Two Asian Teams Who Will Make Their World Cup Debut in 2026... And Another That Could Join Them

In football, history isn’t written quietly. It explodes onto the scene, casting aside the weight of old narratives. Asia’s 2026 World Cup qualification campaign has captured that blinding moment where ambition collides with possibility, and the consequences could reverberate for generations. Expanded to 48 teams, next summer's showdown offers unprecedented opportunities to the biggest continent on earth, with eight teams guaranteed a spot in North America, a number doubled from previous editions of the tournament.

Asia has never had a World Cup winner from its shores, and online gambling sites think that's unlikely to change in 2026. The latest odds from the popular Bovada gambling site make the usual suspects the contenders for glory in a year's time. Reigning European Champions Spain lead the way at 11/2, with an out-of-sorts Brazil just behind at 6/1 and back-to-back finalists France priced at 13/2. The best Asia can offer is South Korea, who are listed as a 150/1 shot, but for these teams, just strutting their stuff on the grandest stage is good enough.

Two Asian teams have already qualified for the World Cup for the first time ever, while another could be set to join them. So, who are they? Let's take a look.

Uzbekistan

For three decades, Uzbekistan has played the role of World Cup outsider—a team lauded for potential but forever exiled by cruel margins and missed chances. The stats alone chart a landscape of heartbreak: four times since their AFC debut in 1998, the White Wolves finished within two wins of qualification, most famously undone in a penalty shootout against Jordan for the 2014 playoffs and falling a single point short in 2018.

Yet 2026 became the crucible where resolve turned into reality. Uzbekistan stormed through Group A with 16 points from eight matches, carving out gritty wins and demonstrating a palpable shift: gone was the tentativeness of campaigns past, replaced by bite in the back line and a clinical edge up front. The catalyst? Manager Srećko Katanec, blending Balkan tactical discipline with Central Asian flair.

Roma striker Eldor Shomurodov is Uzbekistan’s spearhead and captain. He drilled home five goals for the Uzbeks, each arriving when stakes were highest, including a late second of three in Tashkent to secure three huge points against fellow hopefuls Qatar. Defensively, Dostonbek Tursunov shut down opposing threats, averaging 4.2 aerial wins and nearly eight clearances per match. In midfield, the ever-reliable Odil Ahmedov commanded play, boasting a pass completion rate over 89% while orchestrating the team’s pressing triggers.

Uzbekistan’s watershed moment isn’t just about a ticket to North America—it’s a rebranding. No longer doomed to live in “almosts,” they arrive as a force recalibrated by every agony endured in qualifiers past. While they won't be making it far into many people's tournament brackets next summer, they will be aiming to spring a shock or two under the brightest of lights.

Jordan

If football romanticism thrives on the redemption arc, then Jordan’s journey to the 2026 World Cup is cinematic in scope. In 2013, an entire nation gathered in hope, only to watch their Nashama fall to Uruguay in an intercontinental playoff. Cue years wandering the barren lands of Group stages, agonizing close calls underscored by collective frustration.

Those scars set the fuse for this campaign. Jordan emerged from a lion’s den, outpacing Iraq and Oman in a fiercely contested Group B. 16 points, six shy of table-toppers South Korea, were fueled by a defense breached only eight times—the fourth lowest in any AFC qualifying group, with only the region’s established giants conceding fewer.

But numbers alone don’t capture the adrenaline-fueled artistry on display. Enter Yazan Al-Naimat and Ali Olwan, two fearsome hitmen who bagged five goals apiece throughout qualifying, level for the top scorer berth alongside Iran's prolific Mehdi Taremi. Then there’s Yazan Al-Arab, whose 60 passes per match set rhythm and tempo, cementing his reputation as orchestrator-in-chief.

What pushed them over the line? Tactical evolution, an expanding pool of homegrown talent, and the lessons seared into collective memory from past heartbreaks. The result: Jordan’s first-ever men’s World Cup berth—a validation of years of investment, vision, and unyielding belief.

Oman

There are few footballing cruelties sharper than finishing just shy of a historic first. Oman has carried this ache since 2014, twice seeing their journeys stopped at the penultimate hurdle. But if previous failures taught them resilience, 2026 set the table for a fresh assault.

Against unfriendly odds, Oman clawed fourth in a razor-thin Group B—11 points from ten contested matches. The advance was narrow but decisive, built on a shock 1-1 draw away in South Korea thanks to Ali Al-Busaidi's late equalizer. Another 1-1 draw, this time away in Palestine, secured by Issam Al-Sabhi's 97th-minute penalty, secured Oman's spot in the next round at Palestine's expense, and the streak of late equalizers has many dreaming that their spot at the 2026 FIFA World Cup may well be somewhat fated.

Crucially, this is not a squad reliant on one spark but a blend of discipline and danger. Wing wizard Salah Al-Yahyaei tallied 15 successful dribbles through the campaign, stretching defenses and creating spaces. In goal, Faiz Al-Rushaidi was the defiant survivor, his 24 saves and three clean sheets the stuff of a nightmare for strikers across Asia.

October’s round-robin playoff acts as a final gauntlet—Oman must dispatch either Qatar or Saudi Arabia and either Iraq or UAE in a three-team round-robin playoff. They will be the underdogs, but they have revelled in that role thus far, and they will be aiming to do the same to punch their tickets to the World Cup for the first time.