1992:  Japan, 1996:  Saudi Arabia The FA decided not to renew his contract in August 2018. Yahya Alwan was appointed in August 2015. Overall, Iraq won nine competitions in the 1980s and played in their only World Cup, leading many to believe that this was the golden era of Iraqi football. Iraq continued their great form in the 24th Arabian Gulf Cup, reaching the semifinals by beating Qatar and United Arab Emirates. The following players have also been called up to the Iraq squad within the last 12 months. Iraq participated in the 1996 AFC Asian Cup, their first Asian Cup campaign for 20 years. Iraq won their first trophy in 1964 when they hosted and won the Arab Nations Cup, winning three and drawing one of their four games. In video footage released on local media outlets, dozens of men were seen gathered around an ambulance, chanting “There is no God but Allah” in Arabic. Due to the Gulf War, FIFA banned Iraq again from 1990 till 1995. The Baghdad FA soon disbanded and it was not until 8 October 1948 that the Iraq Football Association was founded. Iraq is famous across Asia, especially among West Asians, with passionate football fans, and the national team is also seen as a symbol for Iraq to fight against negative reputation that has hurt the country.[3][4]. The same month, the AFC Executive Committee approved the Franso Hariri Stadium as venue for international matches and clubs in continental tournaments.[38]. The team reached an all-time high of 39th in the FIFA World Rankings in October 2004. The list shown below shows the Iraq national football team all-time international record against opposing nations. Iraq played at home at the 1998 World Cup qualifiers against Pakistan and Kazakhstan for the first time since 1990. [34] These encounters have also been marred with various controversies and hostilities, such as the 21st Arabian Gulf Cup hosting rights which Iraq was stripped from hosting and instead moved to Bahrain, a move which was believed by Iraqis as a deliberate act by Saudi Arabia to remove Iraq's host advantage. Former Iraqi League player and coach Ali Hadi has passed away after contracting COVID-19. [32] Iraq has played 28 matches against Iran with 6 victories, 7 draws, and 15 losses. The team reached an all-time high of 39th in the FIFA World Rankings in October 2004. After the tournament, Shenaishil returned to managing Qatar SC and Iraq appointed Akram Salman as manager but he was sacked in June 2015 after losing 4–0 to Japan in a friendly match. The Iraq FA struggled to provide the team with enough kits for the tournament and Iraq had not been able to play any previous games in their own country for security reasons and most of the players had had family members killed in the war. [22]. In 1989, Iraq competed in qualifying for a berth in the 1990 World Cup finals, but they lost a crucial game against Qatar. In 2004, Iraq once again reached the quarter-finals of the AFC Asian Cup before getting knocked down by China. Former Iraqi League player and coach Ali Hadi has passed away after contracting COVID-19. They finished second in their group, a point behind Australia, therefore failing to qualify for the next round. 1960:  South Korea They started the tournament with a 0–0 draw with hosts South Africa, before losing 1–0 to UEFA Euro 2008 winners Spain. Iraq national team supporters are known for chanting "O Victorious Baghdad" during the Iraqi team's matches. “Farewell, Abu Faisal, goodbye to my brother Ahmed Radhi,” wrote former star and Iraqi League President Hussein Saeed. [5] The Baghdad FA soon disbanded and it was not until 8 October 1948 that the Iraq Football Association was founded. A succeeding chant is "the second goal is coming" ("هسه يجي الثاني"); this is usually chanted repeatedly after Iraq score a goal to motivate the players to score another. Four days later, Iraq played their first international friendly match in Baghdad since 2009 against Syria in front of a crowd of over 50,000 people in the Al-Shaab Stadium and won the game 2–1. Because of the Gulf War, Iraq and Kuwait were in complete avoidance and never met for more than a decade; Iraq has played 35 matches against Kuwait with 15 victories, 10 draws, and 10 losses. Iraq continued their great form in the 24th Arabian Gulf Cup, reaching the semifinals by beating Qatar and United Arab Emirates. In contemporary era, especially during the reign of Saddam Hussein, the two countries had bad relations and fought the Iran–Iraq War for eight years. WD Player withdrew for non-injury related reasons, 1956:  South Korea Around the same time, the Iran–Iraq War started and the ban was imposed again. SUS Player suspended [1] This list is incomplete ; you can help by expanding it . Iraq failed to advance to the final round of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers as a 1–0 defeat to Qatar saw them finish in third in the