Asian nations at the FIFA World Cup

Association football is the most popular sport in nearly every Asian country and 13 members of the Asian Football Confederation AFC have competed at the sport's biggest event - the men's FIFA World Cup.

Summary of performance

Year	Host	Size	#E	#A	#A-	Asian finalists	#WCQ	Stage	Results	Coach
This table shows the number of countries represented at the World Cup, the number of entries (#E) from around the world including any rejections and withdrawals, the number of Asian entries (#A), how many of those Asian entries withdrawn (#A-) before/during qualification or were rejected by FIFA, the Asian representatives at the World Cup finals, the number of World Cup Qualifiers each Asian representative had to play to get to the World Cup (#WCQ), the furthest stage reached, results, and coaches.
1930	Uruguay	13	13	0	0	-
1934	Italy	16	32	2	1[1]	-
1938	France	16	32	2	1[2]	Indonesia[3]	16	Round 1	lost 0-6  Hungary	Johan Mastenbroek
1950	Brazil	15	34	4	4[4]	-
1954	Switzerland	16	45	3	1[5]	South Korea	16	Round 1	lost 0-9  Hungary, lost 0-7 Turkey	Kim Yong-Sik
1958	Sweden	16	55	12	9[6]	-
1962	Chile	16	56	3	1[7]	-
1966	England	16	74	4	2[8]	North Korea	16	QF	lost 0-3  Soviet Union, drew 1-1 Chile, won 1-0 Italy QF: lost 3-5 Portugal	Myung Rye-Hyun
1970	Mexico	16	75	7[9]	1[10]	Israel	16	Round 1	lost 0-2  Uruguay, drew 1-1 Sweden, drew 1-1 Italy	Emmanuel Scheffer
1974	West Germany	16	99	18	3[11]	-
1978	Argentina	16	107	21	4 [12]	Iran	16	Round 1	lost 0-3  Netherlands, drew 1-1 Scotland, lost 1-4 Peru	Heshmat Mohajerani
1982	Spain	24	109	21	1 [13]	Kuwait	24	Round 1	drew 1-1  Czechoslovakia, lost 1-4 France, lost 0-1 England	Carlos Alberto Parreira
1986	Mexico	24	121	28	4[14]	Iraq	16	Round 1	lost 0-1  Paraguay, lost 1-2 Belgium, lost 0-1 Mexico	Evaristo de Macedo
						South Korea	16	Round 1	lost 1-3  Argentina,drew 1-1  Bulgaria, lost 2-3  Italy	Kim Jung-Nam
1990	Italy	24	116	26	2[15]	South Korea	16	Round 1	lost 0-2  Belgium, lost 1-3 Spain, lost 0-1 Uruguay	Lee Hoe-Taik
						United Arab Emirates	16	Round 1	lost 0-2  Colombia,lost 1-5  West Germany, lost 1-4  Yugoslavia	Carlos Alberto Parreira
1994	USA	24	147	30	2[16]	Saudi Arabia	16	Round of 16	lost 1-2  Netherlands, won 2-1 Morocco, won 1-0 Belgium Round of 16: lost 1-3 Sweden	Jorge Solari
						South Korea	16	Round 1	drew 2-2  Spain,drew 0-0 Bolivia, lost 2-3  Germany	Kim Ho
1998	France	32	174	36	0	Iran	32	Round 1	lost 0-1  Yugoslavia,won 2-1  United States, lost 0-2  Germany	Jalal Talebi
						Japan	32	Round 1	lost 0-1  Argentina,lost 0-1  Croatia, lost 1-2  Jamaica	Takeshi Okada
						Saudi Arabia	32	Round 1	lost 0-1  Denmark,lost 0-4  France,drew 2-2  South Africa	Carlos Alberto Parreira (fired after two matches, replaced by Mohammed Al-Kharashy for the final match)
						South Korea	32	Round 1	lost 1-3  Mexico,lost 0-5  Netherlands,drew 1-1  Belgium	Cha Bum-Kun (fired after two matches, replaced by Kim Pyung-Seok for the final match)
2002	South Korea & Japan	32	199	35	5[17]	China PR	32	Round 1	lost 0-2 Costa Rica, lost 0-4 Brazil, lost 0-3 Turkey	Bora Milutinović
						Japan	32	Round of 16	drew 2-2  Belgium,won 1-0  Russia, won 2-0  Tunisia Round of 16: lost 0-1 Turkey	Philippe Troussier
						Saudi Arabia	32	Round 1	lost 0-8  Germany,lost 0-1  Cameroon,lost 0-3  Republic of Ireland	Nasser Al-Johar
						South Korea	32	SF	won 2-0  Poland, drew 1-1  United States, won 1-0  Portugal Round of 16: won 2-1(a.e.t.)  Italy QF: won 0-0 (pen. 5-3)  Spain SF: lost 0-1  Germany 3-place match: lost 2-3  Turkey	Guus Hiddink
2006	Germany	32	197	44	5[18]	Iran	32	Round 1	lost 1-3  Mexico, lost 0-2 Portugal, drew 1-1 Angola	Branko Ivanković
						Japan	32	Round 1	lost 1-3  Australia,drew 0-0  Croatia, lost 1-4  Brazil	Zico
						Saudi Arabia	32	Round 1	drew 2-2  Tunisia,lost 0-4  Ukraine,lost 0-1  Spain	Marcos Paquetá
						South Korea	32	Round 1	won 2-1  Togo,drew 1-1  France,lost 0-2   Switzerland	Dick Advocaat
2010	South Africa	32	205	[19] 43	3[20]	Australia	32	Round 1	lost 0-4  Germany, drew 1-1 Ghana, won 2-1 Serbia	Pim Verbeek
						Japan	32	Round of 16	won 1-0  Cameroon,lost 0-1  Netherlands, won 3-1  Denmark Round of 16: lost 0-0 (pen. 3-5) Paraguay	Takeshi Okada
						North Korea	32	Round 1	lost 1-2  Brazil, lost 0-7 Portugal, lost 0-3 Ivory Coast	Kim Jong-Hun
						South Korea	32	Round of 16	won 2-0  Greece,lost 1-4  Argentina,drew 2-2  Nigeria Round of 16: lost 1-2(a.e.t.) Uruguay	Huh Jung-Moo
2014	Brazil	32	203	43	3[21]	Australia	32	Round 1	lost 1-3  Chile, lost 2-3  Netherlands, lost 0-3  Spain	Ange Postecoglou
						Iran	32	Round 1	drew 0-0  Nigeria, lost 0-1  Argentina, lost 1-3  Bosnia and Herzegovina	Carlos Queiroz
						Japan	32	Round 1	lost 1-2  Ivory Coast, drew 0-0  Greece, lost 1-4  Colombia,	Alberto Zaccheroni
						South Korea	32	Round 1	drew 1-1  Russia, lost 2-4  Algeria, lost 0-1  Belgium	Hong Myung-Bo

