The curtain fell on the second round of the double qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, and with it begins two new chapters on the yellow continent.
18 teams qualified for the 2027 Asian Cup after finishing first and second in the second round groups, and all of them qualified for the decisive third round in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Thus, these 18 teams constitute the most prominent and important chapter among the Asian continent’s teams, while the other 18 teams who failed in the second round will play in a final round, with 6 of them qualifying for the 2027 Asian Cup.
The third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers for the Asian continent will be held in a group system, where 18 teams will be divided into 3 groups, each containing 6 teams.
From the three groups, the top two teams qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup, in which the Asian continent will have 8 seats for the first time in history.
Thus, 6 teams will qualify from the third round of qualifiers to the World Cup, and two places remain that will be decided through a fourth round that includes the teams that ranked third and fourth in the third round groups, forming two groups each containing 3 teams, with the top team qualifying directly to the World Cup.
Below we review together the teams qualified for the third round of the 2026 World Cup Asia qualifiers, and when the draw will be.
When is the draw for the third round of the 2026 Asian World Cup qualifiers?
The draw for the third and decisive round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in Asia will be held on Thursday, June 27, 2024, in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, at the headquarters of the Asian Football Confederation.
Which teams qualify for the third round of the 2026 World Cup Asia qualifiers?
All Arab teams succeeded in reaching the third round, with the exception of 3 teams: Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen.
The teams qualifying for the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers
Group One: Qatar – Kuwait
Group Two: Japan – North Korea
Group Three: South Korea – China
Group Four: Oman – Kyrgyzstan
Group Five: Iran – Uzbekistan
Group Six: Iraq – Indonesia
Group Seven: Saudi Arabia – Jordan
Group Eight: UAE – Bahrain
Group Nine: Australia – Palestine
When are the third round matches in the 2026 Asian World Cup qualifiers?
The Asian Football Confederation has set the international break in September 2024 as the start date for the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
The first round matches of the third round groups are scheduled to be played on September 5, and will continue over a period of 10 months, with the final round being held on June 10, 2025.
