Qatar has qualified for a World Cup through sport for the first time.
The host of the 2022 finals beat the United Arab Emirates 2-1 (0-0) in Ar-Rayyan and won their ticket to the 2026 tournament as the winner of a group of three.
At the home World Cup three years ago, Qatar had already failed in the group phase with three defeats and 1:7 goals.
The Algerian-born Boualem Khoukhi (49th) and the Portuguese-born Pedro Correia (74th) ensured the initially reassuring 2-0 lead after the break. After the red card against Tarek Salman (89th), the guests in Überuahl regained hope through Sultan Adil’s goal (90th + 8th), but they were no longer able to equalize.
A draw would have been enough for the Emirates to reach a finals for the first time since the World Cup premiere in 1990. Romanian coach Cosmin Olaroiu’s team will instead fight in the fifth round of the Asian qualification (November 13th/18th) against Saudi Arabia or Iraq for a place in the World Cup play-off tournament, which will be held in March 2026.
From Asia, Japan, South Korea, Iran, Australia and the debutants Uzbekistan and Jordan had previously qualified for the World Cup. At the XXL World Cup with 48 teams, the continent has eight places available for the first time; most recently there were only four plus a possible additional place via a play-off game.