1998 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)

Tournament details
Teams	36 (from 1 confederation)
Tournament statistics
Top scorer(s)	Karim Bagheri (19 goals)
← 1994 2002 →

Listed below are the dates and results for the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the Asian zone (AFC). For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification.

Format

A total of 36 teams entered the competition. The Asian zone was allocated 3.5 places (out of 32) in the final tournament.

There were three rounds of play:

• First round: The 36 teams were divided into 10 groups of 3 or 4 teams each. The teams played against each other twice, except in Group 10, where the teams played against each other once. The group winners advanced to the final round.
• Final round: The 10 teams were divided into 2 groups of 5 teams. The teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners qualified for the World Cup. The runners-up advanced to the AFC play-off.
• Play-off: The two teams played against each other once in Malaysia. The winner qualify for the World Cup. The loser advanced to the AFC–OFC intercontinental play-offs.

First round

Group 1

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Saudi Arabia	6	5	1	0	18	1	+17	16
Malaysia	6	3	2	1	5	3	+2	11
Chinese Taipei	6	1	1	4	4	13	−9	4
Bangladesh	6	1	0	5	4	14	−10	3

Group 2

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Iran	6	5	1	0	39	3	+36	16
Syria	6	3	1	2	30	5	+25	10
Kyrgyzstan	6	3	0	3	12	14	−2	9
Maldives	6	0	0	6	0	59	−59	0

Group 3

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
United Arab Emirates	4	3	1	0	7	1	+6	10
Jordan	4	1	1	2	4	4	0	4
Bahrain	4	1	0	3	3	9	−6	3

Group 4

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Japan	6	5	1	0	31	1	+30	16
Oman	6	4	1	1	14	2	+12	13
Macau	6	1	1	4	3	28	−25	4
Nepal	6	0	1	5	2	19	−17	1

Group 5

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Uzbekistan	6	5	1	0	20	3	+17	16
Yemen	6	2	2	2	10	7	+3	8
Indonesia	6	1	4	1	11	6	+5	7
Cambodia	6	0	1	5	2	27	−25	1

Group 6

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
South Korea	4	3	1	0	9	1	+8	10
Thailand	4	1	1	2	5	6	−1	4
Hong Kong	4	1	0	3	3	10	−7	3

Group 7

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Kuwait	4	4	0	0	10	1	+9	12
Lebanon	4	1	1	2	4	7	−3	4
Singapore	4	0	1	3	2	8	−6	1

Group 8

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
China	6	5	1	0	13	2	+11	16
Tajikistan	6	4	1	1	15	2	+13	13
Turkmenistan	6	2	0	4	8	13	−5	6
Vietnam	6	0	0	6	2	21	−19	0

Group 9

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Kazakhstan	4	4	0	0	15	2	+13	12
Iraq	4	2	0	2	14	8	+6	6
Pakistan	4	0	0	4	3	22	−19	0

Group 10

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Qatar	3	3	0	0	14	0	+14	9
Sri Lanka	3	1	1	1	4	4	0	4
India	3	1	1	1	3	7	−4	4
Philippines	3	0	0	3	0	10	−10	0

Final round

Group A

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Saudi Arabia	8	4	2	2	8	6	+2	14
Iran	8	3	3	2	13	8	+5	12
China	8	3	2	3	11	14	−3	11
Qatar	8	3	1	4	7	10	−3	10
Kuwait	8	2	2	4	7	8	−1	8

13 September 1997

16:15 UTC+8

China	2–4	Iran
Fan Zhiyi 44' (pen.) Li Ming 54'	(report)	Bagheri 61' (pen.) Mahdavikia 67', 73' Roosta 86'

Jinzhou Stadium, Dalian

Attendance: 31,000

Referee: Park Hae Yong (South Korea)

14 September 1997

20:30

Saudi Arabia	2–1	Kuwait
Mehalel 43' Al-Thuniyan 55'	(report)	Abdullah 18'

King Fahd Stadium, Riyadh

Attendance: 21,500

Referee: Ali Bujsaim (United Arab Emirates)

19 September 1997

18:00

Iran	1–1	Saudi Arabia
Bagheri 64'	(report)	Al-Sharani 32'

Azadi Stadium, Tehran

Attendance: 120,000

Referee: Masayoshi Okada (Japan)

19 September 1997

18:30

Qatar	0–2	Kuwait
	(report)	Al-Huwaidi 16' Abdulaziz 88'

Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha

Attendance: 10,000

Referee: Jamal Al-Sharif (Syria)

26 September 1997

18:15

Qatar	1–1	China
Nasir Khamees 10'	(report)	Hao Haidong 67'

Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha

Attendance: 9,000

Referee: Mahmoud Nurilddin (Iraq)

26 September 1997

19:15

Kuwait	1–1	Iran
Al-Huwaidi 20'	(report)	Bagheri 90'