group. They started the decade off disappointingly, being knocked out in the first round of qualifiers for the 1982 FIFA World Cup. Iraq played at home at the 1998 World Cup qualifiers against Pakistan and Kazakhstan for the first time since 1990. Iraq played their qualifying home games at a neutral venue and still qualified for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, and three Olympic Games (Moscow, Los Angeles and Seoul). [33] One of these reasons for the rivalry to develop is due to the bitter Gulf War, where Iraq fought (and lost) against Saudi Arabia over Kuwait, an ally of Saudi Arabia. Iraq won 3–1 on aggregate and qualified to the 1986 FIFA World Cup. Iraq's only goalscorer at a World Cup, the legendary Ahmed Radhi, has passed away due to COVID-19. On 3 July 2013, FIFA re-imposed the ban due to a massive surge in nationwide violence, barely three months after world football's governing body gave Baghdad the go-ahead. [5] The Baghdad FA soon disbanded and it was not until 8 October 1948 that the Iraq Football Association was founded. After losing five of their first seven games, Iraq were eliminated and Shenaishil was sacked. Iraq reached the second round of 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification but lost five of their eight second-round games and therefore failed to make the finals. List includes the top soccer (or “football”) players from Iraq, along with photos when available. The squad was made mainly of players that had finished fourth at the 2004 Olympic Games and finished second at the 2006 Asian Games. In the final round, Iraq tied Syria 0–0 in Damascus. In the 2005 West Asian Games, a logo featuring black and white bands underneath a red semicircle featured on the kit with the three stars of the flag shown in the white band. Most of Iraq's home matches are played at the Basra International Stadium. [29] In the 2007 WAFF Championship and part of the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, Iraq reverted to using the logo that they had used from 2000–2002. Since 1980, FIFA imposed bans on six occasions that prevented Iraq from hosting competitive international games. [15] Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. [6] The 1976 Asian Cup would be the last Asian Cup that Iraq appeared in for the next 20 years, as they withdrew from the next four editions. Iraq topped the group in the third round, winning 5 of 6 games. Iraq's main and traditional rival has been Iran, which is often considered to be the two greatest football teams and the greatest football rivalry in the Middle East and Asia. This period is known as 'The Dark Era' as Uday Hussein, the son of Saddam Hussein, abused his control of Iraqi football and tortured players who played poorly, punishing them by sending them to prison, making them bathe in raw sewage and kick concrete balls, and shaving their heads among many other punishments.[8][9]. Iraq recorded their first World Cup goal in the second game, scoring against Belgium in a 1–2 defeat despite having ten men, with Ahmed Radhi scoring a goal for Iraq. 2011:  Japan, This article is about the men's team. Radhi Shenaishil was appointed to lead Iraq in the final round. [28] From 2000–2002, Iraq mainly used a logo that featured the vertical black, white and red bands of the Iraq flag underneath the name Iraq written in Arabic in green text. 1984:  Saudi Arabia [34] Iraq has played 39 matches against Saudi Arabia with 17 victories, 11 draws, and 11 losses. The beginnings of the footballing rivalry between them dates back to the 1970s, but it was only after the 1990s that the great rivalry between two Arab nations truly developed since it was previously overshadowed by Iraq's rivalries with Iran and Kuwait. Yahya Alwan was appointed in August 2015. On 3 July 2013, FIFA re-imposed the ban due to a massive surge in nationwide violence, barely three months after world football's governing body gave Baghdad the go-ahead. Iraq failed to advance to the final round of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers as a 1–0 defeat to Qatar saw them finish in third in the group. If you're searching for a particular famous Iraqi soccer player you can use the "search" box to find what you're looking for. and "Who is the greatest Iraqi soccer player of all time?" Under him, Iraq reached the final of the WAFF Championship but lost 2–1 to Iran. About Iraq's national football team. The exit from the Gulf Cup happened in very controversial circumstances as Iraq attempted to make an agreement with Saudi Arabia to draw the final game which would put both teams through to the next round; the Iraq manager Akram Salman told the Iraqi players not to win the game but the Saudi Arabian players were unaware of any agreement and went on to win the game and knock Iraq out of the cup. The Iraq FA joined FIFA in 1950 and on 2 May 1951, Iraq played their first match: a 1–1 draw to a team named Basra XI.