The

Asian Football Confederation The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal in some countries/territories in Asia and Oceania. It has 47 member countries most of which are located in Asia. Australia, formerly i ...

was allocated two assured qualifying berths for the 1990 FIFA World Cup. 26 teams were in the running for these spots;

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

and South Yemen withdrew without playing a qualifying match. Asia's two automatic qualifying berths were taken by

Korea Republic South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

and the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...

Format

*First Round: The Maldives withdrew before the final draw, leaving 25 teams to be divided into 6 groups of 4 or 5 teams each. Nepal was moved from Group 5 to Group 4 after India's withdrawal. The teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis, except in Group 4, where the teams played against each other twice in South Korea and Singapore. The group winners would advance to the Final Round. *Final Round: The 6 teams played against each other once over a 16-day period based in Singapore. The group winner and runner-up would qualify.

First round

Group 1

Qatar advanced to the Final Round.

Group 2

Saudi Arabia advanced to the Final Round.

Group 3

United Arab Emirates advanced to the Final Round.

Group 4

Korea Republic advanced to the Final Round.

Group 5

China PR advanced to the Final Round.

Group 6

Korea DPR advanced to the Final Round.

Final round

Standings

Korea Republic and the United Arab Emirates qualified for the 1990 FIFA World Cup.

Results

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

Qualified teams

The following two teams from AFC qualified for the final tournament. :

¹ Bold indicates champions for that year. ''Italic'' indicates hosts for that year.

Goalscorers

;7 goals *

Hwang Sun-Hong Hwang Sun-hong (born 14 July 1968) is a South Korean former football player and current head coach of the South Korea national under-23 football team. He was the most notable South Korean striker in the 1990s and early 2000s. Club career A ...

;6 goals * Ma Lin *

Ahmed Radhi Ahmed Radhi Humaiesh Al-Salehi, ( ar, أحمد راضي هميش الصالحي, 21 April 1964 – 21 June 2020) was an Iraqi footballer who played as a forward. Regarded as one of Iraq and Asia's best players of all-time, Radhi scored the onl ...

* Mahmoud Yaseen Al-Soufi ;5 goals *

Dollah Salleh Dollah Salleh (born 10 October 1963) is a Malaysian football coach and former player. He is well-known to MSL fans as Pablo Dollah. One of Malaysia's most decorated players, he has also been manager of Malaysia's national team. Playing car ...

;4 goals *

Mai Chao Mai Chao (born on March 9, 1964 in Guangzhou, Guangdong) is a Chinese football coach and a former international football player. He spent his whole playing career for Guangzhou Apollo as an attacking left-back. After retiring, he moved int ...

Kim Yong-Se Kim Yong-Se (Hangul: 김용세, Hanja: 金鏞世, born April 21, 1960) is a former South Korean football player. Playing career After graduation of high school, he started his football career with amateur side Korea Electric Power. One year ...

* Darimosuvito Tokijan *

Adnan Al Talyani Adnan Khamis Mohammed Obaid Al-Talyani Al Suwaidi ( ar, عدنان خميس محمد عبيد الطلياني السويدي) (born 30 October 1964) is a retired footballer from the United Arab Emirates who played as a forward in the UAE Foo ...

;3 goals *

Mohsen Garousi Mohsen Garousi ( fa, محسن گروسی, born 28 November 1968) is an Iranian retired football player and manager. Following his playing career, he coached Shahab Zanjan F.C. and served as the assistant of Farhad Kazemi at Paykan F.C. He was ...

Farshad Pious Farshad Pious ( fa, فرشاد پیوس; born 12 January 1962) is an Iranian retired footballer who played as a forward for a number of clubs in Iran, most notably Persepolis, as well as the Iran national team. He is regarded as one of the best ...

* Chu Gyong-Sik * Kim Pung-Il *

Hwangbo Kwan Hwangbo Kwan ( ko, 황보관; born March 1, 1965) is a South Korean football manager and former player. In the 1990 FIFA World Cup, he recorded a 114 km/h shot on goal against Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España ...

Noh Soo-Jin Noh Soo-Jin (, born on February 10, 1962) is a former South Korea football player. He was a part of the South Korea national football team who of the FIFA World Cup in 1986, 1990. Also he was a member of 1988 Summer Olympics and 1988 AFC A ...

Nizar Mahrous Nizar Hamed Mahrous ( ar, نزار محروس; 12 March 1963), known as Abu Hamed, is a Syrian football manager and former player who is the head coach of Erbil. =Managerial career= Career In May 2011, Mahrous was appointed manager of the Syr ...

* Abdul Razaq Ibrahim ;2 goals *

Tang Yaodong Tang Yaodong (; born 17 February 1962 in Shenyang, China), is a Chinese football manager and former Chinese international footballer. He mainly played as a centre forward for Liaoning FC. Playing career Club career Tang Yaodong began his footb ...

* Wang Baoshan *

Tim Bredbury Tim Bredbury () (born 25 April 1963) is a former Hong Kong professional footballer. Bredbury is a UEFA A/AFC A licensed coach and is currently the head coach of Hong Kong Third Division club Kowloon Cricket Club. Early life Tim Bredbury was bo ...