Overview

	1930 (13)	1934 (16)	1938 (15)	1950 (13)	1954 (16)	1958 (16)	1962 (16)	1966 (16)	1970 (16)	1974 (16)	1978 (16)	1982 (24)	1986 (24)	1990 (24)	1994 (24)	1998 (32)	2002 (32)	2006 (32)	2010 (32)	2014 (32)	2018 (32)	2022 (32)	Total
Teams	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	1	1[22]	0	1	1	2	2	2	4	4	4	4	4			32
Top 16	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	0	0	1	0	2	0	2	0			5
Top 12	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	0	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—			0
Top 8	—	0	0	—	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	—	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0			2
Top 4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0			1
Top 2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0			0
1st	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0			0
2nd	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0			0
3rd	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0			0
4th	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0			1

Country	Participations	Years	Best result
South Korea	9	1954, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014	4th
Japan	5	1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014	R2
Iran	4	1978, 1998, 2006, 2014	R1
Saudi Arabia	4	1994, 1998, 2002, 2006	R2
North Korea	2	1966, 2010	QF
Australia	2	2006, 2010, 2014	R2
Indonesia[23]	1	1938	R1
Israel	1	1970	R1
Kuwait	1	1982	R1
Iraq	1	1986	R1
United Arab Emirates	1	1990	R1
China PR	1	2002	R1

Competitive record

1938: The first Asian nation at the World Cup

The Indonesian team, prior to independence in 1945, competed as the Dutch East Indies national football team. Under this name, Indonesia was the first Asian team to participate in the FIFA World Cup when the team qualified for the 1938 tournament after its opponent, Japan, withdrew from the qualification heats. The 6–0 loss to eventual finalists, the Hungarian national football team, in the first round of the tournament in Reims, France, remains the nation's only appearance in the World Cup. The straight knock-out format used at the time made it the only game ever played by the Indonesians. Thus, Indonesia holds the FIFA World Cup record as the team with the fewest matches played (1) and one of the teams with the fewest goals scored (0). They were 15th place in the rankings.

1950: India's withdrawal

Burma, Philippines and Indonesia withdrew after qualifying, so India qualified automatically. India later also withdrew because of the expense of travelling. Others teams economised by sailing, rather than flying, to the tournament (or, according to some reports, after a FIFA ruling that players were not allowed to play barefoot). FIFA decided not to invite another team, leaving the World Cup three teams short.

1954: South Korea's first World Cup

In the 1954 FIFA World Cup qualification the Asian zone was allocated one place (out of 16) in the final tournament. In the 1954 World Cup qualification three countries from the AFC participated. The China PR withdrew, South Korea won against Japan and for the first time qualified for the World Cup. South Korea lost twice 0-9 to Hungary and 0-7 to Turkey. They were 16th place in the rankings.

1958-1962: World Cup without Asia

At the 1958 World Cup qualification FIFA rejected South Korea's entry. Qualifications were held with Africa, Turkey, Cyprus and the China PR withdrew in the first qualification round, Indonesia and Egypt in second. Sudan withdrew in the final qualification round as they refused to play against Israel for political reasons. Israel technically would have qualified automatically, but before the qualification rounds began, FIFA ruled that no team would qualify without playing at least one match (except for the defending champions and the hosts), and Israel had yet to play any. A special play-off was created between Israel and the runner-up of one of the UEFA Groups, where the teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis, with the winner qualifying. After Belgium refused, Wales, the runner-up of UEFA Group 4, was the team drawn from the UEFA group runners-up. Israel lost both times 0-2 and did not reach the World Cup.

There was only one round of play at the 1962 FIFA World Cup qualification. The three teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winner would advance to the UEFA/AFC Intercontinental play-off. Indonesia withdrew. South Korea won twice against Japan and advanced to the UEFA/AFC Intercontinental play-off. South Korea lost both times against Yugoslavia and did not reach the World Cup.

1966: North Korea's impressive performance

AFC, CAF, OFC confederations competed together in the qualification rounds. After having no teams from Africa or Asia qualifying for the previous two World Cups, FIFA decided to allocate a single spot to the winner of a four-way play-off between the winners of three African groups and the winner of the Asian zone. South Africa was suspended by FIFA due to apartheid. All fifteen remaining African teams withdrew in protest against there being no automatic qualification for an African team, leaving the AFC–OFC winner to qualify by default. Japan then withdrew because the three-team tournament was moved from Japan to Cambodia, leaving only Australia and North Korea to contest the final place. Because North Korea lacked diplomatic relations with most countries, finding a suitable venue for the match proved difficult, until Head of State Norodom Sihanouk, an ally of Kim Il-sung, agreed to hosting the matches in Phnom Penh. North Korea easily won both legs to qualify. North Korea qualified for the eighth FIFA World Cup held in England.

