1998 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)

1998 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)
Tournament details
Teams	36 (from 1 confederation)

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.

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 would advance 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 would qualify. The runners-up would advance to the AFC play-off.
Play-off: The two teams played against each other once in Malaysia. The winner would qualify. The loser would advance 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

16 March 1997	Chinese Taipei	0–2	Saudi Arabia	Shah Alam Stadium, Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
		(report)	O.Al-Dosari 34' Al-Shahrani 37'	Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Hiroyuki Umemoto (Japan)

16 March 1997	Malaysia	2–0	Bangladesh	Shah Alam Stadium, Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
	Azman 43' Abdul 87'	(report)		Attendance: 25,000 Referee: Wei Jihong (China)

18 March 1997	Bangladesh	1–3	Chinese Taipei	Shah Alam Stadium, Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
	Rana 56'	(report)	Lin Wen Han 59' Huang Che-ming 62' Chen Kuei-jen 78'	Attendance: 10,000

18 March 1997	Malaysia	0–0	Saudi Arabia	Shah Alam Stadium, Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
		(report)		Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Hiroyuki Umemoto (Japan)

20 March 1997	Bangladesh	1–4	Saudi Arabia	Shah Alam Stadium, Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
	Rana 44'	(report)	Al-Muwallid 20' Al-Temawi 27' Al-Shahrani 65' Al-Mehallel 73'	Attendance: 5,000 Referee: Fong Fat Wah (Hong Kong)

20 March 1997	Malaysia	2–0	Chinese Taipei	Shah Alam Stadium, Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia
	Che Zambil 2' Sulong 16'	(report)		Attendance: 10,293 Referee: Ahmed Ibrahim Hakeem (United Arab Emirates)

27 March 1997	Chinese Taipei	0–0	Malaysia	Youth Welfare, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
		(report)		Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Mohamed Bin Khamis Al Kabi (Oman)

27 March 1997	Saudi Arabia	3–0	Bangladesh	Youth Welfare, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
	Al-Shahrani O.Al-Dosari Abdullah Al-Dosari	(report)		Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Ahmad Nabil Ayad (Libanon)

29 March 1997	Saudi Arabia	3–0	Malaysia	Youth Welfare, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
	Al-Muwallid 59', 85' O.Al-Dosari 87'	(report)		Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

29 March 1997	Chinese Taipei	1–2	Bangladesh	Youth Welfare, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
	Hsu Te Ming	(report)	Alfaz Ahmed Imtiaz	Attendance: 2,000 Referee: Omar Abu Loom (Jordan)

31 March 1997	Bangladesh	0–1	Malaysia	Youth Welfare, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
		(report)	Zainal	Attendance: 6,000 Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

31 March 1997	Saudi Arabia	6–0	Chinese Taipei	Youth Welfare, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
	Al-Jaber 3' 16' 63' Al-Muwallid 5' Abdulaziz Al-Dosari 30' Al-Zahrani 46'	(report)		Attendance: 9,000 Referee: Kim Young-Joo (South Korea)

Group 2

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Iran	6	5	1	0	39	3	36	16
Kyrgyzstan	5	3	0	2	12	11	1	9
Syria	5	2	1	2	27	5	22	7
Maldives	6	0	0	6	0	59	–59	0

2 June 1997	Maldives	0–17	Iran	Abbasiyyin Stadium, Damascus, Syria
16:30		(report)	Bagheri 9', 13', 16', 60', 66', 67', 86' Estili 29', 47', 55' Azizi 35', 36' Shahroudi 56' Mahdavikia 63' Daei 75', 77' Minavand 87'	Attendance: 7,000 Referee: An Bong-Ki (South Korea)

4 June 1997	Syria	12–0	Maldives	Abbasiyyin Stadium, Damascus, Syria
	Al-Said 7', 13' Jokhadar 9', 37', 89' Rifai 10' Jabban 12', 78' Srour 21' Zaher 49' Boshi 70' 79'	(report)		Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Esa Mohamed Saleh (United Arab Emirates)

4 June 1997	Kyrgyzstan	0–7	Iran	Abbasiyyin Stadium, Damascus, Syria
15:30		(report)	Bagheri 35', 51' Daei 57' Majidi 68', 88' Minavand 76' Mousavi 82'	Attendance: 8,000 Referee: Shamsul Maidin (Singapore)

