Group: I — France, Senegal, Iraq, Norway

How they Qualified: Beat Bolivia 2-1 in the inter-confederation playoff final, booking Iraq’s first World Cup appearance since 1986.

Best World Cup Finish: Group stage (1986)

Transfermarkt Roster Value: $12.61 M

FIFA Rank: 57

Odds to Win Group: 40-1

Odds to Advance: +450

Odds to Win Cup: 1000-1

Key Players:

  • Aymen Hussein — Striker — Al-Karma (Iraq). The main reference point up top, with 88 caps and 31 international goals, scoring the winning goal against Bolivia to put Iraq into the cup.
  • Ali Jasim — Winger — Al-Najma (Saudi Arabia). One of Iraq’s most dynamic wide threats, leading the team in assists in their qualification run.
  • Akam Hashem — Center Back — Al Zawraa (Iraq). The heart of Iraq’s defense. The 27-year-old center back was one of the standout players during their 2025 Arab Cup campaign.

Playing Style and Outlook

In the key qualifiers and playoff games, under Australian coach Graham Arnold, Iraq lined up in a 4-2-3-1 against South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE in the second leg, while using a 4-4-2 against Indonesia, the UAE in the first leg, and Bolivia in the playoff final. Earlier in the cycle, under previous coach Jesús Casas, they also used a 3-4-3 in the March 2025 loss to Palestine. The cleanest read now is that Iraq have settled into a compact back-four setup that can toggle between 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2 depending on the opponent.

The results back up that tactical profile. In Arnold’s biggest matches, Iraq ground out a 1-0 win over Indonesia, a 0-0 draw with Saudi Arabia, a 1-1 draw away to the UAE, a 2-1 home win over the UAE, and then the 2-1 playoff win over Bolivia. In that deciding match against Bolivia, Iraq held just 32% of the possession.

That is not the résumé of a possession-heavy side trying to overwhelm teams with the ball. It looks much more like a team built to stay organized, defend in numbers, and lean on moments from players like Ali Jasim, Aymen Hussein, and Ali Al-Hamadi.

That makes Iraq a dangerous underdog. They are deserved long shots in a group with France, Senegal, and Norway, but they are also not a soft touch. Arnold’s teams tend to be pragmatic, tournament-minded, and comfortable in ugly games, and Iraq have enough attacking punch to make one of the bigger teams uncomfortable if they can keep the margins tight. Advancing would still be an upset, but this is the kind of team nobody will enjoy playing.