Syria at the AFC Asian Cup

Syria has been a major participant in the AFC Asian Cup with seven appearances in the tournament, in 1980, 1984, 1988, 1996, 2011, 2019, and 2023. At 2023 Asian Cup, Omar Khribin scored the only goal in a 1–0 victory over India, which granted Syria its first win in the competition since 2011, and first ever qualification to the knockout phase as one of the best third-placed teams.^[1]

Until 2024, Syria have never qualified past the group stage in the Asian Cup, with them narrowly missing out on the knock-out stage in 1980 and knock-out stage in 1996 due to 1 missed point; both eliminations involved China national football team.

AFC Asian Cup record

1980 Kuwait

Group A

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Iran	4	2	2	0	12	4	+8	6
North Korea	4	3	0	1	9	7	+2	6
Syria	4	2	1	1	3	2	+1	5
China	4	1	1	2	9	5	+4	3
Bangladesh	4	0	0	4	2	17	−15	0

17 September 1980

Iran	0–0	Syria

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 15,000

19 September 1980

Bangladesh	0–1	Syria
		Keshek 7'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

23 September 1980

Syria	1–0	China
Keshek 86'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

26 September 1980

North Korea	2–1	Syria
		Suleiman

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

1984 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

1 December 1984

19:00

Qatar	1–1	Syria
Khalfan 7'		Anber 47' (o.g.)

National Stadium, Singapore

Attendance: 8,000

Referee: Antonio Márquez (Mexico)

4 December 1984

21:00

Syria	0–1	Saudi Arabia
		Khalifa 66'

National Stadium, Singapore

Attendance: 2,000

Referee: Shizuo Takada (Japan)

7 December 1984

21:00

Syria	1–0	South Korea
Hassan 12'

National Stadium, Singapore

Attendance: 10,000

Referee: George Courtney (England)

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: Cheung Kwok Kui (Hong Kong)

1988 Qatar

Group B

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

2 December 1988

18:00

Syria	0–2	Saudi Arabia
	Report	Al-Mutlaq 20' Al-Suwaiyed 82'

Qatar SC Stadium, Doha

Referee: Erik Fredriksson (Sweden)

4 December 1988

17:00

China	3–0	Syria
Gao Sheng 13' Xie Yuxin 14', 19'	Report

Qatar SC Stadium, Doha

Referee: Mohamed Hansal (Algeria)

8 December 1988

17:00

Syria	1–0	Kuwait
Al-Nasser 63'	Report

Al-Ahly Stadium, Doha

Referee: Yusuf Namoğlu (Turkey)

11 December 1988

15:00

Bahrain	0–1	Syria
	Report	Abu Al-Sel 72' (pen.)

Qatar SC Stadium, Doha

Referee: Michel Vautrot (France)

1996 United Arab Emirates

Group C

Team	Pts	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	GD
Japan	9	3	3	0	7	1	+6
China	3	3	1	2	3	3	0
Syria	3	3	1	2	3	6	−3
Uzbekistan	3	3	1	2	3	6	−3

6 December 1996

16:45

Japan	2–1	Syria
Abbas 85' (o.g.) Takagi 88'	Report	Jokhadar 8'

Tahnoun Bin Mohamed Stadium, Al Ain

Attendance: 10,000

Referee: Mohd Nazri Abdullah (Malaysia)

9 December 1996

19:00

Syria	0–3	China
	Report	Ma Mingyu 35' Gao Feng 49' Li Bing 73'

Tahnoun Bin Mohamed Stadium, Al Ain

Attendance: 3,000

Referee: Kim Young-Joo (South Korea)

12 December 1996

19:00

Uzbekistan	1–2	Syria
Lebedev 53' (pen.)	Report	Jokhadar 48' Dib 74'

Tahnoun Bin Mohamed Stadium, Al Ain

Attendance: 2,000

Referee: Ali Bujsaim (United Arab Emirates)

2011 Qatar

Group B

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Japan	3	2	1	0	8	2	+6	7
Jordan	3	2	1	0	4	2	+2	7
Syria	3	1	0	2	4	5	−1	3
Saudi Arabia	3	0	0	3	1	8	−7	0