North Korea got to Group 4. North Korea lost the first game against the USSR by 0-3, the second was 1-1 against Chile. However, in an upset North Korea beat Italy 1-0 at Ayresome Park, Middlesbrough and finished above them, thus earning qualification to the next round along with the USSR. This was the first time that a nation from outside Europe or the Americas had progressed from the first stage of a World Cup. In their match against Portugal they lead 3–0 after only 22 minutes. Portugal's Eusébio changed the pace, scoring four goals in the game and José Augusto added a fifth in the 78th minute to earn Portugal a 5-3 win. In a 1999 documentary featuring interviews with surviving members of the team, they describe themselves as having been welcomed home as national heroes.

1970: Israel debut at the World Cup

The 1970 AFC and OFC FIFA World Cup qualification were held together. Israel, New Zealand and Rhodesia received byes and advanced to the second round directly. The remaining three teams, Australia, Japan and South Korea, played against each other twice in South Korea. Australia advanced to the second round group 1 and won over Rhodesia and advanced to the final round. In group 2 Israel advanced to the final round when they defeated New Zealand twice. North Korea, despite their good performance in the previous tournament staged in England in 1966, refused to play in Israel and withdrew. In the final round Israel defeated Australia 2-1 on aggregate and got to the World Cup. Israel qualified for their only World Cup to date as an Asian team. However, soon after this, they left the Asian Football Confederation, and now compete in the European zone as they are now a member of UEFA. As of 2014, this is Israel's only World Cup finals appearance.

Israel lost their first game 0-2 against Uruguay, the other ended in a 1-1 draw against Sweden and 0-0 with Italy. Israel ranked last place in the group and withdrew from the tournament. The team finished 13 out of the 16 teams11.

1974: Another World Cup without Asian nations

The Asian and Oceania zone competed for one place in the World Cup. India, Sri Lanka and the Philippines withdrew before the matches were played. The remaining 15 teams were divided into two zones, based on geographical and political considerations. Zone A had 7 teams (teams from East Asia, plus Israel). All matches were played in the Republic of Korea. Zone B had 8 teams (teams from West Asia and Oceania, plus Indonesia and North Korea). South Korea won Zone A and Australia Zone B. In the final round South Korea and Australia were tied 2–2 on aggregate score, and a play-off on neutral ground was played to decide the qualifier. The match was played in Hong Kong. Australia won this match, through a Jimmy Mackay goal, scored off a free kick.

1978: Iran's debut

A total of 21 AFC and OFC teams and Israel entered the competition. However, South Vietnam could not compete after being annexed by Vietnam. The Asian zone was allocated one place (out of 16) in the final tournament. The 21 teams would be divided into 5 groups. Sri Lanka, North Korea, Iraq and the United Arab Emirates withdrew. Hong Kong, South Korea, Iran, Kuwait and Australia won in their group. Iran won the final group and qualified for the FIFA World Cup for the first time.

The group consisted of Iran, Netherlands, Peru, and Scotland. Iran, the reigning Asian champion, went out of the tournament win-less. Iran lost two of their three group stage games: 0-3 against the Netherlands and 1-4 against Peru. However, they managed to draw 1–1 against Scotland with a late Iraj Danaeifard goal. The team finished 14 out of the 16 teams.

1982: Kuwait's debut

A total of 21 AFC and OFC teams entered the qualification. Iran withdrew before the draw was made. The Asian and Oceania zone was allocated 2 places (out of 24) in the final tournament. The remaining 20 teams would be divided into 4 groups. New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, China PR advanced to the Final Round. In the Final Round Kuwait ranked first place and immediately qualified to the World Cup. The China PR and New Zealand finished level on points and goal difference, and a play-off on neutral ground (Singapore) was played to decide the qualifier. Kuwait won 2-1 and qualified to the World Cup for the first time.

Kuwait's group consisted of Czechoslovakia, England, and France. In the opening match Kuwait held Czechoslovakia to a 1–1 draw. In the game between Kuwait and France, with France leading 3–1, France midfielder Alain Giresse scored a goal vehemently contested by the Kuwait team, who had stopped play after hearing a piercing whistle from the stands, which they thought had come from Soviet referee Miroslav Stupar. Play had not yet resumed when Sheikh Fahid Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, brother of the Kuwaiti Emir and president of the Kuwaiti Football Association, rushed onto the pitch to remonstrate with the referee. Stupar countermanded his initial decision and disallowed the goal to the fury of the French. Maxime Bossis scored another valid goal a few minutes later and France won 4–1. Kuwait lost the third game 0-1 against England. Kuwait finished fourth in group and 21st out of the 24 teams.

1986: Iraq's debut, South Korea's return

A total of 27 AFC teams entered the competition. The Asian zone was allocated 2 places (out of 24) in the final tournament. Teams were divided into 2 zones, based on geographical considerations. Zone A had 13 teams (teams from West Asia) and Zone B had 14 teams (teams from East Asia). Lebanon, Oman withdrew. Iran was disqualified. Iraq won Zone A Final Round, South Korea won Zone B. Iraq and South Korea qualified for the 1986 World Cup.

As of 2010, this was the last time Iraq qualified for the finals. Iraq lost all three games: 0-1 against Paraguay, 1-2 against Belgium, 0-1 against Mexico and finished 23 out of the 24 teams. South Korea qualified for the first time since 1954. In the first game South Korea lost 1-3 against Argentina, in the second with Bulgaria drew 1–1 in a downpour, and in the third lost 2-3 against Italy. South Korea finished 20 out of the 24 teams.

1990: United Arab Emirates first World Cup

26 teams were in the running for these spots; Bahrain, India, Maldives and South Yemen withdrew without playing a qualifying match. The Maldives withdrew before the final draw, leaving 25 teams to be divided into 6 groups of 4 or 5 teams each. South Korea, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, China PR, Saudi Arabia, North Korea advanced to the Final Round. South Korea and the United Arab Emirates qualified for the 1990 FIFA World Cup taking the first 2 places.