6 June 1997	Syria	0–1	Iran	Abbasiyyin Stadium, Damascus, Syria
17:30		(report)	Daei 65'	Attendance: 33,000 Referee: Masayoshi Okada (Japan)

6 June 1997	Kyrgyzstan	3–0	Maldives	Abbasiyyin Stadium, Damascus, Syria
	Korzanov 4' Merzlikin 24' Yusupov 28'	(report)		Attendance: 7,000 Referee: Wang Xuezhi (China)

9 June 1997	Iran	3–1	Kyrgyzstan	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran
19:00	Azizi 3', 77' Bagheri 52'	(report)	Kutsov 16'	Attendance: 50,000 Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

9 June 1997	Maldives	0–12	Syria	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran
		(report)	Agha 24', 50' Dib 55' Taleb 60' Al-Said 62', 63', 87' Rihawi 66' Abrash 80', 90' Zaher 85', 89'	Attendance: 25,000 Referee: Mohamed Nazri Abdullah (Malaysia)

11 June 1997	Iran	9–0	Maldives	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran
19:00	Mansourian 15', 44' Bagheri 22', 39' Daei 33', 43' Mahdavikia 38' Shahroudi 68' Azizi 87'	(report)		Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Mohamed Sanhoub (Yemen)

11 June 1997	Kyrgyzstan	2–1	Syria	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran
	Sardarov 76' Kutsov 89'	(report)	Boshi 84'	Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Yu Jingyin (China)

13 June 1997	Iran	2–2	Syria	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran
	Shahroudi 10' Mansourian 30'	(report)	Boshi 11' Al-Said 39'	Attendance: 100,000 Referee: Mohamed Nazri Abdullah (Malaysia)

13 June 1997	Maldives	0–6	Kyrgyzstan	Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran
		(report)	Merzlikin 14' Chertkov 22' Kutsov 26' Haitbaev 47', 89' Ivanov 47'	Attendance: 70,000 Referee: Fahed Al-Damisi (Jordan)

The match between Syria and Kyrgyzstan was not played.

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

8 April 1997	Jordan	0–0	United Arab Emirates	Bahrain National Stadium, Riffa, Bahrain
		(report)		Attendance: 3,000 Referee: Omer Saleh Al Mehannah (Saudi Arabia)

11 April 1997	Bahrain	1–2	United Arab Emirates	Bahrain National Stadium, Riffa, Bahrain
	Darwish 84'	(report)	Abdulla 18', 57'	Attendance: 18,000 Referee: Lu Jun (China)

14 April 1997	Bahrain	1–0	Jordan	Bahrain National Stadium, Riffa, Bahrain
	Al-Doseri 27'	(report)		Attendance: 4,000 Referee: Eskandar Hammal (Syria)

19 April 1997	Jordan	4–1	Bahrain	Sports Stadium, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
	Tadrus 14', 89' Qasem Al-Sheikh 33' Al-Khateeb 88'	(report)	Rashed 43'	Attendance: 4,000 Referee: Menfi Redha Falah (Iraq)

22 April 1997	United Arab Emirates	3–0	Bahrain	Sports Stadium, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
	Saeed 14' Mubarak 50', 60'	(report)		Attendance: 12,000 Referee: Kiyoshi Ota (Japan)

26 April 1997	United Arab Emirates	2–0	Jordan	Sports Stadium, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
	Al Talyani 27' Mubarak 88'	(report)		Attendance: 12,000 Referee: Hossein Asgari (Iran)

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

23 March 1997	Nepal	1–1	Macau	Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman
	Khadka 23'	(report)	Cheng 13'	Attendance: 500 Referee: Mahmoud Nurilddin (Iraq)

23 March 1997	Oman	0–1	Japan	Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman
		(report)	Omura 10'	Attendance: 2,000 Referee: Nik Ahmad HajiI Yaakub (Malaysia)

25 March 1997	Macau	0–10	Japan	Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman
		(report)	Akita 1' Takagi 14', 33', 72' Soma 45' Miura 54', 89' Moroshima 80', 82' Nanami 86'	Attendance: 600 Referee: Wang Xuezhi (China)

25 March 1997	Oman	1–0	Nepal	Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman
	Al Busaidy 75'	(report)		Attendance: 1,000 Referee: Yousef Shaikho (Syria)

27 March 1997	Nepal	0–6	Japan	Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman
		(report)	Morishima 24' Takagi 47', 55', 89' Omura 76' Honda 90'	Attendance: 500 Referee: Sardar Nadjafaliev (Uzbekistan)

