PETALING JAYA, Nov 13 — The Group D competition of the 2026 World Cup/2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers is more of a priority for the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) than the 2023 Asian Cup in Qatar, next January.
FAM president Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin said that that the national team under coach Kim Pan Gon would gain more benefits if successful in qualifying for the third round of the 2026 World Cup.
He stated that the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers provides the best platform to test the level of the Harimau Malaya’s abilities to compete with higher-ranked teams in Asia and the world, including Japan, Australia, and Iran, something that rarely happens for them.
He said the national squad would also accumulate more (ranking) points if they play in this round, thereby improving the Harimau Malaya’s position compared to what they get in friendly matches.
“Competing in the Asian Cup in Qatar is not something unimportant because after 42 years we have qualified and it is a success to be playing there.
“However, if we can qualify for the next stage of the World Cup 2026 Qualifiers, we can create history whereby our team can become one of the top 18 teams (in Asia) and play 10 world-class matches, home and away,” he said at a press conference here today.
Therefore, Hamidin emphasised the importance of strong support from Harimau Malaya fans, including filling the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil to boost the players’ spirits during the opening match of Group D in the World Cup 2026/Asia Cup 2027 Qualifiers against the 97th-ranked team in the world, Kyrgyzstan, this Thursday, which will be followed by an away match against Taiwan (152nd in the world) on November 21.
He acknowledged that fans must be dreaming of seeing Harimau Malaya progress further after the proud achievements under Pan Gon’s leadership, including qualifying for the Asia Cup 2023 for the first time in 42 years.
After two matches this month, Malaysia, ranked 137th in the world, are scheduled to meet the 72nd-ranked Oman away and at home next year on March 21 and 26, face Kyrgyzstan in Bishkek on June 6, and play against Taiwan on June 11 in Malaysia.
According to the competition format, the top two teams in the group will qualify for the third round of World Cup qualification and advance to the Asia Cup, while the third and fourth-placed teams will compete in the third round of Asia Cup qualification.
For the World Cup qualification round, the 18 qualified teams will be divided into three groups, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the World Cup 2026.
The third and fourth-placed teams in each group will qualify for the fourth round of qualification and will be divided into two groups, with the champions of each group qualifying for the World Cup 2026, while the runners-up will compete in a play-off round against teams from other continents.
The World Cup 2026 will be jointly hosted by Canada, Mexico, and the United States with a new format featuring 48 teams, compared to the previous 32.
Three-time champions Saudi Arabia will host the Asia Cup for the first time in 2027.
For the final round of the Asia Cup 2023, Malaysia are drawn in Group E alongside South Korea, Jordan, and Bahrain. — Bernama