The United Arab Emirates qualified for the FIFA World Cup for the first time, its only appearance to date, but lost all three of its games: 2–0 to Colombia, 5–1 to West Germany and 4–1 to Yugoslavia. All three of the UAE's first round opponents reached the last 16. They were 24th (and last) place in the rankings. South Korea also lost all its three games: 0-2 to Belgium, 1-3 to Spain, 0-1 to Uruguay and finished 22 out of 24 teams.

1994: Saudi Arabia reaches the Round of 16

A total of 30 teams entered the qualification. The Asian zone was allocated 2 places (out of 24) in the final tournament. The 30 teams were divided into 6 groups of 5 teams each, although Myanmar and Nepal withdrew after playing no match. The teams would play against each other twice. The group winners would advance to the Final Round. Iraq, Iran, North Korea, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Japan advanced to the Final Round, Saudi Arabia and South Korea taking the first 2 places and qualifying for the World Cup.

Saudi Arabia qualified for the World Cup finals for the first time. Their group consisted of Belgium, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia and Morocco. Saudi Arabia lost its first game 1-2 against Netherlands, although they scored the first goal. Later they beat Morocco 2-1. Against Belgium the Saudi player Saaed Al-Owairian ran from his own half through a maze of Belgian players to score the game's only goal. Both teams went through. For the much-fancied Dutch however, progression to the second round was a somewhat nervier experience. Netherlands won the group, Saudi Arabia finished second and Belgium qualified as one of the best third-placed teams. In the first knockout stage match, Saudi Arabia faced Sweden and lost 1–3 after two goals from Kennet Andersson and one from Martin Dahlin. They were 12th place in the rankings.

South Korea's World Cup began with two draws against Spain(2-2) and Bolivia(0-0). However they lost the decisive match 2-3 against the title holder Germany. They were 20th place in the rankings.

1998: Four Asian nations at the World Cup

A total of 36 teams entered the competition. The Asian zone was allocated 3.5 places (out of 32) in the final tournament. Iran, Japan, Saudi Arabia and South Korea qualified for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Japan qualified for the first time.

Saudi Arabia were in group C with South Africa from the Confederation of African Football, UEFA's Denmark and hosts France. Saudi Arabia started with a1-0 defeat by Denmark. Next, France scored four to eliminate Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia (0-2-0), which again failed to show any resemblance to the 1994 team that reached the second round, played most of the game with 10 men after defender Mohammed Al-Khilaiwi was given a direct red card in the 19th minute for a poor tackle on Lizarazu. Forward Thierry Henry scored two goals, David Trezeguet and Bixente Lizarazu also scored for France. With two goals against Saudi Arabia, South Africa led, but watched in horror as the Saudis scored on two penalty kicks to gain a 2-2 draw. The Saudis entered the match under new coach Mohammed al-Kharashi, a longtime assistant, after Brazilian Carlos Alberto Pareira was fired following the 4-0 loss to France.

Japan lost all three matches. Japan lost its first two fixtures: 1–0 to Argentina, Gabriel Batistuta scoring for Argentina against the Samurai Blue, knocking the ball over the Japanese goalkeeper on the edge of the penalty area, and a late goal from Šuker earning Croatia a narrow victory and setting them up with a place in the next round. Japan was eliminated from the tournament. Their campaign ended with an unexpected 2–1 defeat to rank outsiders Jamaica. Two goals from Theodore Whitmore gave Jamaica their first ever win in the World Cup finals. Nakayama had the honour of scoring Japan's first goal in the finals in the second half.

Iran's first game of Group F was played against Yugoslavia, narrowly losing 1–0, only to a free kick goal by Siniša Mihajlović. Iran recorded their first World Cup victory in the second game, beating the United States 2–1, with Estili and Mahdavikia scoring goals for Iran. The Iran vs USA World Cup match was preheated with much excitement because of each country's political stance after the Iranian revolution. However, in an act of defiance against all forms of hatred or politics in sports, both sides presented one another with gifts and flowers and took ceremonial pictures before the match kickoff. Following the defeat by Iran the United States were eliminated from the World Cup. Iran played Germany in the third game. The game was lost 2–0. The goals were scored by Bierhoff and Klinsmann. The one win and two defeats left Iran third in the final group standing unable to make it to the next round.

South Korea came into the 1998 FIFA World Cup without a single win to their name in their fourteen World Cup finals games prior to this. South Korea played Mexico, Netherlands and Belgium. In the first game South Korea lead in the 27th minute thanks to a Ha-Seok Ju free kick, that was deflected into the Mexican goal. A couple of minutes after the goal was scored, Ha-Seok Ju was sent off for a bad challenge from behind. The Koreans’ demise had begun. Mexico leveled the score through half time substitute, Ricardo Peláez. With about fifteen minutes remaining, Luis Hernandez put Mexico in the lead with a simple tap in. Hernandez then went on to complete the rout with a third goal. South Korea had to wait four more years to record their first ever victory in a World Cup. Next game against the Netherlands was lost by 0-5. It was the third-worst loss in South Korea's World Cup history. Third game was with the Belgium. A big win would have given Belgium a chance of progressing and an early goal by Luc Nilis might have set them on the way. The Koreans mounted stiff resistance and in the second half, Yoo Sang-Chui scored their equaliser.