9 January 2011
Saudi Arabia	1–2	Syria^[2]
13 January 2011
Syria	1–2	Japan^[3]
17 January 2011
Jordan	2–1	Syria

2019 United Arab Emirates

Group B

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Jordan	3	2	1	0	3	0	+3	7	Advance to knockout stage
2	Australia	3	2	0	1	6	3	+3	6	Advance to knockout stage
3	Palestine	3	0	2	1	0	3	−3	2
4	Syria	3	0	1	2	2	5	−3	1

Source: AFC

6 January 2019

20:00

Syria	0–0	Palestine
	Report

Sharjah Stadium, Sharjah

Attendance: 8,471

Referee: Ravshan Irmatov (Uzbekistan)

10 January 2019

17:30

Jordan	2–0	Syria
Al-Taamari 26' Khattab 43'	Report

Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain

Attendance: 9,152

Referee: Kim Dong-jin (South Korea)

15 January 2019

17:30

Australia	3–2	Syria
Mabil 41' Ikonomidis 54' Rogic 90+3'	Report	Kharbin 43' Al Somah 80' (pen.)

Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain

Attendance: 10,492

Referee: César Ramos (Mexico)

2023 Qatar

Group B

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Australia	3	2	1	0	4	1	+3	7	Advance to knockout stage
2	Uzbekistan	3	1	2	0	4	1	+3	5
3	Syria	3	1	1	1	1	1	0	4
4	India	3	0	0	3	0	6	−6	0

Source: AFC

13 January 2024

20:30

Uzbekistan	0–0	Syria
	Report

Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Al Rayyan

Attendance: 10,198

Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)

18 January 2024

14:30

Syria	0–1	Australia
	Report	Irvine 59'

Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Al Rayyan

Attendance: 10,097

Referee: Adel Al-Naqbi (United Arab Emirates)

23 January 2024

14:30

Syria	1–0	India
Khribin 76'	Report

Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor

Attendance: 42,787

Referee: Sivakorn Pu-udom (Thailand)

Ranking of third-placed teams

Pos	Grp	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	E	Jordan	3	1	1	1	6	3	+3	4	Advance to knockout stage
2	C	Palestine	3	1	1	1	5	5	0	4
3	B	Syria	3	1	1	1	1	1	0	4
4	D	Indonesia	3	1	0	2	3	6	−3	3
5	F	Oman	3	0	2	1	2	3	−1	2
6	A	China	3	0	2	1	0	1	−1	2

Source: AFC

Knockout stage

Round of 16

31 January 2024

19:00

Iran	1–1 (a.e.t.)	Syria
Taremi 34' (pen.)	Report	Khribin 64' (pen.)
Penalties
Ansarifard Rezaeian Ebrahimi Torabi Hajsafi	5–3	Sabbag Youssef Ousou Al Dali

Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha

Attendance: 8,720

Referee: Kim Jong-hyeok (South Korea)

Overall record

AFC Asian Cup record								AFC Asian Cup qualification record
Year	Round	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1956	Did not enter							Declined participation
1960
1964
1968
1972	Did not qualify							3	0	2	1	4	5
1976	Withdrew							Withdrew
1980	Round 1	4	2	1	1	3	2	3	2	1	0	2	0
1984	Round 1	4	1	1	2	3	5	5	3	0	2	9	8
1988	Round 1	4	2	0	2	2	5	4	3	1	0	8	2
1992	Did not qualify							2	1	0	1	3	4
1996	Round 1	3	1	0	2	3	6	4	3	0	1	6	2
2000	Did not qualify							6	4	1	1	11	3
2004								6	2	1	3	16	10
2007								6	2	2	2	10	6
2011	Round 1	3	1	0	2	4	5	6	4	2	0	10	2
2015	Did not qualify							6	1	1	4	7	7
2019	Round 1	3	0	1	2	2	5	8	6	0	2	26	11
2023	Round of 16	4	1	2	1	2	2	8	7	0	1	22	7
2027	To be determined							4	2	1	1	9	6
Total	Round of 16	25	8	5	12	19	30	72	40	13	20	143	74