27 March 1997	Oman	4–0	Macau	Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman
	Samir 32' Al Siyabi 42', 56' Abdul Noor 83'	(report)		Attendance: 0 Referee: Mahmoud Nurilddin (Iraq)

22 June 1997	Japan	10–0	Macau	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo, Japan
	Nakata 17', 61' Nishizawa 21' Miura 23', 29', 44', 57', 62', 79' Nanami 42'	(report)		Attendance: 27,342 Referee: Ali Naghi Mostafanezhad (Iran)

22 June 1997	Nepal	0–6	Oman	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo, Japan
		(report)	Shakya 1' (o.g.) Al Busaidy 13' Ahmed Hassan 17', 50' Al Araimi 73' Al Masori 78'	Attendance: 15,875 Referee: Sun Baojie (China)

25 June 1997	Japan	3–0	Nepal	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo, Japan
	Nishizawa 44' Miura 72', 87'	(report)		Attendance: 28,360 Referee: Abayawansa Mahasena Yapa (Sri Lanka)

25 June 1997	Macau	0–2	Oman	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo, Japan
		(report)	Al Araimi 44' Ahmed Hassan 89'	Attendance: 8,737 Referee: Mahmoud Al Rifaee (Syria)

28 June 1997	Japan	1–1	Oman	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo, Japan
	Nakata 4'	(report)	Samir 63'	Attendance: 48,839 Referee: Selearajen Subramaniam (Malaysia)

28 June 1997	Macau	2–1	Nepal	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo, Japan
	Che 78' da Cruz Martins 89'	(report)	Deepak Amatya 19'	Attendance: 22,972

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

6 April 1997	Indonesia	8–0	Cambodia	Gelora Bung Karno Stadium Jakarta, Indonesia
	Putro 1' Lubis 6', 52' Putiray 12', 44', 70' Wabia 31', 36'	(report)		Attendance: 25,000 Referee: Shamsul Maidin (Singapore)

13 April 1997	Indonesia	0–0	Yemen	Gelora Bung Karno Stadium Jakarta, Indonesia
		(report)		Attendance: 25,000 Referee: Selearajen Subramaniam (Malaysia)

20 April 1997	Cambodia	0–1	Yemen	Olympic Stadium Phnom Penh, Cambodia
		(report)	Dariban 39'	Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Ng Yim Kin (Hong Kong)

27 April 1997	Cambodia	1–1	Indonesia	Olympic Stadium Phnom Penh, Cambodia
	Sochetra 65'	(report)	Putro 80'	Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Li Haiseng (China)

9 May 1997	Yemen	0–1	Uzbekistan	Althawra Sports City Stadium Sanaa, Yemen
		(report)	Khasanov 27'	Attendance: 28,000 Referee: Yousef Sawarkeh (Jordan)

16 May 1997	Yemen	7–0	Cambodia	Althawra Sports City Stadium Sanaa, Yemen
	Al Ariki 4', 13', 15', 83' Noman 50' Bashafal 55' Abdulla 65'	(report)		Attendance: 40,000 Referee: Khaled Dalu (Syria)

25 May 1997	Uzbekistan	6–0	Cambodia	Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium Tashkent, Uzbekistan
	Shirshov 8' Khasanov 18' Lebedev 38', 73' Fedorov 45' Irismetov 55'	(report)		Attendance: 53,000 Referee: Viktor Kolpakov(Kyrgyzstan)

1 June 1997	Indonesia	1–1	Uzbekistan	Gelora Bung Karno Stadium Jakarta, Indonesia
	Sudirman 34'	(report)	Shatskikh 74'	Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Kim Kwang-Jong (South Korea)

13 June 1997	Yemen	1–1	Indonesia	Althawra Sports City Stadium Sanaa, Yemen
	Al Ariki 33'	(report)	Putro 59'	Attendance: 35,000 Referee: Ali Al Hosni Ali Bin Mubarak (Oman)

20 June 1997	Uzbekistan	3–0	Indonesia	Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium Tashkent, Uzbekistan
	Shatskikh 12' Maksudov 37', 87'	(report)		Attendance: 55,000 Referee: Jalal Moradi (Iran)

