Saudi, Qatar to host football World Cup playoffs

Saudi Arabia and Qatar will host the Asian qualifying playoffs for the 2026 World Cup, the Asian Football Confederation said on Friday, reports Arab News.

The third and fourth-placed teams from the qualifiers that ended last week — Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Iraq, Oman, Qatar and the UAE — will form two groups of three teams and play from Oct. 8 to 14. The draw will take place on July 17.

Group winners will take the two remaining automatic places at the World Cup finals in the US, Canada and Mexico. The runners-up from each group will play two matches on Nov. 13 and 18, with the winners qualifying for the inter-confederation playoffs.

Meanwhile this year’s Saudi Super Cup featuring Al-Ittihad, Al-Qadisiyah, Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr will be held in Hong Kong, football chiefs said on Friday.

Matches will take place from Aug. 19-23 at the 40,000-seat Hong Kong Stadium.

“This represents a qualitative shift for the tournament, which has achieved remarkable success,” Saudi Football Federation secretary general Ibrahim Al-Qassim said.