Kuwait at the AFC Asian Cup

Kuwait is one of the most successful teams in the AFC Asian Cup, having won the title once, during 1980 edition which they were awarded as host, became the first Arab team to win the Asian Cup.

During 1970s to 2000s, Kuwait had risen from a normal, unknown to become one of Asia's most prestigious teams and Kuwait was regarded for having a group of golden generation that would facilitate and develop football in the small nation at the Arabian Gulf. Kuwait had also qualified for the FIFA World Cup once, in 1982, thanked for the success in Asian Cup. Kuwait remained a powerful team until 2004, when they were surprisingly knocked out from the group stage. Since then, Kuwait's strength has started to diminish slowly, and although had qualified for 2011 and 2015, Kuwait didn't win any matches. Kuwait was even excluded for 2019 edition, due to FIFA's sanctions over Government's interference.^[1]

Kuwait's Asian Cup record[]

AFC Asian Cup record									AFC Asian Cup qualification
Year	Result	Position	GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA
1956	Did not enter								Did not enter
1960
1964
1968	Withdrew								Withdrew
1972	Group stage	5th	2	1	0	1	2	5	3	1	1	1	3	3
1976	Runners-up	4th	4	3	0	1	6	3	Qualified automatically due to withdrawal of others in the Group
1980	Champions	1st	6	4	1	1	13	6	Qualified as hosts
1984	Third Place	3rd	6	3	1	2	5	4	Qualified automatically as defending champions
1988	Group stage	7th	4	0	3	1	2	3	4	3	1	0	9	0
1992	Did not qualify								2	1	0	1	4	3
1996	Fourth place	4th	6	2	1	3	9	6	4	2	2	0	9	5
2000	Quarterfinals	6th	4	1	2	1	3	3	4	4	0	0	33	1
2004	Group stage	10th	3	1	0	2	3	7	6	5	1	0	17	5
2007	Did not qualify								4	1	1	2	3	4
2011	Group stage	14th	3	0	0	3	1	7	6	2	3	1	6	5
2015	Group stage	15th	3	0	0	3	1	6	6	2	3	1	10	7
2019	Disqualified								Disqualified from qualification due to FIFA sanction
2023	To be determined								To be determined
Total	Best: Champions	10/18	42	15	10	18	45	51	39	21	12	6	94	33

1972 edition in Thailand[]

Group allocation match[]

8 May 1972

Thailand	0–2	Kuwait
		42' 87'

National Stadium, Bangkok

Group B[]

Team	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
South Korea	2	1	1	5	3	+2	2
Khmer Republic	2	1	1	5	4	+1	2
Kuwait	2	1	1	2	5	−3	2

Source:^{[citation needed]}

12 May 1972

South Korea	1–2	Kuwait
Park Lee-Chun 2' (pen.)		25' 73'

National Stadium, Bangkok

14 May 1972

Khmer Republic	4–0	Kuwait
23' 56' 59' 80'

National Stadium, Bangkok

1976 edition in Iran[]

Group A[]

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Kuwait	2	2	0	0	3	0	+3	4
China PR	2	0	1	1	1	2	−1	1
Malaysia	2	0	1	1	1	3	−2	1

Source:^{[citation needed]}

3 June 1976

Kuwait	2–0	Malaysia
Al-Anberi 10' Al-Dakhil 42'

Bagh Shomal Stadium, Tabriz

7 June 1976

Kuwait	1–0	China PR
Kameel 1'

Bagh Shomal Stadium, Tabriz

Semi-finals[]

11 June 1976

Kuwait	3–2 (a.e.t.)	Iraq
11' Kameel 77', 100'		Abdul-Jalil 46' Hassan 85'

Aryamehr Stadium, Tehran

Attendance: 60,000

Final[]

13 June 1976

Iran	1–0	Kuwait
Parvin 71'

Aryamehr Stadium, Tehran

Attendance: 100,000^{[citation needed]}

Referee: (Switzerland)

1980 edition in Kuwait[]

Group B[]

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
South Korea	4	3	1	0	10	2	+8	7
Kuwait	4	2	1	1	8	5	+3	5
Malaysia	4	1	2	1	5	5	0	4
Qatar	4	1	1	2	3	8	−5	3
United Arab Emirates	4	0	1	3	3	9	−6	1

Source:^{[citation needed]}

15 September 1980

United Arab Emirates	1–1	Kuwait
35'		Al-Houti 19'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 20,000

18 September 1980

Kuwait	3–1	Malaysia
Kameel 20' Yaqoub 53' (pen.), 77' (pen.)		44'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 20,000

21 September 1980

16:30

Kuwait	0–3	South Korea
		Hwang Seok-keun 47' Choi Soon-ho 71', 78'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 20,000

Referee: Toshikazu Sano (Japan)

25 September 1980

Kuwait	4–0	Qatar
Al-Dakhil 32', 57' Yaqoub 50' (pen.) Al-Anberi 66'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 20,000

Semi-finals[]

28 September 1980

Iran	1–2	Kuwait
Faraki 90'		Yaqoub 63' Al-Dakhil 85'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 20,000

Referee: (Singapore)

Final[]

30 September 1980

18:30

Kuwait	3–0	South Korea
Al-Houti 8' Al-Dakhil 34', 69'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 25,000

Referee: Sudarso Hardjowasito (Indonesia)

1984 edition in Singapore[]

Group A[]

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Saudi Arabia	4	2	2	0	4	2	+2	6
Kuwait	4	2	1	1	4	2	+2	5
Qatar	4	1	2	1	3	3	0	4
Syria	4	1	1	2	3	5	−2	3
South Korea	4	0	2	2	1	3	−2	2

Source:^{[citation needed]}

3 December 1984

21:00

Kuwait	1 – 0	Qatar
Al-Rumaihi 52' (o.g.)

