2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification

The 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification is the qualification process organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to determine the participating teams for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, the 19th edition of the international men's football championship of Asia. Since 2019, the Asian Cup final tournament is contested by 24 teams, having been expanded from the 16-team format that was used from 2004 to 2015.[1][2]

2027 AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers
Tournament details
Dates12 October 2023 – 31 March 2026
Teams47[note 1] (from 1 confederation)
Tournament statistics
Top scorer(s)Indonesia Dimas Drajad
Indonesia Ramadhan Sananta
(3 goals each)
AFC Asian Qualifiers
FIFA World Cup
AFC Asian Cup

The qualification process involves four rounds, where the first two rounds double as the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification for Asian teams.

Format

The qualification structure is as follows:[3]

  • First round:[note 2] 20 teams (ranked 27–46) will play home-and-away over two legs.
    • 10 winners advance to the second round.
    • 1 best ranked losing team advance to the third round of Asian Cup qualification.
    • 9 worst ranked losing teams advance to the play-off round of Asian Cup qualification.
  • Second round:[note 3] 36 teams (ranked 1–26 and 10 first-round winners) are divided into 9 groups of 4 teams to play home-and-away double round-robin matches.
    • The 9 group winners and 9 group runners-up qualify for the Asian Cup along with host Saudi Arabia and advance to the third round of 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
    • The remaining 18 advance directly to the third round of Asian Cup qualification.
  • Play-off round:[note 4] 10 teams (9 worst ranked losing teams from the first round + Northern Mariana Islands) will play home-and-away over two legs that determine the final five qualifiers for the third round.
  • Third round:[note 5] 24 teams (1 best ranked losing team from first round + 18 third and fourth-placed teams from the second round + 5 winners from the play-off round) will be divided into 6 groups of 4 teams to play home-and-away double round-robin matches and the winner of each group will occupy the remaining 6 slots for the Asian Cup.

Entrants

46 FIFA-affiliated nations are eligible to enter the joint qualification process for both the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2027 AFC Asian Cup.

Due to the joint format of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers and AFC Asian Cup qualifiers, the hosts of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, the Saudi Arabia also entered the second round of AFC Asian Cup qualifiers despite having qualified automatically.

Northern Mariana Islands, which is not a FIFA member, will enter through the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification play-off round.[4]

The draw for the first and second rounds of joint qualification took place on 27 July 2023.[5] Teams were seeded into four pots. Pots 1, 2 and 3 contain the teams ranked 1–9, 10-18 and 19-26 respectively, while Pot 4 contains the remaining 20 teams (ranked 27–46). All teams from Pot 4 were drawn to the first round into two pots. Teams from Pots 1, 2 and 3 were drawn directly to the second round, along with an allocated first-round tie winner.[6][5]

From the July 2023 FIFA World Rankings[7]
Bye to the second round
(Ranked 1st to 26th)		 Competing in first round
(Ranked 27th to 46th)		 Competing in play-off round
(Ranked 47th)
  1.  Japan (20)
  2.  Iran (22)
  3.  Australia (27)
  4.  South Korea (28)
  5.  Saudi Arabia (54)
  6.  Qatar (59)
  7.  Iraq (70)
  8.  United Arab Emirates (72)
  9.  Oman (73)
  10.  Uzbekistan (74)
  11.  China (80)
  12.  Jordan (82)
  13.  Bahrain (86)
  14.  Syria (94)
  15.  Vietnam (95)
  16.  Palestine (96)
  17.  Kyrgyzstan (97)
  18.  India (99)
  19.  Lebanon (100)
  20.  Tajikistan (110)
  21.  Thailand (113)
  22.  North Korea (115)
  23.  Philippines (135)
  24.  Malaysia (136)
  25.  Kuwait (137)
  26.  Turkmenistan (138)
  1.  Hong Kong (149)
  2.  Indonesia (150)
  3.  Chinese Taipei (153)
  4.  Maldives (155)
  5.  Yemen (156)
  6.  Afghanistan (157)
  7.  Singapore (158)
  8.  Myanmar (160)
  9.    Nepal (175)
  10.  Cambodia (176)
  11.  Macau (182)
  12.  Mongolia (183)
  13.  Bhutan (185)
  14.  Laos (187)
  15.  Bangladesh (189)
  16.  Brunei (190)
  17.  Timor-Leste (192)
  18.  Pakistan (201)
  19.  Guam (203)
  20.  Sri Lanka (204)

Schedule

The schedule of the competition is expected to be as follows, according to the AFC Competitions Calendar.[8][9][10] This is the first Asian Cup qualification that starts before the previous final matches would be held, as the 2023 AFC Asian Cup was postponed to early 2024.

