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Indonesia beat Bahrain to keep their hopes of advancing in Group C alive. |
On the evening of March 25th, the Indonesian national team defeated Bahrain with a narrow 1-0 victory in the eighth match of Group C, third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. This win keeps the team from the archipelago alive their slim hopes of securing a direct ticket to the biggest football event on the planet.
Ole Romeny became the star of the match when he scored the only goal in the 24th minute. This goal secured three valuable points and rekindled Indonesia's dream of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
The race in Group C is incredibly tight. Japan has already secured their qualification and is guaranteed first place. The big question now is which team will join Japan in the race for the remaining direct qualification spot in Group C?
Currently, after the 8th matchday, Indonesia has 9 points, ranking fourth. They are 4 points behind Australia (13 points) and 1 point behind Saudi Arabia (10 points). With two matches remaining, theoretically, this gap can still be closed.
Indonesia will face China at home on June 5th in Jakarta, before traveling to Japan five days later. To secure direct qualification for the 2026 World Cup, the "Garuda" team must win both matches, thereby raising their total points to 15.
However, that's still not enough. They also need Australia and Saudi Arabia to both stumble in their final matches. Australia will host Japan on June 5th, then face Saudi Arabia in a decisive match five days later.
If Australia fails to secure at least two points in these two matches, Indonesia will have a chance to overtake them and claim second place. However, if Australia defeats Japan in the ninth matchday, Indonesia's chances of finishing in the top two will officially close.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia will face Bahrain and Australia in their final two matches. Given their current form, they also have a chance to compete for second place in the group, on par with Australia and Indonesia. If Saudi Arabia defeats Bahrain in their away match on June 5th, Indonesia's chances of securing a direct World Cup spot will become even slimmer.
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The match against China on June 5th is crucial for Indonesia. |
In the event that both Australia and Saudi Arabia fail to win their matches on June 5th (which is entirely possible), Indonesia will have hope when these two rivals meet in the decisive match in Jeddah on June 10th.
The best-case scenario for "Garuda" at that point would be a draw between the two teams, with Indonesia then beating Japan away on June 10th. Clearly, Indonesia wouldn't have many chances left to qualify directly for the World Cup. But football is full of surprises, and anything can happen.
The Indonesian team still has a very good chance of participating in the fourth qualifying round to compete for two direct qualification spots or two intercontinental play-off spots. If they beat China on June 5th, Indonesia will almost certainly have one foot in the fourth qualifying round.
The six teams that finish third and fourth in their respective groups in the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers will be divided into two groups, playing a round-robin format to determine the top two teams in each group who will qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup. The two teams that finish second in each group in the fourth round of qualifiers will participate in an intercontinental play-off against teams from Africa, Oceania, or South America.
Source: https://znews.vn/dieu-kien-de-indonesia-du-world-cup-2026-post1540873.html
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