Tag: Kuala Lumpur

2026 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifying Draw Mechanism

The road to the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the Asian region is an exciting journey, with teams vying for a chance to compete on the global stage. Here’s how the draw mechanism works for the third qualifying round:

Key Details:

  • Date and Location: The draw for the third qualifying round will take place on Thursday, July 7, at 10:30 a.m. in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
  • Teams Involved: The teams participating in this round will discover their opponents during the draw.

Group Allocation Process:

  1. Seeding: Teams are divided into six seeds based on their FIFA rankings and historical performance.
    • 1st Seed: Japan, Iran, and South Korea
    • 2nd Seed: Australia, Qatar, and Iraq
    • 3rd Seed: Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, and Jordan
    • 4th Seed: UAE, Oman, and Bahrain
    • 5th Seed: China, Palestine, and Kyrgyzstan
    • 6th Seed: North Korea, Indonesia, and Kuwait
  2. Group Formation:
    • The process begins by drawing the ball of the sixth-seeded teams from the pot first.
    • The first team drawn from this pot is placed in Group A, the second in Group B, and the third in Group C.
    • The process continues for the 5th, 4th, 3rd, and 2nd seeds.
    • Finally, the draw concludes with the first-seeded teams being allocated to their respective groups.
  3. Group of Death:
    • The group of death refers to a challenging group with strong teams.
    • In this case, Team Melli finds itself as the first seed alongside Japan and South Korea.
    • While football progress in Asia has been remarkable, the team names and prestige still matter.
    • The presence of Australia and Qatar in the second seed, Saudi Arabia in the third seed, and the UAE in the 4th seed adds intrigue.
    • Placing the UAE in the 4th seed, Saudi Arabia in the 3rd seed, and one of Australia’s teams and Qatar in the 2nd seed next to a first-seeded team could create a formidable group.
  4. Qualification Path:
    • The top two teams from each group (3 groups of 6 teams) will qualify directly for the World Cup.
    • The third and fourth teams in each group will compete in two groups of 3 teams.
    • The winners of these smaller groups will secure the seventh and eighth quotas for Asia.
    • The remaining half of the quotas will be determined through playoff matches against teams from other continents.
  5. Ideal Group for Iran
    • IRAN – IRAQ – JORDAN -BAHRAIN -KYRGYSZTAN- KUWAIT.
  6. Worst case scenario
    • IRAN – AUSTRALIA – SAUDI ARABIA-UAE-CHINA- NORTH KOREA.

In summary, the 2026 World Cup Asian qualifying draw promises thrilling matchups, surprises, and intense battles as teams vie for their spot in the prestigious tournament. Let the journey continue!

Amir Ghalenoei appointed as Head coach of Team Melli.

 Amir Ghalenoei, who is on the verge of turning 60, was appointed by the Football Federation as the new head coach of Team Melli as the replacement for Carlos Queiroz.
After 13 years of foreign coaches on the bench of the national team, an Iranian was selected. Afshin Ghotbi , and Mansourian on a caretaker basis, were the last of the Iranians who coached Team Melli. Ghotbi failed to achieve success with Iran in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup as South Korea ended the Iranian dream in the quarter-finals. Alireza Mansourian briefly took over the leadership of the national team for only one game against Russia. After this, the Portuguese Carlos Queiroz took over to begin his long reign of coaching in 2011.
Queiroz has since taken Iran to 5 major tournaments, of which were 3 FIFA World Cups and two AFC Asian Cups between 2011 and briefly in 2022.  The Portuguese who was a difficult character off the field and a strong advocate of a defensive game was a divisive figure among the fans. Some truly believed in him despite his failures in major tournaments, while others thought of him as the major stumbling block to the development of football in Iran.
Post-FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qata, the FFIRI has approached many coaches including, the former Qatar coach Sanches. However, to the surprise of many, Amir Ghalenoei, who has earlier announced that he is out of the race for the Team Melli head coach, was chosen ahead of the rest.
Ghalenoei succeeded Branko Ivanković to become the head coach of Iran on 17th July 2006. He took over while the team was preparing for the AFC Asian Cup 2007 qualifiers. In these preliminaries, he won four games and drew two to qualify for the finals.
In AFC Asian Cup 2007, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Iran under Ghalenoei qualified for the quarter-final stage as the top team from the group consisting of China, Malaysia, and Uzbekistan, winning two and drawing with China.
In the quarter-finals, Iran lost again to its nemesis South Korea in penalty kicks to miss out on reaching the semi-finals. After the AFC Asian Cup 2007, Ghalenoei resigned from his post. his well-respcted record with Iran stood as 
Played Won Draw Loss GF Ga GD
17 10 6 1 30 12 +18
Ghalenoei (born on 21st November 1963) is the most successful national coach in Iran’s domestic league history winning titles with Esteghlal and Sepahan winning a total of five championships and two Hazfi Cup titles. He also managed Tractor.
17 years later, Ghalenoei has another shot to make a name at the international level with Team Melli. There is only one accomplishment that will give him legendary status, and that is lifting the ultimate trophy, the Asian Cup which has eluded Iran for 47 years and counting.
However, Ghaqlenoei comes with by now so familiar heavy baggage of Iranian coaches. The main problem is his demeanor after defeats. He seems to be in denial and lacks the integrity to focus on himself and his players, instead, he diverts the ball to others blaming them for his team’s defeats, particularly the referees. He is also not a stranger to conspiracy theories making up stories about plots and other rhetorics.
Ghalenoei also had a short temper during his first stint with Team Melli. His antic at the touchline, his anger, and his constant protests led to his dismissal in a group match. Hopefully, with advancing age, it is hoped that he has mellowed down a bit.
Overall, this Coach is capable of leading and winning with notable man-management skills. He handles his players well and can influence them positively. Although the federation was hinting at the appointment of a domestic coach, there were fears amongst the fans as the majority preferred foreign coaches. With the appointment of Ghalenoei, it is hoped that many would change that view.
Alas, people should not forget that financial constraints were the main reason for selecting a domestic coach.
Amir Galenoei will be leading Team Melli against Russia on the 23rd of March and then Iraq in the next two friendly games.