2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualification

The 2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualification was an international men's under-17 football competition which was being held to decide the participating teams of the 2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup.

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2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualification

The 2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualification was an international men's under-17 football competition which was being held to decide the participating teams of the 2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup.

Draw

2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualification

All 47 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member associations entered the competition. Nine teams including the hosts Saudi Arabia who qualified for the 2025 FIFA U-17 World Cup automatically qualify for the final tournament, while the other 38 teams participate in qualification.

The draw was held on 7 August 2025 at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at 16:00 local time (UTC+8).

The 38 teams were allocated to three groups of six teams and four groups of five teams, with teams seeded based on a points system derived from their final rankings across the previous three editions of the Finals (overall ranking shown in parentheses). A further restriction was also applied, with the seven teams serving as qualification group hosts drawn into separate groups.

<table><thead><tr><th></th><th>Pot 1</th><th>Pot 2</th><th>Pot 3</th><th>Pot 4</th><th>Pot 5</th><th>Pot 6</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Host teams</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Remaining teams</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

• Teams in bold qualified for the final tournament. • (H): Qualification group hosts.

Groups

2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualification

<table><thead><tr><th>Tiebreakers</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Teams were ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, and 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria were applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings (Regulations Article 7.2):</td></tr></tbody></table>

Group A

• All matches are being held in China. • Times listed are UTC+8.

<table><thead><tr><th>Pos</th><th>Team</th><th>Pld</th><th>W</th><th>D</th><th>L</th><th>GF</th><th>GA</th><th>GD</th><th>Pts</th><th>Qualification</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td> China (H)</td><td>5</td><td>5</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>42</td><td>0</td><td>+42</td><td>15</td><td>Final tournament</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td> Bangladesh</td><td>5</td><td>4</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>20</td><td>5</td><td>+15</td><td>12</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td> Bahrain</td><td>5</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>2</td><td>16</td><td>7</td><td>+9</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td> Timor-Leste</td><td>5</td><td>2</td><td>0</td><td>3</td><td>4</td><td>23</td><td>−19</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td> Sri Lanka</td><td>5</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>4</td><td>6</td><td>17</td><td>−11</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td> Brunei</td><td>5</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>5</td><td>0</td><td>36</td><td>−36</td><td>0</td></tr></tbody></table>

Group B

• All matches are being held in Kyrgyzstan. • Times listed are UTC+6.

<table><thead><tr><th>Pos</th><th>Team</th><th>Pld</th><th>W</th><th>D</th><th>L</th><th>GF</th><th>GA</th><th>GD</th><th>Pts</th><th>Qualification</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td> Yemen</td><td>5</td><td>5</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>24</td><td>3</td><td>+21</td><td>15</td><td>Final tournament</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td> Pakistan</td><td>5</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>2</td><td>19</td><td>9</td><td>+10</td><td>9</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td> Laos</td><td>5</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>2</td><td>19</td><td>9</td><td>+10</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td> Kyrgyzstan (H)</td><td>5</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>2</td><td>16</td><td>7</td><td>+9</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td> Cambodia</td><td>5</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>4</td><td>7</td><td>15</td><td>−8</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td> Guam</td><td>5</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>5</td><td>1</td><td>43</td><td>−42</td><td>0</td></tr></tbody></table>

Group C

• All matches are being held in Vietnam. • Times listed are UTC+7.

<table><thead><tr><th>Pos</th><th>Team</th><th>Pld</th><th>W</th><th>D</th><th>L</th><th>GF</th><th>GA</th><th>GD</th><th>Pts</th><th>Qualification</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td> Vietnam (H)</td><td>5</td><td>5</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>30</td><td>0</td><td>+30</td><td>15</td><td>Final tournament</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td> Malaysia</td><td>5</td><td>4</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>21</td><td>5</td><td>+16</td><td>12</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td> Hong Kong</td><td>5</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>2</td><td>7</td><td>4</td><td>+3</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td> Singapore</td><td>5</td><td>1</td><td>2</td><td>2</td><td>5</td><td>11</td><td>−6</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td> Macau</td><td>5</td><td>1</td><td>1</td><td>3</td><td>3</td><td>12</td><td>−9</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td> Northern Mariana Islands</td><td>5</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>5</td><td>1</td><td>35</td><td>−34</td><td>0</td></tr></tbody></table>

Group D

• All matches are being held in India. • Times listed are UTC+5:30.

<table><thead><tr><th>Pos</th><th>Team</th><th>Pld</th><th>W</th><th>D</th><th>L</th><th>GF</th><th>GA</th><th>GD</th><th>Pts</th><th>Qualification</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td> India (H)</td><td>4</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>1</td><td>6</td><td>5</td><td>+1</td><td>7</td><td>Final tournament</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td> Iran</td><td>4</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>1</td><td>10</td><td>4</td><td>+6</td><td>7</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td> Lebanon</td><td>4</td><td>1</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>4</td><td>2</td><td>+2</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td> Palestine</td><td>4</td><td>1</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>6</td><td>6</td><td>0</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td> Chinese Taipei</td><td>4</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>3</td><td>2</td><td>11</td><td>−9</td><td>1</td></tr></tbody></table>

Group E

• All matches are being held in Jordan. • Times listed are UTC+3.