Kazma SC Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 25,000

Referee: Jimdamai Russamee (Thailand)

3 October 1997

16:15

China	1–0	Saudi Arabia
Zhang Enhua 69'	(report)

Jinzhou Stadium, Dalian

Attendance: 30,000

Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

3 October 1997

17:00

Iran	3–0	Qatar
Daei 31' Bagheri 42', 56'	(report)

Azadi Stadium, Tehran

Attendance: 70,000

Referee: Sidi Magassa (Mali)

10 October 1997

19:00

Kuwait	1–2	China
Al-Huwaidi 24'	(report)	Hao Haidong 3' Gao Feng 89'

Kazma SC Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 25,000

Referee: Eddie Lennie (Australia)

11 October 1997

Saudi Arabia	1–0	Qatar
Mehalel 66'	(report)

King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh

Attendance: 15,000

Referee: Gamal Al-Ghandour (Egypt)

17 October 1997

Kuwait	2–1	Saudi Arabia
Abdulaziz 48' Mubarak 67'	(report)	Al-Muwallid 31'

Kazma SC Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 15,000

Referee: Said Belqola (Morocco)

17 October 1997

Iran	4–1	China
Mansourian 2' Roosta 44' Bagheri 69' Ali Daei 73'	(report)	Mao Yijun 87'

Azadi Stadium, Tehran

Attendance: 100,000

Referee: Ahmad Nabil Ayad (Lebanon)

24 October 1997

Saudi Arabia	1–0	Iran
Al-Muwallid 88'	(report)

King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh

Attendance: 55,000

Referee: Arturo Brizio Carter (Mexico)

24 October 1997

Kuwait	0–1	Qatar
	(report)	Al-Noobi 10'

Kazma SC Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 18,000

Referee: Nazri Abdullah Mohamed (Malaysia)

31 October 1997

China	2–3	Qatar
Gao Feng 19' Fan Zhiyi 80'	(report)	Al-Naemi 44' Al-Enazi 54' Al-Kuwari 60'

Jinzhou Stadium, Dalian

Attendance: 35,000

Referee: Santhan Nagalingam (Singapore)

31 October 1997

Iran	0–0	Kuwait
	(report)

Azadi Stadium, Tehran

Attendance: 100,000

Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

6 November 1997

Saudi Arabia	1–1	China
Al-Muwallid 4'	(report)	Hao Haidong 10'

King Fahd Stadium, Riyadh

Attendance: 70,000

Referee: David Elleray (England)

7 November 1997

Qatar	2–0	Iran
Al-Enazi 38', 81'	(report)

Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha

Attendance: 20,000

Referee: Horacio Elizondo (Argentina)

12 November 1997

China	1–0	Kuwait
Ma Mingyu 32'[1]	(report)

Jinzhou Stadium, Dalian

Referee: Arturo Angeles (United States)

12 November 1997

Qatar	0–1	Saudi Arabia
	(report)	Al-Shahrani 61'

Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha

Referee: Kim Milton Nielsen (Denmark)

Group B

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
South Korea	8	6	1	1	19	7	+12	19
Japan	8	3	4	1	17	9	+8	13
United Arab Emirates	8	2	3	3	9	12	−3	9
Uzbekistan	8	1	3	4	13	18	−5	6
Kazakhstan	8	1	3	4	7	19	−12	6

6 September 1997

19:00 UTC+9

South Korea	3–0	Kazakhstan
Choi Yong-soo 24', 67', 74'	Report

Seoul Olympic Stadium, Seoul

Attendance: 41,219

Referee: Santhan Nagalingam (Singapore)

7 September 1997

19:00 UTC+9

Japan	6–3	Uzbekistan
Miura 4' (pen.), 40', 64', 80' Nakata 40' Jo 44'	Report	Shatskikh 56', 77' Fyodorov 69' (pen.)

National Stadium, Tokyo

Attendance: 54,328

Referee: Abdul Rahman Al-Zaid (Saudi Arabia)

12 September 1997

South Korea	2–1	Uzbekistan
Choi Yong-soo 15' Lee Sang-yoon 87'	Report	Shatskikh 74'

Seoul Olympic Stadium, Seoul

Attendance: 70,000

Referee: Wei Jihong (China)

12 September 1997

United Arab Emirates	4–0	Kazakhstan
Ali 20' Obaid 48' Zuhair Bakheet 75' Mubarak 85'	Report

Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Attendance: 15,000

Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

19 September 1997

United Arab Emirates	0–0	Japan
	Report

Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Attendance: 40,000

Referee: Nazri Abdullah Mohamed (Malaysia)

20 September 1997

Kazakhstan	1–1	Uzbekistan
Baltiyev 84'	Report	Shatskikh 85'

Central Stadium, Almaty

Attendance: 12,000

Referee: Ahmad Nabil Ayad (Lebanon)