Round Matchday Date(s)
First round First leg 12 October 2023
Second leg 17 October 2023
Second round Matchday 1 16 November 2023
Matchday 2 21 November 2023
Matchday 3 21 March 2024
Matchday 4 26 March 2024
Matchday 5 6 June 2024
Matchday 6 11 June 2024
Round Matchday Date
Play-off round First leg 5 September 2024
Second leg 10 September 2024
Third round Matchday 1 25 March 2025
Matchday 2 10 June 2025
Matchday 3 9 September 2025
Matchday 4 14 October 2025
Matchday 5 18 November 2025
Matchday 6 31 March 2026

First round
Main article: 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC first round

The draw for the first round was held on 27 July 2023 at 14:00 MST (UTC+8) at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.[5]

Summary
2026 FIFA World Cup and 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification first round
Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Afghanistan  2–0  Mongolia 1–0 1–0
Maldives  2–3  Bangladesh 1–1 1–2
Singapore  3–1  Guam 2–1 1–0
Yemen  4–1  Sri Lanka 3–0 1–1
Myanmar  5–1  Macau 5–1 0–0
Cambodia  0–1  Pakistan 0–0 0–1
Chinese Taipei  7–0  Timor-Leste 4–0 3–0
Indonesia  12–0  Brunei 6–0 6–0
Hong Kong  4–2  Bhutan 4–0 0–2
Nepal    2–1  Laos 1–1 1–0

Ranking of best losing teams
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Bhutan 2 1 0 1 2 4 −2 3 Asian Cup qualifying third round
2  Maldives 2 0 1 1 2 3 −1 1 Asian Cup qualifying play-off round
3  Laos 2 0 1 1 1 2 −1 1
4  Cambodia 2 0 1 1 0 1 −1 1
5  Sri Lanka 2 0 1 1 1 4 −3 1
6  Macau 2 0 1 1 1 5 −4 1
7  Guam 2 0 0 2 1 3 −2 0
8  Mongolia 2 0 0 2 0 2 −2 0
9  Timor-Leste 2 0 0 2 0 7 −7 0
10  Brunei 2 0 0 2 0 12 −12 0
Source: AFC

Second round
Main article: 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC second round

The draw for the second round was held on 27 July 2023 at 16:00 MST (UTC+8) at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.[5]

Group A

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Qatar India Kuwait Afghanistan
1  Qatar 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 World Cup qualifying third round and Asian Cup — 11 Jun 21 Mar 16 Nov
2  India 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 Nov — 6 Jun 26 Mar
3  Kuwait 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Asian Cup qualifying third round 26 Mar 16 Nov — 11 Jun
4  Afghanistan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Jun 21 Mar 21 Nov —
First match(es) will be played: 16 November 2023. Source: FIFA AFC

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Japan Syria North Korea Myanmar
1  Japan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 World Cup qualifying third round and Asian Cup — 11 Jun 21 Mar 16 Nov
2  Syria 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 Nov — 6 Jun 26 Mar
3  North Korea 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Asian Cup qualifying third round 26 Mar 16 Nov — 11 Jun
4  Myanmar 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Jun 21 Mar 21 Nov —
First match(es) will be played: 16 November 2023. Source: FIFA AFC

Group C

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification South Korea China Thailand Singapore
1  South Korea 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 World Cup qualifying third round and Asian Cup — 11 Jun 21 Mar 16 Nov
2  China 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 Nov — 6 Jun 26 Mar
3  Thailand 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Asian Cup qualifying third round 26 Mar 16 Nov — 11 Jun
4  Singapore 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Jun 21 Mar 21 Nov —
First match(es) will be played: 16 November 2023. Source: FIFA AFC

Group D

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Oman Kyrgyzstan Malaysia Chinese Taipei
1  Oman 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 World Cup qualifying third round and Asian Cup — 11 Jun 21 Mar 16 Nov
2  Kyrgyzstan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 Nov — 6 Jun 26 Mar
3  Malaysia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Asian Cup qualifying third round 26 Mar 16 Nov — 11 Jun
4  Chinese Taipei 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Jun 21 Mar 21 Nov —
First match(es) will be played: 16 November 2023. Source: FIFA AFC

Group E

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Iran Uzbekistan Turkmenistan Hong Kong
1  Iran 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 World Cup qualifying third round and Asian Cup — 11 Jun 21 Mar 16 Nov
2  Uzbekistan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 Nov — 6 Jun 26 Mar
3  Turkmenistan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Asian Cup qualifying third round 26 Mar 16 Nov — 11 Jun
4  Hong Kong 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Jun 21 Mar 21 Nov —
First match(es) will be played: 16 November 2023. Source: FIFA AFC