2002: South Korea and Japan hosted the World Cup

South Korea and Japan were selected as hosts by FIFA on 31 May 1996. Initially, South Korea, Japan, and Mexico presented three rival bids. However, the two Asian countries agreed to unite their bids shortly before the decision was made, and they were chosen unanimously in preference to Mexico. This was the first (and so far the only) World cup to be hosted by two countries. The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. South Korea and Japan, the co-hosts, qualified automatically, leaving 2.5 spots open for competition between 40 teams. Myanmar withdrew from the tournament after being placed in Group 2 but before any matches had been played, therefore reducing the group to 3 teams. Afghanistan, Bhutan, North Korea and Timor-Leste did not participate in the qualification process. Asia's two remaining automatic qualifying berths were taken by Saudi Arabia and China PR. Iran failed to become a third Asian representative in the World Cup after losing their AFC/UEFA playoff against Republic of Ireland.

China PR qualified for the finals for the first time. China PR, coached by Bora Milutinović (the fifth national team he coached in five consecutive World Cups), failed to get a point or even score a goal. As football is widely followed in China, national team success is considered to be a source of national pride. Around 300 million people tuned into broadcasts of China's 2002 World Cup matches with a staggering 170 million new television sets being bought by citizens in order to watch their nation's first World Cup appearance. First game was against Costa Rica. Costa Rica dealt China PR a harsh blow by taking the lead against the run of play on 61 minutes. Ronald Gomez's slick backheel played Wanchope in and Wu Chengying's challenge only popped the ball up for Gomez to fire in a left-foot shot. China PR had no time to gather their thoughts before they were 2-0 down. China's PR best moment of the first-half came on 39 minutes when they broke quickly after fending off a Costa Rica free-kick. Second game against Brazil was defeat 0-4. China PR looked lively and appeared to be enjoying themselves; eve when they overhit the ball, but China PR couldn't do anything about Roberto Carlos left-foot free-kick in the fifteenth minute. More two goals scores Ronaldo and one Ronaldihno. China PR searched for their first goal of the tournament with Turkey. After playing for 10 minutes already lost to 0-2. Just before the half hour, China PR almost scored their first goal of the tournament when Yang Chen hit the post. Hasan Sas again set up Turkey with a cross to the far post, this time for Umit Davala to score off the post. China PR for failing to score goals and was forced to leave the tournament.

South Korea beat Poland 2-0 after Hwang Sun-Hong and Yoo Sang-Chul goals. The first real chance for the home side came in the 20th minute, when Yoo Sang-Chul shot across the face of an outstretched Dudek. South Korea started to apply more pressure and took the lead in the 25th minute. Lee Eul-Young played the ball into Hwang Sun-Hong who hit the ball first time to lift the roof off the stadium. In the 53rd minute South Korea took earned their second goal. Yoo Sang-Chul runs toward Tomasz Waldoch and Radoslav Kaluzny, then confidently shoots between them and past Dudek Even the President of Korea is waving his hat, Korea are on their way to their first ever win in the World Cup finals. In second match United States first real chance of the game fell to Clint Mathis, who scored with a left-foot drive from the middle of the area. Ahn Jung-Hwan's glancing header completely stunned the impressive Brad Friedel, who seemed rooted to the spot and stared in disbelief as the ball flew past him and into the net—78 mins. South Korea missed the chance to take all the points right at the end when Choi Yong-Soo stabbed another shot over the bar with only Friedel to beat. Third match against Portugal. They need a win to be guaranteed a place in the second round. One point a piece will do South Korea and the USA. The Koreans fully deserved to reach the last 16 for the first time in their history after tearing apart a Portuguese side who had Joao Pinto and Beto sent off. 70 minute Park Ji-Sung smashes in a brilliant goal for Korea. In the Round of 16 South Korea, beat Italy 2–1 in sudden-death extra time. Christian Vieri eventually headed Italy in the lead, from Francesco Totti's corner, in the 18th minute. Ahn Jung-Hwan had the best chance for Korea in the 36th minute, when he shot over the bar from close range. The stadium erupted two minutes from time as Christian Panucci failed to clear the ball out and Seol Ki-Hyun pounced on his mistake. Totti received his second yellow card for diving in the area and Giovanni Trapattoni was so furious he hit the perspex behind him—103 mins. Ten-man Italy finally fell to a 117th-minute header from Perugia's Ahn Jung-Hwan a golden goal. In the quarterfinal Spain were unable to win a second consecutive penalty shoot-out, losing to South Korea after having two goals controversially disallowed in normal time, with South Korea becoming the first (and, as of 2012, the only) team from outside Europe and the Americas to reach the last four of a World Cup. Hosts South Korea have already claimed the scalps of Portugal and Italy as they sought to defeat a third European nation. Four minutes after the restart and a Spanish goal was disallowed. Hard to see why; unless you believe in conspiracy theories. Spain had another goal disallowed, when the linesman judged (falsely) that the ball had gone out of play—before Morientes planted the header. In the 100th minute, Morientes turned on a long throw and crashed his shot against the left post a shot worthy of the golden goal. Korean's won 5-3 on penalties. South Korea's penalty win gives them a semi-final match with Germany. Conspiracy theories aside, South Korea are the first Asian side to reach a World Cup semi-finals...well, they are the hosts...or one of them at least. The game started slowly: South Korea keeping possession well and Germany content to keep the volume of the crowd down. Halftime end 0-0. To make up for missing the next match, because of his 71st minute yellow card, Michael Ballack made sure that at least his team would be in the final by running on to Oliver Neuville's low cross...Ballack's right foot shot was blocked by Lee Woon-Jae...but the Leverkusen star followed up with his left...and secured Germany a place in the 2002 World Cup Final. So the conspiracy theories can end...although we all know South Korea didn't want to play in Yokohama and will enjoy the third-place match in Daegu with Turkey. Turkey won third place after an entertaining 3–2 victory over hosts South Korea, in a match that included the fastest ever World Cup goal, scored by Parma striker and Turkey veteran Hakan Şükür after just 11 seconds. Lee Eul-Young replied in the ninth minute, with a curling free-kick into the top right-hand corner. Then Ilhan Mansiz put Turkey back in front in the 13th minute, after splitting the South Korean defence by playing a swift one-two with Hakan Sukur. Ilhan Mansiz combined with Hakan Sukur again to increase Turkey's lead, with a little over half an hour gone. Song Chong-Gug managed to stun Rustu when his long-shot deflected off Cha Doo-Ri's bottom, in injury time, for a last consolation goal that ended the game on a slight high note for the home fans. At the final whistle, both teams joined hands, congratulated each other and applauded the supporters.