Record by opponent

As of 31 January 2024

AFC Asian Cup matches (by team)
Opponent	Played	Wins	Draws	Losses	Goals Scored	Goals Conceded	Last Win
South Korea	1	1	0	0	1	0	1984
Iran	2	0	2	0	1	1	DNW
Bangladesh	1	1	0	0	1	0	1980
Bahrain	1	1	0	0	1	0	1988
Kuwait	2	1	0	1	2	3	1988
China	3	1	0	2	1	6	1980
Saudi Arabia	3	1	0	2	2	4	2011
Japan	2	0	0	2	2	4	DNW
Uzbekistan	2	1	1	0	2	1	1996
Australia	2	0	0	2	2	4	DNW
North Korea	1	0	0	1	1	2	DNW
Jordan	2	0	0	2	1	4	DNW
Palestine	1	0	1	0	0	0	DNW
Qatar	1	0	1	0	1	1	DNW
India	1	1	0	0	1	0	2023

Record results

Syria's Asian Cup record
First match	Iran 0–0 Syria (17 September 1980; Kuwait City, Kuwait)
Biggest win	Uzbekistan 1–2 Syria (12 December 1996; Al Ain, United Arab Emirates) Saudi Arabia 1–2 Syria (9 January 2011; Al Rayyan, Qatar) Syria 1–0 India (23 January 2024; Al Khor, Qatar)
Biggest defeat	China 3–0 Syria (4 December 1988; Doha, Qatar) China 3–0 Syria (9 December 1996; Al Ain, United Arab Emirates)
Best result	Round of 16 (2023)
Worst result	Group stage (1980, 1984, 1988, 1996, 2011, 2019)

Goalscorers


Player	Goals	1980	1984	1988	1996	2011	2019	2023
Omar Khribin	3						1	2
Walid Abu Al-Sel	2		1	1
Jamal Keshek	2	2
Nader Joukhadar	2				2
Abdelrazaq Al-Hussain	2					2
Total	11	2	1	1	2	2	1	2

Only players with minimum 2 goals scored

References

^ "Syria beat India to reach Asian Cup knockouts for first time". France 24. 23 January 2024.
^ "Syria shock Saudi Arabia at Asian Cup; Japan snatch draw". edition.cnn.com.
^ "Syria vs Japan Report - Goal.com". Archived from the original on 2011-03-17. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
^ "AFC Competition Operations Manual (Edition 2023)" (PDF). Asian Football Confederation.

[1] "Syria beat India to reach Asian Cup knockouts for first time". France 24. 23 January 2024.

[2] "Syria shock Saudi Arabia at Asian Cup; Japan snatch draw". edition.cnn.com.

[3] "Syria vs Japan Report - Goal.com". Archived from the original on 2011-03-17. Retrieved 2018-06-06.

[Operations_Manual-4] "AFC Competition Operations Manual (Edition 2023)" (PDF). Asian Football Confederation.

[1]

[2]

[3]

v t e Syria national football team
General	Syrian Arab Federation for Football History Managers
Venues	Al-Fayhaa Stadium
Statistics	1940–99 2000–09 2010–19 2020–present All-time record
Players	International footballers
Asian Cup Finals	Summary 1980 1984 1988 1996 2011 2019 2023
Other tournaments	Olympic Games Asian Games Mediterranean Games WAFF Championship FIFA Arab Cup 1974 Kuneitra Cup
Notable matches	1966 Arab Cup final 1988 Arab Cup final 2000 WAFF Championship Final 2004 WAFF Championship Final 2012 WAFF Championship Final 2018 World Cup fourth round qualifier
Noted rivalries	Iraq Lebanon
Other teams	Men U-23 U-20 U-17 Futsal Beach Women Senior U-20

v t e Countries at the AFC Asian Cup
Team appearances
AFF	Australia Cambodia Indonesia Malaysia Myanmar Philippines Singapore Thailand Vietnam¹
CAFA	Iran Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan 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 United Arab Emirates 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.