* Nang Yan Leung *

Herry Kiswanto Herry Kiswanto (born 25 April 1955) is an Indonesian football manager and former player, who played as a libero. He is a former member of the Indonesia national team. On 3 April 2007 he received an Indonesian legendary player award. He is kno ...

Karim Bavi Karim Bavi ( fa, کریم باوی ; 30 December 1964 – 7 December 2022) was an Iranian footballer who played as a striker. Club career Bavi played most of his career for Shahin FC, before moving to another Iranian club Persepolis FC. Inte ...

Hussein Saeed Hussein Saeed Mohammed ( ar, حسين سعيد محمد, born 21 January 1958) is an Iraqi former footballer who played as a forward for the Iraqi Premier League club Al-Talaba and the Iraqi national team and is a former president of the Iraq ...

* Mohamed Al-Diabaz * Khaled Khalil Awad * Ali Marwi *

Salah Al-Hasawi (, plural , romanized: or Old Arabic ͡sˤaˈloːh, ( or Old Arabic ͡sˤaˈloːtʰin construct state) ), also known as ( fa, نماز) and also spelled , are prayers performed by Muslims. Facing the , the direction of the Kaaba ...

Han Hyong-Il Han Hyong-il (; born 1960) is a North Korean former association football, footballer. He represented North Korea on at least twenty-five occasions between 1980 and 1990, scoring six times. Managerial career Han was appointed head coach of the ...

* Ri Hyok-chon * Mansoor Muftah *

Fahad Al-Bishi Fahad bin Al-Harifi bin Fahad Al-Husseini Al-Bishi ( ar, فهد بن الهريفي بن فهد الحسيني البيشي; born 10 September 1965) was a Saudi footballer who played for Al-Nassr and the Saudi Arabia national team. He represent ...

Majed Abdullah Majed Ahmed Abdullah ( ar, ماجد احمد عبد الله; born 11 January 1959) is a Saudi Arabian former footballer who played for Al-Nassr and the Saudi national team. Abdullah is the all-time leading goalscorer for Saudi Arabia with 72 ...

Mohaisen Al-Jam'an Mohaisen Mubarak Al Jam'an Al Dosari ( ar, محيسن الجمعان) (born 6 April 1966) is a former Saudi football (soccer) player. He represented the Saudi national team during the period 1984–1994. He played as a striker. With the natio ...

* Saadoun Al-Suwaiti * Darimosuvito Devaraj *

Salim Moin Salim Moin (26 September 1961 – 6 November 2020) was a former Singaporean footballer who played for the Singapore national football team and managed S.League side Hougang United. He played for the Lions in the Malaysia Cup during the 1980s al ...

* Ahmad Satter * Cho Min-Kook * Choi Sang-Kuk * Lee Tae-Ho * Zuhair Bakhit *

Khalid Ismaïl Khalid Ismaïl Mubarak ( ar, خالد اسماعيل مبارك; born 7 July 1965) is a UAE football (soccer) player who played as a midfielder for the United Arab Emirates national football team and Al-Nasr Club in Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, ...

* Khaleel Mubarak ;1 goal * Mohamed Aslam *

Badal Das ''Badal'' () is a 2000 Indian Hindi-language action drama film directed by Raj Kanwar. The film stars Bobby Deol and Rani Mukerji in lead roles with Amrish Puri. The movie is inspired by '' The Devil's Own'' (1997), starring Harrison Ford a ...

* Wasim Iqbal *

Rumman Bin Wali Sabbir Syed Rumman Bin Wali Sabbir ( bn, সাব্বির), is a Bangladeshi former footballer. He played for Mohammedan Sporting Club (MSC) in the Dhaka domestic league during the 1980s and 1990s. He made several appearances for the Bangladesh ...

Jia Xiuquan Jia Xiuquan (; born 9 November 1963) is a Chinese football manager and former international player. Player career Club career As a player, Jia Xiuquan predominately played the majority of his career for Bayi Football Team. During his time a ...

Liu Haiguang Liu Haiguang (; born July 11, 1963) is a former Chinese international footballer who spent the majority of his career playing for the Shanghai Team, however he gained distinction when he joined Yugoslav club FK Partizan along with Jia Xiuqua ...

Xie Yuxin Xie Yuxin (; born 12 October 1968 in Xingning, Guangdong) is a retired Chinese international footballer. He made more than 100 appearances for his country in international competitions. On 6 February 1987, Yuxin signed for PEC Zwolle '82, be ...

* Zhang Xiaowen * Leslie Santos * Inyong Lolumbuman * Mustaqim * Mustamu Yessy *

Mohammad Hassan Ansarifard Mohammad Hassan Ansarifard ( fa, محمدحسن انصاری‌فرد; born 9 September 1962) is an Iranian former footballer who played for Persepolis and the Iranian national team. He is currently the president of Persepolis F.C. since 27 Au ...

* Sayed Ali Eftekhari *

Sirous Ghayeghran Sirous Ghayeghran ( fa, سيروس قايقران) (22 January 1962 – 7 April 1998) was an Iranian footballer and former captain of Iran national football team. Playing career Club career He played most of his club career for Malavan FC. I ...

* Samad Marfavi *

Natiq Hashim Natiq Hashim Abid-Aoun (15 January 1960 – 26 September 2004) was an Iraqi football midfielder who played for Iraq in the 1986 FIFA World Cup. He also played for Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya. Natiq started his career at Amana youth team in Baghdad along ...

Habib Jafar Habib ( ar, حبيب, ''ḥabīb''; ), sometimes written as Habeeb, is an Arabic masculine given name, occasional surname, and honorific, with the meaning "beloved" or "my love", or "darling". It also forms the famous Arabic word ‘''Habibi’'' ...

* Ismail Mohammed Sharif *

Kenta Hasegawa is a former Japanese football player and manager. He is the current head coach J1 League club of Nagoya Grampus. He played for the Japan national team. Club career Hasegawa was educated at and played for Shimizu Higashi High School. He won ...

Takumi Horiike is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team. Club career Horiike was educated at, and played for, Shimizu Higashi High School. He won the national high school championship with his teammates, including Katsumi Oeno ...

Hisashi Kurosaki is a former Japanese football player and manager. He played for Japan national team. He used his name "黒崎比差支" from 1992 to 1999. Club career Kurosaki was born in Kanuma on May 8, 1968. After graduating from high school, he joined H ...

Osamu Maeda is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team. Club career Maeda was born in Fukuoka on September 5, 1965. After graduating from Tokai University, he joined All Nippon Airways (later ''Yokohama Flügels'') in 1988. I ...

Takashi Mizunuma is a former Japanese football player and manager and football commentator. He played for Japan national team. His son Kota Mizunuma is also a footballer. Club career Mizunuma was born in Saitama on May 28, 1960. After graduating from Hosei ...

Katsuyoshi Shinto is a former Japanese football player and manager. He played for Japan national team. He used his name "信藤克義" until 1992. Club career Shinto was born in Hiroshima on September 15, 1960. After graduating from Chuo University, he joined ...

* Rateb Al-Dawoud * Abdulaziz Al-Hajeri * Fahad Yousef Al-Sovayed * Kurapiah Gunalan * Azizol Abu Haniffah *

Lim Teong Kim Lim Teong Kim (; born 26 August 1963) is a Malaysian professional football coach and former player, who is recently appointed as head coach of Malaysian club Perak FC starting from 2023 season. He is formerly an assistant coach of Bayern Mun ...

* Kim Gwang-Mon * Tak Yong-Bin *

Yun Jong-Su Yun Jong-su (; born 3 January 1962) is a former North Korean football player and the current head coach of the North Korea national football team. He also led North Korea during the 2006 and 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2014 FI ...

* Mohamed Ali Hamoud * Nasser Khaleefa * Ali Sharafat * Saleh Eid Al-Mehaizaa * Jumah Salem Joher * Adel Mubarak Khamis * Mansour Sulaiti * Fahad Al-Musaibeah * Ahmed Madani *

Yousuf Al-Thunayan Yousuf Al-Thunayyan ( ar, يوسف الثُنيان, born November 18, 1963) is a former association football winger and attacking midfielder from Saudi Arabia. He spent all 21 seasons of his senior career at Al-Hilal FC. A playmaker known for ...

* Arj Changatamilman * Tay Peng Kee *

Choi Soon-Ho Choi Soon-ho (Hangul: 최순호; Hanja: 崔淳鎬; born 10 January 1962) is a former South Korean football manager and player. International career Choi was named in the South Korean squad for the 1980 AFC Asian Cup. He scored seven goals ...

* Chung Hae-Won *

Chung Yong-Hwan Chung Yong-hwan (Hangul: 정용환, 10 February 1960 – 7 June 2015) was a South Korean football player and manager. Chung was a one-club man who spent all his professional career in K League side Daewoo Royals. He played for South Korea in 19 ...

* Kim Joo-sung * Lee Hak-Jong * Lee Young-Jin *

Park Kyung-Hoon Park Kyung-hoon (; born 19 January 1961) is a South Korean football manager and former player. Park played for the South Korean national team in 1986 and 1990 FIFA World Cup. He also won the 1986 Asian Games with the national team. Club ca ...

* Walid Al-Nasser * Walid Abou El-Sel * Abdul Latif Helou * Mohammed Jakalan * Prasert Changmool *

Piyapong Pue-On Piyapong Pue-on ( th, ปิยะพงษ์ ผิวอ่อน; ) born: Padej Khankruea ( th, เผด็จ ขันเครือ; ; November 14, 1959) is a Thai retired football player who played as a striker. He was a member of the ...

* Abdulaziz Mohamed *

Abdulrahman Mohamed Abdulrahman Mohamed Abdullaham ( ar, عبد الرحمن محمد عبد الله) (born 1 October 1963) is a retired Emirati footballer. He played as a defender for the UAE national football team and Al-Nasr Club in Dubai. Mohamed played in t ...

;1 own goal * Oh Yong-Nam (playing against Japan)

Notes

External links

Asian Zone
at FIFA.com {{DEFAULTSORT:1990 Fifa World Cup Qualification (Afc) Qual FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) AFC