29 June 1997	Cambodia	1–4	Uzbekistan	Olympic Stadium Phnom Penh, Cambodia
	Sochetra 12'	(report)	Abdukahhor Marifaliev 2', 60' Ravshan Bozorov 9', 30'	Attendance: 12,000 Referee: Abdul Shakoor Baloch (Pakistan)

24 August 1997	Uzbekistan	5–1	Yemen	Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium Tashkent, Uzbekistan
	Shkvirin 8', 63' Shatskikh 55', 75' Bazarov 62'	(report)	Zughair 30'	Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Sultan Mujalli Al Aalaq (Bahrain)

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

23 February 1997	Hong Kong	0–2	South Korea	Hong Kong
		(report)	Seo Jung-Won 60' Choi Moon-Sik 75'	Referee: Yoshimi Ogawa (Japan)

2 March 1997	Thailand	1–3	South Korea	Rajamangala Stadium Bangkok, Thailand
	Piyapong 48'	(report)	Roh Sang-Rae 18' Ha Seok-Ju 74' Choi Moon-Sik 86'	Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Lu Jun (China)

9 March 1997	Thailand	2–0	Hong Kong	Rajamangala Stadium Bangkok, Thailand
	Krissada 23' Natipong 79'	(report)		Attendance: 10,000 Referee: Abdul Aziz A. Al Dokhail (Saudi Arabia)

30 March 1997	Hong Kong	3–2	Thailand	Hong Kong
	Lee Kin Woo 23' Cheng Sin Siu 48' Au Wai Lun 88'	(report)	Natipong 43' Chalermsan 70'	Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Nazri Abdullah Mohamed (Malaysia)

28 May 1997	South Korea	4–0	Hong Kong	Daejeon Hanbat Sports Complex Daejeon, South Korea
	Yoo Sang-Chul 25' Choi Yong-Soo 39', 72' Park Kun-Ha 86'	(report)		Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Hussein Issa (Iraq)

1 June 1997	South Korea	0–0	Thailand	Seoul Olympic Stadium Seoul, South Korea
		(report)		Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Jamal Al Sharif (Syria)

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

13 April 1997	Lebanon	1–1	Singapore	Bourj Hammoud Stadium Beirut, Lebanon
	Nazha 49'	(report)	Zainal 88'	Attendance: 12,000 Referee: Abdul Rahman Al-Zaid (Saudi Arabia)

26 April 1997	Singapore	0–1	Kuwait	National Stadium, Singapore
		(report)	Hani Al Saqer 29'	Attendance: 13,000 Referee: Park Hae-Yong (South Korea)

8 May 1997	Kuwait	2–0	Lebanon	Kuwait City, Kuwait
	Al Huwaidi 38' Al Ahmad 79'	(report)		Attendance: 12,000 Referee: Ali Bujsaim (United Arab Emirates)

24 May 1997	Singapore	1–2	Lebanon	National Stadium, Singapore
	Chuan Tan Teng 58' (pen.)	(report)	Shehab 35' Melikian 80'	Attendance: 14,455 Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

5 June 1997	Kuwait	4–0	Singapore	Kuwait City, Kuwait
	Saihan 28' Al Ahmad 35' Al Huwaidi 43' Abdulaziz 78'	(report)		Attendance: 13,000 Referee: Suleman Abo Allo (Syria)

22 June 1997	Lebanon	1–3	Kuwait	Bourj Hammoud Stadium Beirut, Lebanon
	Shehab 29'	(report)	Otaibi 7' Al Saleh 32', 74'	Attendance: 2,500 Referee: Masayoshi Okada (Japan)

Group 8

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
China PR	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

4 May 1997	Tajikistan	4–0	Vietnam	Pamir Stadium, Dushanbe, Tajikistan
	Alidodov 8' Mouminov 15' Dzhaborov 50', 84'	(report)		Attendance: 18,000 Referee: Alexander Koulzalov (Kazakhstan)

4 May 1997	Turkmenistan	1–4	China PR	Nisa-Çandybil Stadium, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
	Meredov 90'	(report)	Peng Weiguo 26', 39' Gao Feng 78' Li Bing 80'	Attendance: 3,000 Referee: Saeed Abdulla Ibrahim United Arab Emirates

11 May 1997	Tajikistan	0–1	China PR	Pamir Stadium, Dushanbe, Tajikistan
		(report)	Hao Haidong 65'	Attendance: 19,000 Referee: Masoud Kaabi (Iran)