Saudi Arabia were eliminated as the worst team in tournament, after three defeats and no goals scored, including an 0–8 loss to Germany, 0-1 to Cameroon and 0-3 to Ireland.

Hosts Japan topped the group with two wins and a draw. In first match they drew 2-2 Belgium. Marc Wilmots breaks the deadlock with a beautiful overhead kick—57 mins. Two minutes later Japan's tactics pay off as Takayuki Suzuki, running into the area, gets his foot to Ono's visionary pass from the half-way line. If the stadium had atmosphere before, it's unbelievable now as Ono shaves the crossbar from a free-kick, shortly after his long ball helped bring Japan level. With 20 minutes still to go, the stadium is like a volcano erupting as Arsenal's Junichi Inamoto runs through three defenders to plant Japan in the lead. Five minutes later Japan's fans are momentarily silenced when Peter Van der Heyden, beating the offside trap on the edge of the area, neatly lobs Seigo Narazaki as he comes off his line. Japanese team advanced to the second round with a 1-0 win over Russia and a 2–0 victory against Tunisia. Japan register their first ever World Cup finals victory. However, they subsequently exited the tournament during the Round of 16. In the Round of 16 they lost 0-1 by Turkey. Umit Davala headed Turkey into the lead, from Ergun Penbe's corner, in the 12th minute. An Alessandro Santos free-kick crashed against the woodwork later on, to give the Japanese some hope for the second-half. Japan made a couple of substitutions at half-time as they looked for fresh initiative. and Hidetoshi Nakata deflected shot almost troubled Rustu in the Turkish goal. Japan continued to look for the equaliser, with Akinori Nishizawi's header on target and Tomozaku Myojin shooting narrowly wide. With ten minutes left in the game, Nishizawa's shot flew over the bar and with it Japan's hopes of a place in the quarter-finals.

2006: Iran returned to the World Cup

44 Asian teams are affiliated with FIFA, but Cambodia, Philippines, Bhutan and Brunei decided not to take part, and Myanmar was banned from the competition, so a total of 39 teams took part, competing for 4.5 places in the World Cup. Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Japan and Iran qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Iran started their 2006 FIFA World Cup appearance with high expectations from fans and media. Their first match was against Mexico in Group D. The game was level 1–1 at the half-time, but Iran lost at the end because of a defensive mistake. The final score, 3–1, was brought about by goals from Omar Bravo and Zinha for Mexico, with Yahya Golmohammadi scoring the only Iran goal. Iran played against Portugal in the second game. The game was lost 2–0. The goals were scored by Deco and Cristiano Ronaldo (penalty). The two losses meant Iran was eliminated from the competition, before their third and final game against Angola. Iran drew 1–1 with Angola on the 21st of June 2006, Sohrab Bakhtiarizadeh scoring the Iran goal.

Japan also failed to advance to the Round of 16 after finishing the group without a win, losing to Australia 1–3, Shunsuke Nakamura scores first (26 minute), but Australia scores three goals from 84 minutes. It was stipe psychological shock, after which the team fall apart. Later drawing with Croatia 0–0. After defeats in the opening game, both Japan and Croatia seemed reluctant to take any early risks and for twenty minutes nothing much seemed to happen. 21 minute Niko Kranjcar missed penalty. Five minutes into the second-half, the ball arrived at the far post but Atsushi Yanagisawa horrendously missed an open goal and skewed the ball back across the goalmouth. Third game Japan losing to Brazil 1–4, while the first scores. With one point they retain the group last.

South Korea won first match against Togo 2-1, despite the defeat. Chun-Soo Lee and Jung-Hwan Ahn scores two goals for South Korea. South Korea won their first World Cup finals match outside their own country. In the second game against France Thierry Henry scored in 9 minute, but Park Ji-Sung leveled the score in 80 min. Before the last match against Switzerland Korea had a good chance to get to Round of 16. Switzerland improved their chances of finishing top of the group and meeting Ukraine in the second round, when Philippe Senderos headed a goal from Hakan Yakin's free-kick, in the 23rd minute. He headed with such determination, he almost broke his nose on the defender's head. France went ahead against Togo in the 55th minute, which would mean that if Switzerland won here, South Korea would be out. Switzerland's star striker, Alexander Frei, doubled Switzerland's lead with thirteen minutes to go. France also won and South Korea was eliminated from the competition.

Saudi Arabia drew the first match with Tunisia 2-2. Saudi Arabia lead to the 93rd minute, but Radhi Jaidi leveled the score. The next game against Ukraine was lost 0-4. Saudi Arabia knew before kick off they had to score at least four goals to stand a chance of qualifying, but survival was clearly priority number one as they allowed Spain, who had changed their entire first 11, to feel their way into the match. Juanito scored at the 39th minute and buried the chance to get to the next stage.

2010: South Korea and Japan reaches the Round of 16, North Korea's return

43 teams were in the running for these spots; Laos, Brunei and the Philippines did not attempt to qualify. This was the first time Timor-Leste competed in World Cup qualification and the first time Australia attempted to qualify for the World Cup as a member of the AFC, having moved from the Oceania Football Confederation at the start of 2006. Asia's four automatic qualifying berths were taken by Australia, Japan and both North and South Korea.