Group F

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Iraq Vietnam Philippines Indonesia
1  Iraq 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 World Cup qualifying third round and Asian Cup — 11 Jun 21 Mar 16 Nov
2  Vietnam 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 Nov — 6 Jun 26 Mar
3  Philippines 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Asian Cup qualifying third round 26 Mar 16 Nov — 11 Jun
4  Indonesia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Jun 21 Mar 21 Nov —
First match(es) will be played: 16 November 2023. Source: FIFA AFC

Group G

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Saudi Arabia Jordan Tajikistan Pakistan
1  Saudi Arabia[lower-alpha 1] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 World Cup qualifying third round and Asian Cup — 11 Jun 21 Mar 16 Nov
2  Jordan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 Nov — 6 Jun 26 Mar
3  Tajikistan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Asian Cup qualifying third round 26 Mar 16 Nov — 11 Jun
4  Pakistan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Jun 21 Mar 21 Nov —
First match(es) will be played: 16 November 2023. Source: FIFA AFC
Notes:
  1. Saudi Arabia already qualified for the Asian Cup as the host nation.

Group H

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification United Arab Emirates Bahrain Yemen Nepal
1  United Arab Emirates 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 World Cup qualifying third round and Asian Cup — 11 Jun 21 Mar 16 Nov
2  Bahrain 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 Nov — 6 Jun 26 Mar
3  Yemen 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Asian Cup qualifying third round 26 Mar 16 Nov — 11 Jun
4    Nepal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Jun 21 Mar 21 Nov —
First match(es) will be played: 16 November 2023. Source: FIFA AFC

Group I

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification Australia State of Palestine Lebanon Bangladesh
1  Australia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 World Cup qualifying third round and Asian Cup — 11 Jun 21 Mar 16 Nov
2  Palestine 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 Nov — 6 Jun 26 Mar
3  Lebanon 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Asian Cup qualifying third round 26 Mar 16 Nov — 11 Jun
4  Bangladesh 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Jun 21 Mar 21 Nov —
First match(es) will be played: 16 November 2023. Source: FIFA AFC

Play-off round
Main article: 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification – play-off round
Qualified teams

Third round
Main article: 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification – third round
Qualified teams

Group A
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 A1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2027 AFC Asian Cup
2 A2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 A3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 A4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Group B
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 B1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2027 AFC Asian Cup
2 B2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 B3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 B4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Group C
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 C1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2027 AFC Asian Cup
2 C2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 C3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 C4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Group D
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 D1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2027 AFC Asian Cup
2 D2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 D3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 D4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Group E
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 E1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2027 AFC Asian Cup
2 E2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 E3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 E4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Group F
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 F1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2027 AFC Asian Cup
2 F2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 F3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 F4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Qualified teams

A total of 24 teams will qualify for the final tournament including the host Saudi Arabia.

Team Method of
qualification		 Date of
qualification		 Finals
appearances		 Last
appearance		 Previous best
performance
 Saudi ArabiaHosts1 February 202312th2023Winners (1984, 1988, 1996)

Top goalscorers

There have been 51 goals scored in 20 matches, for an average of 2.55 goals per match (as of 17 October 2023).

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal

  • Bhutan Tenzin Norbu (against Hong Kong)

Below is full goalscorers lists for all rounds:

See also

Notes
  1. Saudi Arabia participated to reach the World Cup.
  2. Listed on the official AFC website as Preliminary Joint Qualification round 1
  3. Listed on the official AFC website as Preliminary Joint Qualification round 2
  4. Listed on the official AFC website as AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers Playoff
  5. Listed on the official AFC website as AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers Final round

    References
    1. "ExCo approves expanded AFC Asian Cup finals". Asian Football Confederation. 16 April 2014. Archived from the original on 3 May 2015.
    2. "AFC Asian Cup China 2023 Competition Regulations" (PDF). AFC. 10 September 2020.
    3. "AFC Competitions Committee approves key decisions on reformatted competitions". AFC. 1 July 2023. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
    4. "AFC Competitions Committee approves key decisions on reformatted competitions". Asian Football Confederation. 1 July 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
    5. "Stage set for FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers draw". AFC. 5 July 2023.
    6. Nasir, Saad (23 June 2023). "Pakistan's Draws for FIFA World Cup 2026 Asian Qualifiers Revealed". ProSports. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
    7. "FIFA Men's Ranking – July 2023". FIFA. 20 July 2023.
    8. "AFC Competitions Calendar (Aug 2023 - Jul 2024)" (PDF). AFC.
    9. "AFC Competitions Calendar (Aug 2024 - Jul 2025)" (PDF). AFC.
    10. "AFC Competitions Calendar (Aug 2025 - Jul 2026)" (PDF). AFC.
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