11 May 1997	Turkmenistan	2–1	Vietnam	Nisa-Çandybil Stadium, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
	Agabaev 39' Gulyan 53'	(report)	Nguyen Cong Vinh 71'	Attendance: 2,500 Referee: Gyanu Shrestha (Nepal)

25 May 1997	Vietnam	1–3	China PR	Thong Nhat Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
	Le Huynh Duc 38'	(report)	Li Bing 23' Fan Zhiyi 32' Hao Haidong 44'	Attendance: 23,000 Referee: Russamee Jindamai (Thailand)

25 May 1997	Turkmenistan	1–2	Tajikistan	Nisa-Çandybil Stadium, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
	Tkavadze 18'	(report)	Knizaev 41', 49'	Attendance: 3,000 Referee: Inayath Ulla Khan (India)

1 June 1997	China PR	1–0	Turkmenistan	Workers Stadium, Beijing, China
	Li Jinyu 81'	(report)		Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Yoshimi Ogawa (Japan)

1 June 1997	Vietnam	0–4	Tajikistan	Thong Nhat Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
		(report)	Mouminov 5' Alidodov 24' Avakov 67' Achourmamadov 75'	Attendance: 10,000 Referee: Ngadiman Asri (Indonesia)

8 June 1997	China PR	0–0	Tajikistan	Workers Stadium, Beijing, China
		(report)		Attendance: 21,000 Referee: Abdul Khudheir Abdul Hussein (Iraq)

8 June 1997	Vietnam	0–4	Turkmenistan	Thong Nhat Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
		(report)	Agaev 16', 57', 63' Broshin 20'	Attendance: 5,000 Referee: Kyaw U Kyaw (Myanmar)

22 June 1997	China PR	4–0	Vietnam	Workers Stadium, Beijing, China
	Fan Zhiyi 7' Hao Haidong 45' Ma Mingyu 65' Su Maozhen 70'	(report)		Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Jang Sok Jin (North Korea)

22 June 1997	Tajikistan	5–0	Turkmenistan	Pamir Stadium, Dushanbe, Tajikistan
	Avakov 4', 26', 34' Dzhaborov 14' Mouminov 88'	(report)		Attendance: 7,000 Referee: Nail Lutfullin (Uzbekistan)

Group 9

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

11 May 1997	Kazakhstan	3–0	Pakistan	Central Stadium, Almaty
	Esmagambetov 2', 62' Yablochkin 49'	(report)		Attendance: 12,000 Referee: Allabergen Sapaev (Turkmenistan)

23 May 1997	Pakistan	2–6	Iraq	Railway Stadium Lahore, Pakistan
	Umer 8' Rafiq 53'	(report)	Fawzi 1', 62' Chathir 35', 61' Hussein 52' Radhi 70'	Attendance: 12,000 Referee: Sunil Senaweera (Sri Lanka)

6 June 1997	Iraq	1–2	Kazakhstan	Al-Shaab Stadium Baghdad, Iraq
	Saadoun 2'	(report)	Klishin 41' Loginov 48'	Attendance: 20,000 Referee: Wei Jihong (China)

11 June 1997	Pakistan	0–7	Kazakhstan	Railway Stadium Lahore, Pakistan
		(report)	Esmagambetov 28' Krishin 32' Loginov 36' Mazbaev 53' Zubarev 64', 68', 72'	Attendance: 3,500 Referee: Abbas Al Dashti Essa (Kuwait)

20 June 1997	Iraq	6–1	Pakistan	Al-Shaab Stadium Baghdad, Iraq
	Hussein 11', 26' Fawzi 69', 76' Abbas 71', 89'	(report)	Umer 58'	Referee: Ammar Ammar (Lebanon)

29 June 1997	Kazakhstan	3–1	Iraq	Central Stadium, Almaty
	Mazbaev 4' Loginov 26' Abdul Ridha 56' (o.g.)	(report)	Abdullah	Attendance: 12,000 Referee: Jindamai Russamee (Thailand)

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

20 September 1996	Qatar	3–0	Sri Lanka	Khalifa International Stadium Doha, Qatar
	Souf 35' Al-Enazi 51' Fazli 81'	(report)		Attendance: 1,000 Referee: Kurmanbek Ordabayev (Kazakhstan)

21 September 1996	India	2–0	Philippines	Khalifa International Stadium Doha, Qatar
	Vijayan 81' Coutinho 85'	(report)		Attendance: 700 Referee: Omar Ali Al Shughair (Saudi Arabia)