North Korea qualified for the first time since 1966. The draw placed North Korea in Group G. They played their first match against five-time winners Brazil on 15 June, with Brazil winning 2 goals to 1 in a game where North Korea were well organised defensively and showed resilience frustrating the Brazilians. Despite their best efforts, they were nevertheless outmatched and eventually broken down. Maicon's relief was visible after his goal to finally put Brazil ahead. Their next game was against Portugal on 21 June, with a defeat of 0–7. Despite starting well (much like against the Brazilians), with a defensive, well organised approach, once Portugal scored the first, the Koreans' defense unfolded and the rest followed with relative ease. Finally Côte d'Ivoire on 25 June, which Côte d'Ivoire won 3–0. After losing all three matches in the group stages, they were knocked out, finishing at the bottom of Group G.

Group B consisted of Argentina, Nigeria, South Korea and Greece. South Korea registered the first win at the World Cup 2010, a richly-deserved 2-0 victory against Greece to give them a real chance of achieving their ambition of a last 16 berth, who were sent packing by goals from Lee Jung Soo and captain Park Ji-Sung. A second game South Korea defeat to Argentina 1-4. Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain scored a hat-trick. Park Chu-Young scored own goal. Lee Chung-Yong scored consolation goal. South Korea coach Huh Jung-Moo, who played against Maradona at the 1986 World Cup, saw his team struggle to live with Argentina's quick tempo and the quality of their pass-and-move football. The decisive match was with Nigeria. The match ended 2-2. For South Korea, it was a night of triumph. Paired with Argentina's defeat of Greece, this draw sealed their first adventure beyond the group stages on foreign soil. As the final whistle sounded, the Korean players wiped away tears of celebration and knelt in a circle to say a prayer of thanks in front of their own fans. South Korea progress from Group B as runners-up to face Uruguay in the last 16. The South Koreans, who reached the semi-finals in 2002, were effervescent in their attacking third but flaky in defence, and that was exposed as early as the eighth minute. Atletico Madrid's Diego Forlan was fed on the left and played a low ball across the six-yard area which was misjudged by keeper Jung Sung-Ryong and his statuesque defence but not by Suarez at the far post, who calmly slotted in for his second goal of the competition. But the South Koreans' luck finally changed for the better on 68 minutes when, from a free-kick, Bolton's Lee Chung-Yong pounced on Mauricio Victorino's attempted headed clearance, to nod in from eight yards. It was the first goal Uruguay had conceded in the tournament. With 10 minutes remaining, Luis Suarez lurked on the fringes of the 18-yard area as a corner was swung in from the right. He cut in from the left before curling in as sweet-a-strike as any in the tournament so far to leave keeper Jung Sung-Ryong rooted as the ball clipped the post on its way in. The South Koreans pressed and should have taken the game into extra-time, but substitute Lee Dong-Gook's weak shot squirmed under the wet jersey of Muslera before it was comfortably cleared.

Australia were drawn into Group D of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, featuring three-time world champion Germany, Ghana and Serbia. On 14 June 2010, Australia faced Germany in Durban. Pim Verbeek surprisingly chose to play without a recognised striker. Australia were comprehensively defeated 4–0. Pim Verbeek was heavily criticised for his tactics,^[24] with chief SBS Football Analyst Craig Foster calling for his immediate sacking.^[25] Australia's second group match against Ghana resulted in a draw of 1–1. Australia shot its only goal early in the first half by Brett Holman after Ghana's goalkeeper Richard Kingson fumbled the ball following a Mark Bresciano freekick. Shortly after, a goal-bound strike from Ghana's Jonathan Mensah was blocked on the goal line by Harry Kewell's upper arm, resulting in a penalty kick and a straight red card for Kewell. Ghanaian striker Asamoah Gyan scored the equalizing goal. Despite the man advantage, Ghana were mostly limited to long-range shots on Australia's goal, and some desperate defending from Australia saw the game finish a draw. In their final group match against Serbia, Tim Cahill was back from suspension and scored via a header in the second half to allow Australia to go 1–0 up. Only four minutes later, Brett Holman doubled the scoreline to 2–0 with an impressive long-range effort. Late in the second half, Serbia managed to score a late goal through Marko Pantelić after Australian goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer fumbled the ball, and the game ended 2–1. Germany had defeated Ghana 1–0, which meant that both Australia and Ghana finished on 4 points, but Ghana progressed to the knockout stage due to their superior goal difference. Pim Verbeek completed his term as Australian coach at the end of the 2010 World Cup.

Japan hung on to claim their first–ever World Cup victory on foreign soil. They won 1-0 against Cameroon. The only goal came in the 39th minute when Keisuke Honda controlled a cross at the far post and stabbed the ball past Hamidou Souleymanou. The second game Japan lost 0-1 to the Netherlands. Wesley Sneijder's powerful 52nd-minute winner from just outside the box settled a fascinating Group E contest between two contrasting sides who opened up in the second half and were creating good chances right up to the final whistle. Loitering just outside the penalty area, the Inter Milan star lashed a powerful right-foot shot towards goal that keeper Eiji Kawashima could only deflect into the net when he was well placed to make an effective save. Japan had the best chance to level the score one minute from time but unmarked substitute Shinji Okazaki fired over from 10 yards. The decisive match was with Denmark. Midfielder Keisuke Honda bent a 30-yard free-kick past Denmark’s Stoke keeper Thomas Sorensen with 17 minutes gone. And, 13 minutes later, team-mate Yasuhito Endo fired past Sorensen’s outstretched hand. Takeshi Okada’s side had to survive a late scare as Jon Dahl Tomasson tapped in a rebound after Eiji Kawashima saved the Dane’s penalty. But sub Shinji Okazaki’s 88th-minute strike clinched second place. Japan to face the Paraguay in the last 16. The match was decided by a penalty shootout after the score was locked at 0–0 for 120 minutes. Paraguay won the shootout and progressed to its first ever World Cup quarter-final. The match was a generally unexciting affair, as Japan adopted a defensive posture while Paraguay itself maintained a solid defence. The first half produced the occasional chance on goal with Lucas Barrios having a shot saved shortly before a long distance shot from Daisuke Matsui hit the crossbar of Paraguay's goal. The second half was similar, with either side producing occasional chances to score rather than periods of dominance. The result of the deadlock was extra time, which continued goalless. A penalty shootout ensued, in which Yuichi Komano missed a spot kick for Japan. Paraguay scored all five of its penalties, clinching the win and passage to the quarter-finals.

