The fourth stage of the Asian qualifiers: Qatar and Saudi Arabia are seeds, Indonesia is the third stage

July 11th news The AFC officially announced that the fourth phase of the Asian region of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers has been released, with a total of 6 teams participating, and the rating is based on the June national team ranking announced by FIFA. The draw will be held on Thursday, July 17 this year.

The participating teams are Indonesia, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and the competition is scheduled to be held from October 8 to 14, 2025.

6 teams are divided into 2 groups, with 3 teams in each group. Each group will be concentrated in a single round-robin format – Qatar and Saudi Arabia have been confirmed as hosts of their respective groups.

First level: Qatar (FIFA ranking: 53), Saudi Arabia (58)

Second level: Iraq (59), UAE (66)

Third level: Oman (79), Indonesia (118)

The first place in each group can advance to the 2026 World Cup; the second place in each group will have a home and away match (i.e. the fifth stage) on November 13 and 18, and the winner can participate in the World Cup Intercontinental Playoffs.

It is worth mentioning that when AFC selects FIFA rankings for the fourth stage of the World Cup, it uses the June ranking rather than the July ranking. Saudi Arabia lost many times in the China-North American Golden Cup, and its real-time ranking in July has been overtaken by Iraq.