1974 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC and OFC)

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1974 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC and OFC)

Tournament details
Teams	15 (from 2 confederations)
← 1970 1978 →

AFC Asian Qualifiers
FIFA World Cup 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022
AFC Asian Cup 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2007 2011 2015 2019 2023
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Listed below are the dates and results for the 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the Asian and Oceanian zone (AFC and OFC). For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification.

India, Sri Lanka and the Philippines withdrew before the matches were played. The remaining 15 teams were divided into 2 zones, based on geographical and political considerations, as follows:

• Zone A had 7 teams (teams from East Asia, plus Israel). All matches were played in Korea Republic. There would be four stages of play:
  • Classification matches: All teams except Korea Republic would be paired up to play preliminary matches to determine group classification.
  • Group stage: Based on the results of the classification matches, the 7 teams were divided into 2 groups (Group 1 with 3 teams and Group 2 with 4 teams). The teams played against each other once. The group winners and runners-up would advance to the semifinals.
  • Semifinals: The winner of Group 1 played against the runner-up of Group 2 in a single match, and the winner of Group 2 played against the runner-up of Group 1 in a single match. The winners would advance to the Final.
  • Final: The 2 teams played against each other in a single match. The winner would advance to the Final Round.
• Zone B had 8 teams (teams from West Asia and Oceania, plus Indonesia and Korea DPR). There would be two stages of play:
  • Group stage: The 8 teams were divided into 2 groups of 4 teams each. The teams played against each other twice (Group 1 in Iran and Group 2 in Australia and New Zealand). The group winners would advance to the final.
  • Final: The 2 teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The winner would advance to the Final Round.

In the Final Round, the winners of Zone A and Zone B played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The winner would qualify.

Zone A[]

• All matches played in South Korea.

Classification Matches[]

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Based on the results, South Vietnam, Japan and Hong Kong were placed in Group 1, while Thailand, Israel and Malaysia were placed in Group 2 with Korea Republic.

Group 1[]

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
1	Hong Kong	4	2	2	0	0	2	0	+2
2	Japan	2	2	1	0	1	4	1	+3
3	South Vietnam	0	2	0	0	2	0	5	−5

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Hong Kong and Japan advanced to the Zone A Semifinals.

Group 2[]

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
1	Israel	5	3	2	1	0	9	0	+9
2	South Korea	4	3	1	2	0	4	0	+4
3	Malaysia	3	3	1	1	1	2	3	−1
4	Thailand	0	3	0	0	3	0	12	−12

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Israel and Korea Republic advanced to the Zone A Semifinals.

Semifinals[]

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Korea Republic and Israel advanced to the Zone A Final.

Final[]

Korea Republic advanced to the Final Round.

Zone B[]

Group 1[]

• All matches played in Tehran, Iran in a double round-robin format

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
1	Iran	9	6	4	1	1	7	3	+4
2	Syria	7	6	3	1	2	6	6	0
3	North Korea	5	6	1	3	2	5	5	0
4	Kuwait	3	6	1	1	4	4	8	−4

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Iran advanced to the Zone B Final.

Group 2[]

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
1	Australia	9	6	3	3	0	15	6	+9
2	Iraq	8	6	3	2	1	11	6	+5
3	Indonesia	4	6	1	2	3	6	13	−7
4	New Zealand	3	6	0	3	3	5	12	−7

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Australia advanced to the Zone B Final.

Final[]

Australia advanced to the Final Round.

Final round[]

The aggregate score was tied 2–2, so a play-off on a neutral ground (Hong Kong) was played to decide who would qualify.

Australia qualified, via the play-off.

Goalscorers[]

4 goals

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal