Iraq at the FIFA World Cup 2026

History

Iraq's only previous FIFA World Cup appearance before 2026 was at the 1986 tournament in Mexico, where they were eliminated in the group stage, losing all three matches against Mexico, Paraguay, and Belgium, scoring just one goal. That campaign ended a long wait for Arab football to feature at the top table, and it was followed by a 40-year absence from the World Cup finals. Iraq has been a dominant force in Asian football at other levels, winning the AFC Asian Cup in 2007. The 2026 World Cup represents their long-awaited return to the tournament after four decades.

Qualification

Iraq progressed through the AFC qualifying rounds, eventually reaching the fifth round where they defeated the United Arab Emirates 3-2 on aggregate in November 2025 to advance to the inter-confederation playoffs. In the playoff final in Monterrey, Mexico on April 1, 2026, Iraq defeated Bolivia 2-1 to become the 48th and final team to qualify for the tournament. Ali al-Hamadi opened the scoring in the 10th minute, Bolivia levelled through Moises Paniagua, before Aymen Hussein scored the winner in the 53rd minute. Head coach Graham Arnold, the former Australia national team manager, was appointed in May 2025 and guided Iraq through the playoff stage.

Preparation

Graham Arnold named his final 26-man World Cup squad on June 1, 2026, with goalkeeper Jalal Hassan (100 caps) confirmed as captain. Iraq conducted a training camp in Spain from May 18 to June 5, 2026, with the centerpiece being a friendly match against Spain at the Riazor Stadium in La Coruna on June 4. Friendlies against Egypt and Ivory Coast were also reported as part of their preparation schedule, though exact results were not confirmed as of June 2. During the tournament the Lions of Mesopotamia will be based at The Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs (Greenbrier County), West Virginia, training at the Greenbrier Sports Performance Center: Iraq is the only team to base itself in West Virginia. Coach Graham Arnold has described his squad as compact but united, with striker Aymen Hussein, whose goal sealed qualification against Bolivia, as a key attacking threat.

Latest news

Graham Arnold names final 26-man Iraq squad for the World Cup

· squad

Iraq head coach Graham Arnold confirmed his final 26-player squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on 1 June 2026. The selection leans on the core group that qualified via the play-off win over Bolivia. Goalkeeper Jalal Hassan, the most-capped player in the squad on 100 caps, was named captain. Iraq face France, Senegal and Norway in Group I.

Defender Dario Naamo left out of Iraq's final squad after nationality switch

· squad

Dundee defender Dario Naamo, who had previously represented Finland at youth level before switching his sporting nationality to Iraq, was omitted from Graham Arnold's final 26-man World Cup squad.

Sher, Amyn, Yahya and Saadoon included in Iraq's final World Cup squad

· squad

Arnold's final selection added Sarpsborg 08 midfielder Aimar Sher and AEK Larnaca winger Youssef Amyn among the European-based contingent, alongside Al-Shorta defenders Ahmed Yahya and Mustafa Saadoon. Diaspora midfielders Zidane Iqbal (Utrecht) and Kevin Yakob also feature.

Squad

PlayerPositionClub
Jalal HassanGKAl-Zawraa
Fahad TalibGKAl-Zawraa
Ahmed BasilGKAl-Shorta
Rebin SulakaDFPort FC
Munaf YounisDFAl-Shorta
Merchas DoskiDFFC Viktoria Plzeň
Zaid TahseenDFAl-Zawraa
Akam HashimDFAl-Zawraa
Ahmed YahyaDFAl-Shorta
Mustafa SaadoonDFAl-Shorta
Hussein AliDFAl-Shorta
Frans DhiaDFAl-Naft
Ibrahim BayeshMFAl-Riyadh
Zidane IqbalMFFC Utrecht
Kevin YakobMFAGF Aarhus
Zaid IsmaelMFAl-Shorta
Aimar SherMFSarpsborg 08
Youssef AmynMFAEK Larnaca
Amir Al-AmmariMFAl-Zawraa
Ahmed QasemMFAl-Zawraa
Marko FarjiMFVenezia FC
Aymen HusseinFWAl-Shorta
Mohannad AliFWAl-Shorta
Ali YousifFWAl-Quwa Al-Jawiya
Ali Al-HamadiFWLuton Town
Ali JasimFWAl-Zawraa

Recent results

  • 2023-11-16 — IRQ 5-1 IDN (qualification)
  • 2023-11-21 — VIE 0-1 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2024-01-06 — IRQ 0-1 KOR (friendly)
  • 2024-03-21 — IRQ 1-0 PHI (qualification)
  • 2024-03-26 — PHI 0-5 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2024-06-06 — IDN 0-2 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2024-06-11 — IRQ 3-1 VIE (qualification)
  • 2024-09-05 — IRQ 1-0 OMA (qualification)
  • 2024-09-10 — KUW 0-0 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2024-10-10 — IRQ 1-0 PLE (qualification)
  • 2024-10-15 — KOR 3-2 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2024-11-14 — IRQ 0-0 JOR (qualification)
  • 2024-11-19 — OMA 0-1 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2025-03-20 — IRQ 2-2 KUW (qualification)
  • 2025-03-25 — PLE 2-1 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2025-06-05 — IRQ 0-2 KOR (qualification)
  • 2025-06-10 — JOR 0-1 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2025-10-11 — IRQ 1-0 IDN (qualification)
  • 2025-10-14 — KSA 0-0 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2025-11-13 — UAE 1-1 IRQ (qualification)
  • 2025-11-18 — IRQ 2-1 UAE (qualification)
  • 2026-03-31 — IRQ 2-1 BOL (qualification)

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