23 September 1996	Qatar	5–0	Philippines	Khalifa International Stadium Doha, Qatar
	Al-Enazi 19', 41' Souf 29' Al Noobi 30' Jaloof 38'	(report)		Attendance: 800 Referee: Muhammad Sahib (Iraq)

24 September 1996	Sri Lanka	1–1	India	Khalifa International Stadium Doha, Qatar
	Silva 14'	(report)	Chapman 39'	Attendance: 400 Referee: Ammar Ammar (Lebanon)

26 September 1996	Philippines	0–3	Sri Lanka	Khalifa International Stadium Doha, Qatar
		(report)	Steinwall 28' Perera 55', 80'	Attendance: 200 Referee: Kurmanbek Ordabayev (Kazakhstan)

27 September 1996	Qatar	6–0	India	Khalifa International Stadium Doha, Qatar
	Al-Enazi 27', 40' Al Kuwari 42' Maayof 47' Souf 52' Fazli 61'	(report)		Attendance: 3,000 Referee: Omar Ali Al Shughair (Saudi Arabia)

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 PR	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

China PR v Iran

13 September 1997
16:15 UTC+8

China PR	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)

Saudi Arabia v Kuwait

14 September 1997
20:30

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

King Fahd Stadium, Riyadh
Attendance: 21,500
Referee: Ali Bujsaim (United Arab Emirates)

Iran v Saudi Arabia

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)

Qatar v Kuwait

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)

Qatar v China PR

26 September 1997
18:15

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

Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha
Attendance: 9,000
Referee: Mahmoud Nurilddin (Iraq)

Kuwait v Iran

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)

China PR v Saudi Arabia

3 October 1997
16:15

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

Jinzhou Stadium, Dalian
Attendance: 30,000
Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

Iran v Qatar

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)

Kuwait v China PR

10 October 1997
19:00

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

Kazma SC Stadium, Kuwait City
Attendance: 25,000
Referee: Eddie Lennie (Australia)

Saudi Arabia v Qatar

11 October 1997

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

King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh
Attendance: 15,000
Referee: Gamal Al-Ghandour (Egypt)

Kuwait v Saudi Arabia

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)

Iran v China PR

17 October 1997

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

Azadi Stadium, Tehran
Attendance: 100,000
Referee: Ahmad Nabil Ayad (Lebanon)

Saudi Arabia v Iran

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)

Kuwait v Qatar

24 October 1997

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

Kazma SC Stadium, Kuwait City
Attendance: 18,000
Referee: Nazri Abdullah Mohamed (Malaysia)

China PR v Qatar

31 October 1997

China PR	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)

Iran v Kuwait

31 October 1997

Iran	0–0	Kuwait
	(report)

Azadi Stadium, Tehran
Attendance: 100,000
Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

Saudi Arabia v China PR

6 November 1997

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

King Fahd Stadium, Riyadh
Attendance: 70,000
Referee: David Elleray (England)

Qatar v Iran

7 November 1997

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

Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha
Attendance: 20,000
Referee: Horacio Elizondo (Argentina)

China PR v Kuwait

12 November 1997

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

Jinzhou Stadium, Dalian
Referee: Arturo Angeles (United States)

Qatar v Saudi Arabia

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	South Korea	3–0	Kazakhstan	Seoul Olympic Stadium, Seoul
19:00 UTC+9	Choi Yong-Soo 24', 67', 74'	(report)		Attendance: 41,219 Referee: Santhan Nagalingam (Singapore)

7 September 1997	Japan	6–3	Uzbekistan	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo
19:00 UTC+9	Miura 4' (pen.), 40', 64', 80' Nakata 40' Jo 44'	(report)	Shatskikh 56', 77' Fyodorov 69' (pen.)	Attendance: 54,328 Referee: Abdul Rahman Al-Zaid (Saudi Arabia)

12 September 1997	South Korea	2–1	Uzbekistan	Seoul Olympic Stadium, Seoul
	Choi Yong-Soo 15' Lee Sang-Yoon 87'	(report)	Shatskikh 74'	Attendance: 70,000 Referee: Wei Jihong (China)

12 September 1997	United Arab Emirates	4–0	Kazakhstan	Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
	Ali 20' Obaid 48' Zuhair Bakheet 75' Mubarak 85'	(report)		Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

19 September 1997	United Arab Emirates	0–0	Japan	Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
		(report)		Attendance: 40,000 Referee: Nazri Abdullah Mohamed (Malaysia)

20 September 1997	Kazakhstan	1–1	Uzbekistan	Central Stadium, Almaty
	Baltiyev 84'	(report)	Shatskikh 85'	Attendance: 12,000 Referee: Ahmad Nabil Ayad (Lebanon)

27 September 1997	Uzbekistan	2–3	United Arab Emirates	Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent
	Shirshov 10' Bazarov 90'	(report)	Zuhair Bakheet 51' Alabadla 60' Adnan Al Talyani 85'	Attendance: 50,000 Referee: Jalal Moradi (Iran)

28 September 1997	Japan	1–2	South Korea	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo
	Yamaguchi 67'	(report)	Seo Jung-Won 83' Lee Min-Sung 86'	Attendance: 56,704 Referee: Saad Mane (Kuwait)

4 October 1997	South Korea	3–0	United Arab Emirates	Seoul Olympic Stadium, Seoul
	Ha Seok-Ju 8' Yoo Sang-Chul 69' Lee Sang-Yoon 81'	(report)		Referee: Lucien Bouchardeau (Niger)

4 October 1997	Kazakhstan	1–1	Japan	Central Stadium, Almaty
	Zubarev 90+2'	(report)	Akita 23'	Attendance: 10,000 Referee: Taj Addin Fares (Syria)

11 October 1997	Uzbekistan	1–1	Japan	Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent
	Kambaraliev 30'	(report)	Lopes 89'	Attendance: 54,000 Referee: Sultan Mujalli Al Aalaq (Bahrain)

11 October 1997	Kazakhstan	1–1	South Korea	Central Stadium, Almaty
	Yevteyev 50'	(report)	Choi Yong-Soo 5'	Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Omar Abu Loom (Jordan)

18 October 1997	Uzbekistan	1–5	South Korea	Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent
	Fedorov 61'	(report)	Choi Yong-Soo 19', 41' Yoo Sang-Chul 38' Ko Jeong-Woon 57' Kim Do-Hoon 70'	Attendance: 38,000 Referee: Abdul Khudheir Abdul Hussein (Iraq)

18 October 1997	Kazakhstan	3–0	United Arab Emirates	Central Stadium, Almaty
	Sparyshev 55' Yevteyev 64' Yurist 75'	(report)		Attendance: 18,000 Referee: Nik Ahmad Haji Yaakub (Malaysia)

25 October 1997	Uzbekistan	4–0	Kazakhstan	Pakhtakor Markaziy Stadium, Tashkent
	Shkvirin 19', 33' Fedorov 44' Kasimov 71'	(report)		Attendance: 25,000 Referee: Hassan Al Ajmi (Oman)

26 October 1997	Japan	1–1	United Arab Emirates	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo
	Lopes 4'	(report)	Mubarak 37'	Attendance: 56,000 Referee: Rodrigo Badilla (Costa Rica)

1 November 1997	South Korea	0–2	Japan	Seoul Olympic Stadium, Seoul
		(report)	Nanami 2' Lopes 37'	Attendance: 75,000 Referee: Esse Baharmast (United States)

2 November 1997	United Arab Emirates	0–0	Uzbekistan	Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
		(report)		Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Khaled Dalu (Syria)

8 November 1997	Japan	5–1	Kazakhstan	Tokyo Olympic Stadium, Tokyo
	Akita 11' Nakata 15' Nakayama 44' Ihara 66' Takagi 88'	(report)	Yevteyev 73'	Attendance: 56,032 Referee: Mario van der Ende (Netherlands)

9 November 1997	United Arab Emirates	1–3	South Korea	Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
	Zuhair Bakheet 58'	(report)	Lee Sang-Yoon 11' Kim Do-Hoon 42', 67'	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.

Iran v Japan

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)

Notes

↑ FIFA report made a mistake here, the scorer is Ma Mingyu.

External links

1998 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) at FIFA.com

1998 FIFA World Cup qualifiers
AFC	First Round Final Round Play-off
CAF	First Round Final Round
CONCACAF	Preliminary Round First Round Second Round Third Round Fourth Round
CONMEBOL	Group Round
OFC	First Round Second Round Third Round
UEFA	Group 1 Group 2 Group 3 Group 4 Group 5 Group 6 Group 7 Group 8 Group 9 Play-offs
Play-offs	AFC v OFC

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