Hot third qualifying round of World Cup 2026, Asia waiting for more tickets

(NLDO) – Four Asian representatives hope to follow in the footsteps of Japan and Iran to qualify for the 2026 World Cup after the third round of the 9th regional World Cup qualifiers.

The ninth match of the third qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup - Asia region on the night of June 5 and early morning of June 6 is expected to give opportunities to four teams that have accumulated a lot of points before this important round.

Iraq vs South Korea in Group B

Leading their opponents by 4 points, South Korea only needs a draw in their away match against Iraq in the early morning of June 6 to secure the first ticket of Group B to the World Cup finals. This is a goal that is completely within the ability of coach Hong Myung-bo and his team, although in the first leg, they could only win 3-2 against Iraq at home.

Group B standings after eight matches

Jordan came to visit Oman with great confidence. In the first leg, they won 4-0 and have no reason to lose points in the rematch on the night of June 5. If they take all 3 points in this match that is predicted to be very different in class, Jordan will be one of the two representatives of Group B to win an early ticket to the World Cup finals.

In Group A , the direct confrontation between the third-placed UAE (13 points) and the second-placed Uzbekistan (17 points) will heat up the race for the Top 2, after the top team Iran has already qualified for the final round. If Uzbekistan wins, they will secure a place in the final round, but if they stumble against the UAE, the former Soviet team will have to wait for the final match at home against Qatar on the night of June 10.

Hot situation in group A

The situation in Group C is considered the most unpredictable. Except for Japan, who are too superior and have officially set foot on the 2026 World Cup train, the opportunity is not necessarily closed even for Bahrain or China (both with 6 points) while the third-placed team Saudi Arabia has 10 points and the fourth-placed team Indonesia has also pocketed 9 points.

Fierce battle between Indonesia and China at Gelora Bung Karno

With 13 points, Australia is not sure of second place in the group because they still have to face two strong teams, Japan and Saudi Arabia, in the last two matches. Meanwhile, if they lose to Indonesia on the evening of 5-6 at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, China's World Cup dream will officially be shattered. Even a draw in the archipelago country does not seem to help the Chinese team. Meanwhile, just a draw would open up the opportunity to continue to the final qualifying round, Indonesia will certainly know what to do to block this not-so-superior opponent.

China's World Cup dream is fading

Match schedule for round 9:

Australia - Japan (18:10, June 5), Indonesia - China (20:45, June 5), UAE - Uzbekistan, Bahrain - Saudi Arabia (23:00, June 5), Oman - Jordan (23:00, June 5), Iraq - South Korea (1:15, June 6), Kuwait - Palestine (1:15, June 6), UAE - Uzbekistan, Qatar - Iran (1:15, June 6), DPRK - Kyrgyzstan (1:15, June 6)

Source: https://nld.com.vn/nong-bong-vong-loai-thu-ba-world-cup-2026-chau-a-cho-them-ve-196250605165934967.htm