2014: No wins for Asians

The 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil marked the first time since 1990 where no Asian team managed to win a game, and AFC also was the only confederation without both wins and teams in the knockout stages.^[26][27]

Three of Asia's four qualifiers returned from 2010: Australia, Japan and South Korea. Australia was eliminated early despite good performances against Chile and the Netherlands that ended as close losses (1-3 and 2-3), and then got defeated in a 3-0 blowout to Spain, which also had no chances at qualifying. Japan opened the score against Côte d'Ivoire, but lost the lead on the way to a 1-2 defeat. In the following games the Japanese failed to break Greece's tight defense and finished in a goalless draw, and afterwards despite equalizing Colombia at halftime lost 4-1 to an early exit. South Korea opened the score against Russia in a blunder by goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev, but wound up giving the equalizing goal shortly afterwards. A high-scoring match with Algeria had the Koreans defeated 4-2, and a 1-0 loss to Belgium finished the Korean campaign.

Meanwhile, Iran returned after eight years. After a 0-0 draw with Nigeria, the Iranian defense held Argentina goalless for most of the match before a Lionel Messi goal in injury time. Needing to beat the already eliminated Bosnia-Herzegovina to clinch the group's second spot in the knockout stages, Iran wound up defeated 3-1.

Notes

References

1. Entered in Africa and Asia. Turkey withdrew. Palestine football team consisted of nine British footballers, six Jewish footballers and one Arab footballer.[2] FIFA states in reference to the 1930s Palestine Mandate team that The term 'Palestine team' that had participated in previous competitions in the 1930s was actually the forerunner of today's Israel team and as such bears no relation to the national team of the Palestinian authority."[3] However, the region currently known as Palestine is considered "one of the first Asian teams to compete in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers".[4]
2. Japan withdrew.
3. Prior to independence in 1945 competed as Dutch East Indies, including their only World Cup finals appearance in 1938.
4. Burma, the Philippines and Indonesia all withdrew, so India qualified automatically. But India later also withdrew "because of the expense of travelling such a long way to play" or, according to some reports, after a FIFA ruling that players were not allowed to play barefoot, and FIFA decided not to invite anyone else, leaving the World Cup three teams short.
5. China PR withdrew the qualification.
6. FIFA rejected the entries of Ethiopia and South Korea; China PR, Hong Kong, Turkey, Cyprus withdrew at the first round;Indonesia withdrew after FIFA rejected their request to play against Israel on neutral ground. Israel advanced to the Final Round automatically. Egypt withdrew, so Sudan advanced to the Final Round automatically; Sudan refused to play against Israel for political reasons, so Israel would technically qualify automatically, but before the qualification rounds began, FIFA ruled that no team would qualify without playing at least one match (except for the defending champions and the hosts), and Israel had yet to play any.
7. Indonesia withdrew
8. Originally this was to be a four team group stage between Australia, North Korea, South Africa and South Korea played in Japan. However South Africa was suspended and South Korea withdrew because the 3 team tournament was moved from Japan to Cambodia. Because North Korea lacked diplomatic relations with most countries, finding a suitable venue for the match proved difficult, until Head of State Norodom Sihanouk, an ally of Kim Il-sung, said the matches could be held in Phnom Penh. The winner (North Korea) qualified for the eighth FIFA World Cup held in England.
9. Israel qualified for their only World Cup to date as an Asian team. However, soon after this, they left the Asian Football Confederation, and nowadays compete in the European zone as they are now a member of UEFA.
10. North Korea withdrew
11. India, Sri Lanka and the Philippines withdrew
12. Sri Lanka, North Korea, Iraq, United Arab Emirates withdrew
13. Iran withdrew before the draw was made
14. Chinese Taipei were assigned to the Oceanian zone instead. Oman, Lebanon withdrew. Iran was disqualified
15. Bahrain, India, Maldives and South Yemen withdrew without playing a qualifying match.
16. Myanmar and Nepal withdrew.
17. Myanmar withdrew from the tournament after being placed in Group 2 but before any matches had been played, therefore reducing the group to 3 teams. Afghanistan, Bhutan, North Korea and Timor-Leste did not participate in the qualification process.
18. Cambodia, Philippines, Bhutan and Brunei decided not to take part, and Myanmar was banned from the competition.
19. The first time Australia attempted to qualify for the World Cup as a member of the AFC.
20. Laos, Brunei and the Philippines did not attempt to qualify.
21. Brunei were suspended by FIFA from September 2009 through May 2011. Their reinstatement came too late for Brunei to participate in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Bhutan and Guam are not participating in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
22. The Asian team in 1970 was Israel, who were then an AFC member. They were expelled from AFC in 1974 and joined UEFA in 1994.
23. Prior to independence in 1945 competed as Netherlands Dutch East Indies, including their only World Cup finals appearance in 1938.
24. "Verbeek takes blame for Socceroos defeat". Sydney Morning Herald (Sydney). 14 June 2010.
25. Hilferty, Tim (16 June 2010). "Craig Foster – sack Pim Verbeek immediately". The Australian.
26. With South Korea's Loss, Asia Out of World Cup
27. Asian teams' struggle at World Cup showcases problems at home

External links

• FIFA Fact Sheet: History of the FIFA World Cup (TM) Preliminary Competition (by year) (44 page PDF document)