	+5	19th
4th	Ver. Arab. Emirates	10	4th	1	5	010:130	−3	13
5.	Iraq	10	3	2	5	011:120	−1	11
6th	Thailand	10	0	2	8th	006:240	−18	02

Game results

09/01/2016	Perth	Australia	-	Iraq	2: 0 (0: 0)
09/01/2016	Saitama	Japan	-	Ver. Arab. Emirates	1: 2 (1: 1)
09/01/2016	Riad	Saudi Arabia	-	Thailand	1: 0 (0: 0)
09/06/2016	Shah Alam	Iraq	-	Saudi Arabia	1: 2 (1: 0)
09/06/2016	Bangkok	Thailand	-	Japan	0: 2 (0: 1)
09/06/2016	Abu Dhabi	Ver. Arab. Emirates	-	Australia	0: 1 (0: 0)
10/06/2016	Saitama	Japan	-	Iraq	2: 1 (1: 0)
10/06/2016	Abu Dhabi	Ver. Arab. Emirates	-	Thailand	3: 1 (1: 0)
10/06/2016	Jeddah	Saudi Arabia	-	Australia	2: 2 (1: 1)
10/11/2016	Melbourne	Australia	-	Japan	1: 1 (0: 1)
10/11/2016	Tehran	Iraq	-	Thailand	4: 0 (2: 0)
10/11/2016	Jeddah	Saudi Arabia	-	Ver. Arab. Emirates	3: 0 (0: 0)
11/15/2016	Saitama	Japan	-	Saudi Arabia	2: 1 (1: 0)
11/15/2016	Bangkok	Thailand	-	Australia	2: 2 (1: 1)
11/15/2016	Abu Dhabi	Ver. Arab. Emirates	-	Iraq	2: 0 (1: 0)

03/23/2017	Tehran	Iraq	-	Australia	1: 1 (0: 1)
03/23/2017	Bangkok	Thailand	-	Saudi Arabia	0: 3 (0: 1)
03/23/2017	al-Ain	Ver. Arab. Emirates	-	Japan	0: 2 (0: 1)
03/28/2017	Sydney	Australia	-	Ver. Arab. Emirates	2: 0 (1: 0)
03/28/2017	Saitama	Japan	-	Thailand	4: 0 (2: 0)
03/28/2017	Jeddah	Saudi Arabia	-	Iraq	1: 0 (0: 0)
06/08/2017	Adelaide	Australia	-	Saudi Arabia	3: 2 (2: 2)
06/13/2017	Bangkok	Thailand	-	Ver. Arab. Emirates	1: 1 (0: 0)
06/13/2017	Tehran	Iraq	-	Japan	1: 1 (0: 1)
08/29/2017	al-Ain	Ver. Arab. Emirates	-	Saudi Arabia	2: 1 (1: 1)
08/31/2017	Saitama	Japan	-	Australia	2: 0 (1: 0)
08/31/2017	Bangkok	Thailand	-	Iraq	1: 2 (0: 1)
05.09.2017	Melbourne	Australia	-	Thailand	2: 1 (0: 0)
05.09.2017	Tehran	Iraq	-	Ver. Arab. Emirates	1: 0 (1: 0)
05.09.2017	Jeddah	Saudi Arabia	-	Japan	1: 0 (0: 0)

Fourth round

In the fourth round, the two third-placed players from the two groups from Round 3 will meet to determine the Asian representative of the intercontinental play-off against the fourth-placed player in the CONCACAF qualification in the two -legged game . The first leg took place on October 5 and the second leg on October 10, 2017.

	total		First leg	Return leg
Syria	2: 3	Australia	1: 1 (0: 1) 1	1: 2 a.d. 2

annotation

¹Due to the tense security situation in Syria , the first leg took place on neutral ground at Hang Jebat Stadium in Krubong , Malaysia .

²The second leg took place at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney .

List of goalscorers

Below are the top scorers in Asian World Cup qualification. If the number of goals is the same, it is sorted in ascending order according to the number of minutes played. Fat players have qualified for the World Cup with their teams.

space	player	Gates	Playtime
01	Mohammad al-Sahlawi	16	1170
02	Ahmed Khalil Al-Junaibi	16	1238
03	Tim Cahill	11	0776
04th	Sardar Azmoun	10	0966
05	Omar Charbin	10	1446
06th	Hassan al-Haidos	09	1304
07th	Ali Mabkhout	09	1380
08th	Yang Xu	08th	0504
09	Yu Dabao	07th	0675
10	Mehdi Taremi	07th	0892
11	Mile Jedinak	07th	0915
12	Son Heung-min	07th	0959
13	Keisuke Honda	07th	1109
As of October 11, 2017

Individual evidence

1. ↑ India v Nepal headlines 2018 World Cup, 2019 Asian Cup qualifiers draw. In: the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation , February 10, 2015, accessed March 24, 2015 . 
2. ↑ Sports information service: East Timor opens World Cup qualifiers for 2018 with victory - Bhutan surprised. (No longer available online.) In: fifa.com. FIFA , March 12, 2015, archived from the original on March 27, 2015 ; accessed on March 24, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
3. ↑ Regulations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. (PDF; 431 kB) (No longer available online.) In: fifa.com. FIFA, archived from the original on June 29, 2014 ; Retrieved July 15, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
4. ↑ Qualifier between Pakistan and Yemen rescheduled. In: fifa.com. FIFA, March 19, 2015, accessed March 24, 2015 . 
5. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20170123223128/http://www.the-afc.com/uploads/afc/files/afcdc_decisions_20170119DC01.pdf
6. ↑ https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/latest-decisions-of-the-fifa-disciplinary-committee-2924351
7. ↑ Draw date set for Round 2 of 2018 World Cup, 2019 Asian Cup qualifiers. In: the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation, March 5, 2015, accessed March 24, 2015 . 
8. ↑ Draw: 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Preliminary Qualification Round 2. In: the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation, April 14, 2015, accessed April 14, 2015 . 
9. ↑ https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/latest-decisions-of-the-fifa-disciplinary-committee-2924351
10. ↑ Indonesia excluded from World Cup qualification and AFC Asian Cup 2019. In: fifa.com. FIFA, June 3, 2015, accessed June 4, 2015 . 
11. ↑ Asia's hopeful dozen learn final World Cup qualifying opponents. In: the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation, April 13, 2016, accessed April 13, 2016 . 
12. ↑ Australia meets Japan - Iran meets Korea Republic. In: fifa.com. FIFA, April 12, 2016, accessed April 13, 2016 . 
13. ↑ In addition, three goals in the subsequent intercontinental playoffs against Honduras
14. ↑ Players - Most goals. In: fifa.com. FIFA, accessed October 11, 2017 .