Six Arab teams at AFC U-23 Asian Cup hope to qualify for Olympics

Doha, Qatar: The six Arab teams participating in the AFC U 23 Asian Cup in Qatar 2024 are seeking an impressive performance, aiming to compete for spo...

Doha, Qatar: The six Arab teams participating in the AFC U-23 Asian Cup in Qatar 2024 are seeking an impressive performance, aiming to compete for spots in the football competition that would qualify them for the upcoming Summer Olympic Games in Paris 2024.

The continental tournament will directly qualify the top three teams for the Olympics, while the fourth-placed team will play a playoff match against the fourth-placed team from the African U-23 Cup, Guinea.

The host team Qatar is hopeful for a third Olympic appearance, with their last appearances being in Barcelona 1992 and Los Angeles 1984 before that. Portuguese coach Helio Sousa relies on experienced players for such tournaments, including striker Ahmed Al Rawi, midfielder Tameem Mansour Miftah, goalkeeper Amir Hassan, and Jassem Jaber.

Qatar's team relies on home advantage and fan support to compete for the title, showcasing Qatar's remarkable rise in Asian football in recent years, winning the Asian Cup in 2019 in the UAE and 2023 in Doha.

Qatar has participated in four previous editions, debuting in 2016 when they hosted the tournament and qualified for the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympics. They reached the semi-finals but lost to South Korea 3-1 and finished fourth after losing 2-0 to Iraq. Qatar returned in 2018 in China, finishing third by defeating South Korea 3-1 in the third-place match. In 2020 in Bangkok, they exited in the group stage, finishing third in Group B.