Iraq national football team

The Iraq national football team (), nicknamed the Lions of Mesopotamia (),

Iraq made its first FIFA World Cup appearance in 1986, scoring a solitary goal against Belgium, and qualified for the second time in 2026. Iraq is one of eight current AFC nations to have won the AFC Asian Cup, claiming the title in 2007 in spite of difficult conditions and limited preparation. Iraq defeated some of the favourites in the competition including Australia, South Korea and Saudi Arabia. This qualified the team for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup where they earned two points in the group stage; they later finished fourth at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup.

Iraq is the Arab Cup's most successful nation with four titles, and has also won the Arabian Gulf Cup four times and the WAFF Championship once. Iraq is known for its passionate football fans and the national team is seen as a symbol of hope and unity for Iraqi people. The team reached its highest FIFA World Ranking of 39th in October 2004.

History

Early years and regional success (1948–1979)

thumbnail|right|250px|The Iraqi national football team in 1951; they played two games in the Turkish cities of [[İzmir and Ankara.]]

On 8 October 1948, the Iraq Football Association was founded. The Iraq FA joined FIFA in 1950 and in April 1951, Iraq played their first match: a 5–0 win over the Civil Cantonment (CC) team of Habbaniyah.

In 1962, Iraq appointed their first foreign manager, Romanian coach Cornel Drăgușin. Iraq won their first trophy in 1964 when they won the Arab Cup, winning three and drawing one of their four games. In the following edition, they retained their Arab Cup title, beating Syria 2–1 in the final in Baghdad. The 1976 Asian Cup would be the last Asian Cup that Iraq appeared in for the next 20 years, as they withdrew from the next three editions.

1980s – First Golden Generation

The 1980s was arguably Iraq's most successful period in their history. They started the decade off disappointingly, being knocked out in the first round of qualifiers for the 1982 FIFA World Cup. In 1982, they won the gold medal at the 1982 Asian Games. In 1984, Iraq won the Arabian Gulf Cup. The following year, they won the 1985 Arab Cup and also won the gold medal at the 1985 Arab Games.

1986 FIFA World Cup: Iraq’s historic first qualification

Iraq were seeded into the first round of qualifiers where they faced Qatar and Jordan. Iraq topped Group 1B with 6 points, and advanced to the second round. Iraq faced United Arab Emirates in two legs. Iraq defeated UAE 3–2 in Dubai.

Iraq lost 2–1 to UAE in the second leg. Iraq progressed on away goals after a 4–4 aggregate scoreline and advanced to the final round. In the final round, Iraq drew 0-0 against Syria in Damascus. Iraq defeated Syria 3–1 in the second leg in Taif. Iraq won 3–1 on aggregate and qualified for the 1986 FIFA World Cup.

At their first game of the Group B at the 1986 FIFA World Cup, Iraq played well against Paraguay, losing narrowly 1–0 despite scoring a goal that was controversially disallowed by the referee. Iraq recorded their first World Cup goal in the second game, scoring against Belgium in a 1–2 defeat despite having ten men, with Ahmed Radhi scoring a goal for Iraq. Iraq played against hosts Mexico in the third game, losing 1–0 and being eliminated from the World Cup.

In the following years, Iraq won the 1988 Arabian Gulf Cup and won the 1988 Arab Cup. Overall, Iraq won nine competitions in the 1980s and played in their first World Cup, leading many to believe that this was the golden era of Iraqi football. In 1989, Iraq competed in qualifying for a berth in the 1990 World Cup finals, but they lost a crucial game against Qatar.

1990s – The Dark Era

Following the Gulf War in 1990, Iraq was banned from participating in the Asian Games and in most Arab competitions. The ban wasn't extended to the World Cup.

1994 FIFA World Cup qualification: The Agony of Doha

In 1993, Iraq participated in qualifiers for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Grouped with China, Yemen, Jordan and Pakistan in the first stage, Iraq proved to be too strong for the rest, with the team only failing to win twice, a draw to Jordan and loss to China.

In the final round, Iraq was grouped with Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Japan, Iran and North Korea. On the first matchday, Iraq lost 3–2 to North Korea in a dramatic way, being 2–0 ahead in the second half. After an Iraqi player was sent off, North Korea pulled back in the 67th minute, equalized in the 77th minute and scored the winner in the 82nd minute. They then tied 2–2 with South Korea. and then defeated Iran 2–1 by goals of Ahmed Radhi and Alaa Kadhim.

Iraq missed out on a World Cup spot by two points. By drawing their last game with Japan 2–2, they denied the Japanese a place in the finals in a match referred to by the Japanese media as the Agony of Doha. The loss against North Korea proved to be the difference with the other teams, as North Korea lost their other 4 matches and finished bottom of the group.

1996 AFC Asian Cup: Return after two decades

Iraq participated in the 1996 AFC Asian Cup, their first Asian Cup campaign for 20 years after being banned in 1992 and withdrawing from the three tournaments before that. They reached the quarter-finals but lost to the United Arab Emirates due to a golden goal scored by Abdulrahman Ibrahim. In 1996, Iraq was ranked 139th in the world, which is their worst FIFA ranking in their history due to inactivity after withdrawing from several tournaments.

In 1997, Iraq participated in qualifiers for the 1998 FIFA World Cup but were knocked out at the first round following two defeats by Kazakhstan.

This period is known as 'The Dark Era' as Uday Hussein, the son of Saddam Hussein and then-president of IFA, abused his control of Iraqi football and tortured players who played poorly, punishing them by sending them to prison, making them bathe in raw sewage and kick concrete balls, and shaving their heads among many other punishments.

2000s – