AFC biased, helping Qatar and Saudi Arabia attend World Cup?

Qatar officials celebrate qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.

If Qatar beat UAE 2-1 to qualify, Saudi Arabia will also enter the biggest football festival on the planet after a 0-0 draw with Iraq. Asian media and fans believe that Qatar and Saudi Arabia's participation in the 2026 World Cup is largely due to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

According to Gulf Times , the AFC's decision to host the fourth qualifying round in Qatar and Saudi Arabia gives these two countries a big advantage. Rival teams such as Indonesia, Iraq, Oman and UAE have proposed to host matches at their home stadiums or on neutral grounds, but have not received a satisfactory response from the AFC.

Oman head coach Carlos Queiroz asked: “Do Japan or Kuwait not have stadiums to host these matches? Perhaps those who make these decisions have a different perspective on football.”

The fourth qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup in Asia will be held centrally from October 9 to 15 at two locations: Qatar (Group A) and Saudi Arabia (Group B).

With a round-robin format in two groups of three teams, the top team from each group will qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup, while the two runners-up (Iraq and Qatar) will face off in a fifth qualifying play-off in November for a place in the intercontinental play-off.

Saudi Arabia has too many advantages in the fourth qualifying round.

Furthermore, the schedule also works against the visiting teams. Both Qatar and Saudi Arabia enjoy a six-day break between games, while their opponents have just 72 hours to recover before the second game.

In addition, the fact that Qatar and Saudi Arabia played in the final round of the fourth qualifying round made it easier for them to calculate and decide their own fate. Qatar, after a 0-0 draw with Oman on October 9, was forced to win against UAE on October 15 and succeeded.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia, after winning the first round against Indonesia, only needed a draw against Iraq to secure a ticket and also succeeded. This raised questions about the fairness of the fourth qualifying round.

The fact that Qatar and Saudi Arabia played all their matches at home, had more rest than their opponents, and were calculated to play the last round gave them a significant advantage.

Source: https://znews.vn/afc-thien-vi-giup-qatar-va-saudi-arabia-du-world-cup-post1593844.html