27 September 1997

Uzbekistan	2–3	United Arab Emirates
Shirshov 10' Bazarov 90'	Report	Zuhair Bakheet 51' Alabadla 60' Adnan Al Talyani 85'

Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent

Attendance: 50,000

Referee: Jalal Moradi (Iran)

28 September 1997

Japan	1–2	South Korea
Yamaguchi 67'	Report	Seo Jung-won 83' Lee Min-sung 86'

National Stadium, Tokyo

Attendance: 56,704

Referee: Saad Mane (Kuwait)

4 October 1997

South Korea	3–0	United Arab Emirates
Ha Seok-ju 8' Yoo Sang-chul 69' Lee Sang-yoon 81'	Report

Seoul Olympic Stadium, Seoul

Referee: Lucien Bouchardeau (Niger)

4 October 1997

Kazakhstan	1–1	Japan
Zubarev 90+2'	Report	Akita 23'

Central Stadium, Almaty

Attendance: 10,000

Referee: Taj Addin Fares (Syria)

11 October 1997

Uzbekistan	1–1	Japan
Kambaraliev 30'	Report	Lopes 89'

Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent

Attendance: 54,000

Referee: Sultan Mujalli Al Aalaq (Bahrain)

11 October 1997

Kazakhstan	1–1	South Korea
Yevteyev 50'	Report	Choi Yong-soo 5'

Central Stadium, Almaty

Attendance: 15,000

Referee: Omar Abu Loom (Jordan)

18 October 1997

Uzbekistan	1–5	South Korea
Fedorov 61' (pen.)	Report	Choi Yong-soo 19', 41' Yoo Sang-chul 38' Ko Jeong-woon 57' Kim Do-hoon 70'

Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent

Attendance: 38,000

Referee: Abdul Khudheir Abdul Hussein (Iraq)

18 October 1997

Kazakhstan	3–0	United Arab Emirates
Sparyshev 55' Yevteyev 64' Yurist 75'	Report

Central Stadium, Almaty

Attendance: 18,000

Referee: Nik Ahmad Haji Yaakub (Malaysia)

25 October 1997

Uzbekistan	4–0	Kazakhstan
Shkvyrin 19', 33' Fedorov 44' Kasimov 71'	Report

Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent

Attendance: 25,000

Referee: Hassan Al Ajmi (Oman)

26 October 1997

Japan	1–1	United Arab Emirates
Lopes 4'	Report	Mubarak 37'

National Stadium, Tokyo

Attendance: 56,000

Referee: Rodrigo Badilla (Costa Rica)

1 November 1997

South Korea	0–2	Japan
	Report	Nanami 2' Lopes 37'

Seoul Olympic Stadium, Seoul

Attendance: 75,000

Referee: Esse Baharmast (United States)

2 November 1997

United Arab Emirates	0–0	Uzbekistan
	Report

Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Attendance: 30,000

Referee: Khaled Dalu (Syria)

8 November 1997

Japan	5–1	Kazakhstan
Akita 11' Nakata 15' Nakayama 44' Ihara 66' Takagi 88'	Report	Yevteyev 73'

National Stadium, Tokyo

Attendance: 56,032

Referee: Mario van der Ende (Netherlands)

9 November 1997

United Arab Emirates	1–3	South Korea
Zuhair Bakheet 58'	Report	Lee Sang-yoon 11' Kim Do-hoon 42', 67'

Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Attendance: 1,800

Referee: Piero Ceccarini (Italy)

Play-off

• The play-off was played over a single leg at a neutral venue.
• Extra time was played using the golden goal rule.

16 November 1997

21:00 UTC+8

Iran	2–3 (a.e.t.)	Japan
Azizi 46' Daei 58'	report (FIFA) report (Japanese)	Nakayama 39' Jo 75' Okano  118'

Larkin Stadium, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

Attendance: 22,000

Referee: Manuel Diaz Vega (Spain)

Inter-confederation play-offs

Team 1	Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score	Team 2	1st leg	2nd leg
Iran	(a) 3–3	Australia	1–1	2–2

Qualified teams

The following four teams from AFC qualified for the final tournament.

Team	Qualified as	Qualified on	Previous appearances in FIFA World Cup1
Saudi Arabia	Final Round Group A winners	12 November 1997	1 (1994)
South Korea	Final Round Group B winners	18 October 1997	4 (1954, 1986, 1990, 1994)
Japan	Play-off winners	16 November 1997	0 (debut)
Iran	AFC–OFC play-off winners	29 November 1997	1 (1978)

¹ Bold indicates champions for that year. Italic indicates hosts for that year.

Goalscorers

There were 459 goals scored in 132 matches (including 2 international play-offs), for an average of 3.53 goals per match.

19 goals

14 goals

9 goals

8 goals

7 goals

6 goals

5 goals

4 goals

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal