São Paulo – After 40 years of waiting, Iraq is back at a FIFA World Cup. The Arab team defeated Bolivia 2–1 in the early hours of Wednesday (1) in a match played in Monterrey, Mexico—the same country where Iraq played its only World Cup and which will now be one of the tournament’s three hosts, alongside Canada and the United States.
In celebration of the qualification, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani will receive the team for a tribute to the players. According to the state news agency INA, he told the squad in a phone call that they had brought “joy” to Iraqis and elevated the country’s name.
In the match, Al-Hamadi opened the scoring with a header from a corner for Iraq just nine minutes into the first half. Paniagua equalized for Bolivia at the 37-minute mark. Seven minutes into the second half, Hussein capitalized on a cross from Zaid Tahssen to put Iraq back in front. With the lead secured, all that remained was to hold on until the final whistle and celebrate: the country has its ticket punched to the tournament.
Iraq will make its debut on June 16 against Norway in a Group I match, which also includes France and Senegal. The Arab team secured the final playoff spot in a round that also saw five other teams qualify for the tournament: Sweden, Bosnia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Turkey and the Czech Republic.
The other Arab countries set to take part in the tournament are Qatar, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Jordan. The World Cup kicks off on June 11 at Estadio Azteca, in Mexico, with a match between the host nation and South Africa.
Read more:
Jordan to play its first World Cup
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