National Stadium, Singapore

Attendance: 19,000

Referee: Augusto Lamo (Spain)

5 December 1984

19:00

South Korea	0 – 0	Kuwait

National Stadium, Singapore

Attendance: 20,000

Referee: (Hong Kong)

9 December 1984

19:00

Kuwait	3 – 1	Syria
Mahrous 66' (o.g.) Al-Dakhil 77' A. Al-Buloushi 79'		Abu Al-Sel 5'

National Stadium, Singapore

Attendance: 8,000

Referee: (Hong Kong)

11 December 1984

21:00

Kuwait	0 – 1	Saudi Arabia
		Al-Jam'an 88'

National Stadium, Singapore

Attendance: 5,000

Referee: Toshikazu Sano (Japan)

Semi-finals[]

14 December 1984

20:00

China PR	1 – 0 (a.e.t.)	Kuwait
Li Huayun 108'

National Stadium, Singapore

Attendance: 20,000

Referee: Augusto Lamo (Spain)

Third place play-off[]

16 December 1984

18:00

Iran	1 – 1	Kuwait
Mohammadkhani 80'		Al-Haddad 26'
Penalties
Hajiloo Derakhshan Ahadi Mokhtarifar	3 – 5	Al-Dakhil Al-Suwayed Juma'a Al-Jasem Al-Qabendi

National Stadium, Singapore

Attendance: 26,000

Referee: Antonio Márquez (Mexico)

1988 edition in Qatar[]

Group B[]

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Saudi Arabia	4	2	2	0	4	1	+3	6
China PR	4	2	1	1	6	3	+3	5
Syria	4	2	0	2	2	5	−3	4
Kuwait	4	0	3	1	2	3	−1	3
Bahrain	4	0	2	2	1	3	−2	2

Source:^{[citation needed]}

3 December 1988

17:00

Kuwait	0–0	Bahrain
	Report

Al-Ahly Stadium, Doha

Referee: Vincent Mauro (United States)

5 December 1988

15:00

Saudi Arabia	0–0	Kuwait
	Report

Al-Ahly Stadium, Doha

Referee: Michel Vautrot (France)

8 December 1988

17:00

Syria	1–0	Kuwait
63'	Report

Al-Ahly Stadium, Doha

Referee: (Turkey)

10 December 1988

17:00

Kuwait	2–2	China PR
60' (pen.) 62'	Report	Ma Lin 10', 87'

Al-Ahly Stadium, Doha

Referee: Erik Fredriksson (Sweden)

1996 edition in the UAE[]

Group A[]

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
United Arab Emirates	3	2	1	0	6	3	+3	7
Kuwait	3	1	1	1	6	5	+1	4
South Korea	3	1	1	1	5	5	0	4
Indonesia	3	0	1	2	4	8	−4	1

Source:^{[citation needed]}

4 December 1996

18:45

Indonesia	2–2	Kuwait
Putro 20' Wabia 40'	Report	Al-Saqer 73' Haji 84' (pen.)

Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Attendance: 15,000

Referee: Jamal Al Sharif (Syria)

7 December 1996

16:45

United Arab Emirates	3–2	Kuwait
53' Al-Talyani 55' B. Saad 80'	Report	Al-Huwaidi 9', 44'

Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Attendance: 15,000

Referee: (Uganda)

10 December 1996

19:00

Kuwait	2–0	South Korea
Al-Huwaidi 60' B. Abdullah 87'	Report

Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Attendance: 3,000

Referee: Mohd Nazri Abdullah (Malaysia)

Quarter-finals[]

15 December 1996

19:30

Kuwait	2–0	Japan
Al-Huwaidi 17', 54'	Report

Tahnoun Bin Mohamed Stadium, Al Ain

Attendance: 2,000

Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)

Semi-finals[]

19 December 1996

16:45

United Arab Emirates	1–0	Kuwait
69'	Report

Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Attendance: 55,000

Referee: Masayoshi Okada (Japan)

Third place play-off[]

21 December 1996

16:45

Iran	1–1	Kuwait
Daei 40'	Report	Al-Huwaidi 15'
Penalties
Moharrami Estili Peyrovani Bagheri	3–2	Badr Haji Bashar Abdullah Al-Lenqawi Al-Huwaidi

Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Attendance: 60,000

Referee: Kim Young-Joo (Korea Republic)