<table><thead><tr><th>Pos</th><th>Team</th><th>Pld</th><th>W</th><th>D</th><th>L</th><th>GF</th><th>GA</th><th>GD</th><th>Pts</th><th>Qualification</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td> Australia</td><td>4</td><td>3</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>13</td><td>3</td><td>+10</td><td>10</td><td>Final tournament</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td> Iraq</td><td>4</td><td>2</td><td>2</td><td>0</td><td>9</td><td>7</td><td>+2</td><td>8</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td> Jordan (H)</td><td>4</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>1</td><td>13</td><td>4</td><td>+9</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td> Bhutan</td><td>4</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>9</td><td>−9</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td> Philippines</td><td>4</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>3</td><td>3</td><td>15</td><td>−12</td><td>1</td></tr></tbody></table>

Group F

• All matches are being held in Thailand. • Times listed are UTC+7.

<table><thead><tr><th>Pos</th><th>Team</th><th>Pld</th><th>W</th><th>D</th><th>L</th><th>GF</th><th>GA</th><th>GD</th><th>Pts</th><th>Qualification</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td> Thailand (H)</td><td>4</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>16</td><td>4</td><td>+12</td><td>9</td><td>Final tournament</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td> Turkmenistan</td><td>4</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>15</td><td>5</td><td>+10</td><td>9</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td> Kuwait</td><td>4</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>11</td><td>3</td><td>+8</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td> Mongolia</td><td>4</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>3</td><td>3</td><td>15</td><td>−12</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td> Maldives</td><td>4</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>4</td><td>1</td><td>19</td><td>−18</td><td>0</td></tr></tbody></table>

Group G

• All matches are being held in Myanmar. • Times listed are UTC+6:30.

<table><thead><tr><th>Pos</th><th>Team</th><th>Pld</th><th>W</th><th>D</th><th>L</th><th>GF</th><th>GA</th><th>GD</th><th>Pts</th><th>Qualification</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td> Myanmar (H)</td><td>4</td><td>3</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>11</td><td>3</td><td>+8</td><td>10</td><td>Final tournament</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td> Oman</td><td>4</td><td>3</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>12</td><td>3</td><td>+9</td><td>9</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td> Syria</td><td>4</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>1</td><td>10</td><td>8</td><td>+2</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td> Afghanistan</td><td>4</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>3</td><td>4</td><td>10</td><td>−6</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>   Nepal</td><td>4</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>4</td><td>2</td><td>15</td><td>−13</td><td>0</td></tr></tbody></table>

Qualified teams

2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualification

The following 16 teams qualified for the final tournament.

<table><thead><tr><th>Team</th><th>Qualified as</th><th>Appearance</th><th>Previous best performance1</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td> Saudi Arabia</td><td>Hosts and 2025 runners-up</td><td>13th</td><td>Champions (1985, 1988)</td></tr><tr><td> Qatar</td><td>World Cup Hosts</td><td>12th</td><td>Champions (1990)</td></tr><tr><td> Uzbekistan</td><td>2025 champions</td><td>12th</td><td>Champions (2012, 2025)</td></tr><tr><td> South Korea</td><td>2025 semi-finalist</td><td>17th</td><td>Champions (1986, 2002)</td></tr><tr><td> North Korea</td><td>2025 semi-finalist</td><td>13th</td><td>Champions (2010, 2014)</td></tr><tr><td> Japan</td><td>2025 quarter-finalist</td><td>18th</td><td>Champions (1994, 2006, 2018, 2023)</td></tr><tr><td> Indonesia</td><td>2025 quarter-finalist</td><td>8th</td><td>Fourth place (1990)</td></tr><tr><td> United Arab Emirates</td><td>2025 quarter-finalist</td><td>9th</td><td>Runners-up (1990)</td></tr><tr><td> Tajikistan</td><td>2025 quarter-finalist</td><td>6th</td><td>Runners-up (2018)</td></tr><tr><td> China</td><td>Group A winners</td><td>17th</td><td>Champions (1992, 2004)</td></tr><tr><td> Yemen</td><td>Group B winners</td><td>9th</td><td>Runners-up (2002)</td></tr><tr><td> Vietnam</td><td>Group C winners</td><td>10th</td><td>Fourth place (2000)</td></tr><tr><td> India</td><td>Group D winners</td><td>10th</td><td>Quarter-final (2002, 2018)</td></tr><tr><td> Australia</td><td>Group E winners</td><td>9th</td><td>Semi-final (2010, 2014, 2018)</td></tr><tr><td> Thailand</td><td>Group F winners</td><td>14th</td><td>Champions (1998)</td></tr><tr><td> Myanmar</td><td>Group G winners</td><td>5th</td><td>Group stage (1986, 2000, 2002, 2006)</td></tr></tbody></table>