Qatar

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Hooligan Soccer

·10 Juni 2026

Qatar – World Cup Profile

Who else but your friendly, neighborhood Qooligan could possibly write the preview for Qatar? All us “Q” names gotta stand by one another, after all.

World Cup History

This will be Qatar’s second appearance in the World Cup. As hosts in 2022, they automatically qualified and also were the first team eliminated. As such, they hold the distinction of being the worst performing host nation in tournament history. So they have a low bar to clear this year.

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How They Qualified

There’s always a stigma associated with host qualification, or accepting an “invitation” to participate in a tournament like the CONCACAF Gold Cup (which they won in 2021). Finally, Qatar can stand up and legitimately claim that they earned (rather than purchased), their spot. They accomplished this by defeating the U.A.E. 2-1 at home and putting together an overall qualification record of 10W, 3D, 5L.

Key Players

Qatar is not short on experience. In fact, they have more players on their roster with 100+ caps than any other nation: seven, to be exact. Conversely, they also have six players with 10 or fewer. Yeah, that’s a funky blend.

Current goal scoring record-holder Almoez Ali (60 at time of publication) will be relied upon to strike the net. He’s spent a decade playing for Al-Duhail SC, but an undisclosed injury kept him off the pitch for most of the 2025/26 season and limited his scoring to a single goal. He’ll also have to watch his temper; he got a straight red card in Qatar’s last friendly against Ireland.

Far more impactful will be Akram Afif. The 29 year-old winger is the most valuable Qatari player (per Transfermarkt), and he also had some monster numbers with Al-Sadd last season (15g/12a).

Hasan Al Haidos is Qatar’s most-capped player with 167, but at 35 years old don’t expect him to start many matches. He’ll mainly be deployed as a late substitution.

Defender Pedro Miguel is a far more critical lynchpin. The center-back is also 35 but still logs full games and even contributed 2g/3a in Al-Sadd’s league campaign last season.

Breakout Player

Realistically, anyone who scores for the Maroons will be heralded as a hero back in Qatar, regardless of age. If the team wins a game, there will likely be a public holiday and significant financial windfalls for the entire team. When analysing a young player, one usually weighs how their performance might translate into a big-name signing. But Qatari players don’t transfer. Of all 48 countries, Qatar has the highest percentage of national team players who compete in their country domestically: 96.7%

Coach Profile: Julen Lopetegui

Most will be surprised to see this name in the gaffer’s slot. Julen Lopetegui is among the ranks of elite coaches internationally, with stints at West Ham United, Wolverhampton, Sevilla, Porto and Real Madrid. He also coached Spain’s national team for nearly two years, with an unbeaten record of 14W 6D. So what’s he doing in Qatar? Collecting a fat paycheck, definitely, but also not really succeeding. He’s been in the post for a year, and his record is a dismal 2W, 4D, 7L.

Still, with many projections indicating that three points could secure advancement into the Round of 32, a sharp mind like Lopetegui’s will focus on the one match where they have the best chance of winning.

So, Does Qatar Have a Chance?

No. None. Zip.

Even in a group as weak as this one, Qatar is more than likely going to place last. Their impact on the World Cup will only be felt as far as the number of goals they concede, and how that determines whether the other country above them in the standings makes of the eight third place positions.