Asian teams request to face Iraq in friendlies ahead of AFC Asian Cup 2027

Iraq will face Asian teams in a friendly tournament in November, scheduled to take place in Basra from the 9th to the 17th of the month, in preparation for the AFC Asian Cup 2027, which will be hosted by Saudi Arabia at the beginning of next year.

Iraq have recently concluded their participation in the AFC Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia, exiting the tournament at the group stage with 4 points, following their victory over Kuwait 3-2, a draw with Oman 1-1, and a defeat against Saudi Arabia in the final round 2-0.

Iraq aims to perform well in the AFC Asian Cup 2027, having been drawn in Group D alongside Australia, Tajikistan, and Singapore. They will begin their campaign in the tournament with a match against Tajikistan on January 10 of next year.

According to special sources: "The Iraq Football Association, after addressing several sports federations in Asia to participate in the friendly tournament that will be held at Basra International Stadium next month, received approval from several of those federations, which expressed their desire to participate in the tournament in order to prepare well for the AFC Asian Cup 2027."

Sources added: "Bahrain and Kuwait have requested to participate in the Basra International Championship, where the Iraqi Football Association has received official requests from both federations. Thus, the number of teams wishing to participate has become four, especially since the Iraqi Association had previously received official approval from the national teams of Iran and Lebanon, bringing the total number of teams in the tournament to five, including Iraq."

The Iraqi Football Association stated: "Now, the Iraqi federation is studying the requests it has received, and it will determine the format of the tournament, whether it will be a four-team event or involve more than four teams, especially since time will be tight for the Iraqi federation, despite coach Graham Arnold's desire to play as many competitive matches as possible before entering the AFC Asian Cup, which may be his last with Iraq."

It is worth noting that Australian coach Graham Arnold's contract with the Iraq Football Association will end next February, after being renewed last July for only 6 months at the request of the Australian coach, due to family and other personal reasons.