[5]. This is a list of Iraq international footballers, comprising players to have represented the Iraq national football team since its formation in 1957. In 1972, Iraq played at their first ever AFC Asian Cup but failed to win a game in the tournament. [30][31] Despite the rise of Iraqi football successes, Iran has remained dominant over Iraq. They produced another big upset by knocking out Asian giants South Korea (who had thrashed Iraq 3–0 in a pre-tournament friendly) in the semis via a penalty shootout in which Noor Sabri made a crucial save. 1980:  Kuwait FIFA and the AFC have jointly decided to postpone Asia's World Cup qualifying matches to 2021. Iraq played against hosts Mexico in the third game and lost 1–0. Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. Iraq drew the last game 0–0 with New Zealand and were knocked out. In 1984, Iraq won the Arabian Gulf Cup. Iraq's rivalry with Kuwait is once considered as the Arab world's greatest football rivalry of all time; dubbed 'The Arabic El Clasico' until being taken by Iraq's rivalry with Saudi Arabia due to Kuwait's decline. In 1989, Iraq competed in qualifying for a berth in the 1990 World Cup finals, but they lost a crucial game against Qatar. The ban was lifted in 1982. Iraq in one of the more successful national teams in Asia, having made one FIFA World Cup appearance, in 1986 in Mexico, but lost all three of their games to Paraguay, Belgium and Mexico; Iraq also made its lone appearance in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, obtained two points and exited from the group stage for losing to Spain. Iraq won their first trophy in 1964 when they hosted and won the Arab Nations Cup, winning three and drawing one of their four games. Continue reading 5 Things We Miss Most From Watching The Iraq National Football Team. 1972:  Iran, 1976:  Iran 1980:  Kuwait Following this, the Iraq FA decided to disband the team and sacked Hamad. The following year, they won the 1985 Arab Nations Cup and also won the gold medal at the 1985 Pan Arab Games. Iraq national football team results (2020–present), List of Iraq national football team managers, https://www.arabnews.com/node/1259086/sports, https://iraqfootball.me/2020/05/08/5-things-we-miss-most-from-watching-the-iraq-national-football-team/, "Footballers who paid the penalty for failure", "Saddam's son tortured defeated footballers - Telegraph", "The game that shook a nation: 2007 Gulf Cup", "Il calcio riporta la festa in Iraq Al Maliki: "È il trionfo dell'impossibile, http://edition.cnn.com/2007/SPORT/football/07/28/asia.iraq.reut/, https://www.skysports.com/football/news/12010/2738539/olsen-takes-iraq-job, https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-25176, https://www.breakingnews.ie/sport/soccer/iraq-sack-coach-hamad-367505.html, https://www.thenational.ae/sport/milutinovic-is-iraq-s-new-cup-coach-1.486037, https://www.goal.com/en/news/14/asia/2010/07/12/2022583/iraq-set-to-appoint-wolfgang-sidka-as-new-coach-report, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/zico-resigns-as-iraq-national-team-coach-35693, http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/6/55/81300/Sports/World/Iraq-sack-Serbian-coach-Petrovic.aspx, "Iraq coach Shenaishil sacked after World Cup failure", http://www.the-afc.com/asiancup/news/round-of-16-qatar-1-0-iraq, https://www.the-afc.com/competitions/afc-asian-cup/news/md5-group-c-iraq-2-1-ir-iran, "Pitch Warfare: Iran face Iraq in soccer grudge match", https://www.france24.com/en/20190115-rivalry-revenge-iran-face-iraq-asian-cup, https://socceriraq.net/2018/02/27/match-preview-iraq-vs-saudi-arabia/, https://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1016400/iraq-to-withdraw-from-gulf-cup-of-nations-in-protest-at-host-city-switch, "Storied Gulf Cup rivalry between Iraq and Kuwait survives war", https://edition.cnn.com/2013/03/26/world/meast/iraq-syria-soccer/index.html, "Lifting of FIFA ban could be the start of a new era for Iraq", "AFC president welcomes FIFA decision to lift Iraq ban", https://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/Story/44583/Iraq-cannot-host-World-Cup-Qualifiers-due-to-violent-protests-FIFA, "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking - Associations - Iraq - Men's", Official Iraq national football team on FIFA.com, Asian Games football men's tournament winners, Iraqi National League of Clubs and Institutions, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Iraq_national_football_team&oldid=983356719, Asian national association football teams, Pages using national squad without sport or team link, Pages using national squad without comp link, Pages using national squad without sport and with team link, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 13 October 2020, at 19:44.

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