2000 edition in Lebanon[]

Group B[]

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
China PR	3	1	2	0	6	2	+4	5
Kuwait	3	1	2	0	1	0	+1	5
South Korea	3	1	1	1	5	3	+2	4
Indonesia	3	0	1	2	0	7	−7	1

Source:^{[citation needed]}

13 October 2000

19:45

Kuwait	0–0	Indonesia
	Report

International Olympic Stadium, Tripoli

Attendance: 2,000

Referee: (Syria)

16 October 2000

19:45

South Korea	0–1	Kuwait
	Report	Al-Huwaidi 43'

International Olympic Stadium, Tripoli

Attendance: 5,000

Referee: Brian Hall (United States)

19 October 2000

19:30

China PR	0��0	Kuwait
	Report

International Olympic Stadium, Tripoli

Attendance: 5,000

Referee: Shamsul Maidin (Singapore)

Quarter-finals[]

24 October 2000

19:45

Kuwait	2–3 (a.e.t.)	Saudi Arabia
Bashar Abdullah 62' Al-Huwaidi 68'	Report	Al-Temyat 45+1' 109' Al-Meshal 72'

Sports City Stadium, Beirut

Attendance: 5,000

Referee: Brian Hall (United States)

2004 edition in China[]

Group B[]

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
South Korea	3	2	1	0	6	0	+6	7
Jordan	3	1	2	0	2	0	+2	5
Kuwait	3	1	0	2	3	7	−4	3
United Arab Emirates	3	0	1	2	1	5	−4	1

Source:^{[citation needed]}

19 July 2004

21:00

Kuwait	3–1	United Arab Emirates
B. Abdullah 24' Al-Mutawa 39' (pen.), 45'	Report	Rashid 47'

Shandong Sports Center, Jinan

Attendance: 31,250

Referee: (Saudi Arabia)

23 July 2004

18:30

Jordan	2–0	Kuwait
Saad 90+1' Al-Zboun 90+2'	Report

Shandong Sports Center, Jinan

Attendance: 28,000

Referee: Lu Jun (China)

27 July 2004

19:00

South Korea	4–0	Kuwait
Lee Dong-Gook 25', 41' Cha Du-Ri 45+1' Ahn Jung-Hwan 75'	Report

Shandong Sports Center, Jinan

Attendance: 15,000

Referee: Shamsul Maidin (Singapore)

2011 edition in Qatar[]

Group A[]

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Uzbekistan	3	2	1	0	6	3	+3	7
Qatar	3	2	0	1	5	2	+3	6
China PR	3	1	1	1	4	4	0	4
Kuwait	3	0	0	3	1	7	−6	0

Source:^{[citation needed]}


8 January 2011
Kuwait	0–2	China PR
12 January 2011
Uzbekistan	2–1	Kuwait
16 January 2011
Qatar	3–0	Kuwait

2015 edition in Australia[]

Group A[]

Pos	Team v t	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	South Korea	3	3	0	3	0	+3	9	Advance to knockout stage
2	Australia (H)	3	2	1	8	2	+6	6	Advance to knockout stage
3	Oman	3	1	2	1	5	−4	3
4	Kuwait	3	0	3	1	6	−5	0

Source: Asian Cup Australia 2015
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Host


9 January 2015
Australia	4–1^[2]	Kuwait	AAMI Park, Melbourne
13 January 2015
Kuwait	0–1	South Korea	Canberra Stadium, Canberra
17 January 2015
Oman	1–0	Kuwait	Newcastle Stadium, Newcastle

References[]

[1] ttps://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/soccer/2016/11/25/kuwait-faces-exclusion-from-asian-cup-if-fifa-ban-remains/94414488/

[2] ttps://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jan/09/asian-cup-australia-kuwait-match-report

[1]

[2]

show v t Kuwait national football team
General	Kuwait Football Association History Managers
Stadia	Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium Al-Sadaqua Walsalam Stadium Al Kuwait Sports Club Stadium
FIFA World Cup	1982
AFC Asian Cup	1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1996 2000 2004 2011 2015
Other tournaments	Summer Olympics Asian Games FIFA Arab Cup WAFF Championship Arabian Gulf Cup
Statistics	Results Players and squads Individual records Head to head
Rivalries	Iraq
Notable matches	1980 AFC Asian Cup Final
Other national teams	U-23 U-20 U-17 Women's Futsal Beach soccer

show v t Countries at the AFC Asian Cup
Team appearances
AFF	Australia Cambodia Indonesia Malaysia Myanmar Philippines Singapore Thailand Vietnam¹
CAFA	Iran Kyrgyzstan Turkmenistan Uzbekistan
EAFF	China Chinese Taipei Hong Kong Japan North Korea South Korea
SAFF	Bangladesh India
WAFF	Bahrain Iraq Jordan Kuwait Lebanon Oman Palestine Qatar Saudi Arabia Syria Yemen
Former	Israel² South Yemen³
¹ Considered a successor team by FIFA, or have competed under other name(s). ² Israel was a member of the AFC until 1974. ³ Recognized by FIFA as defunct.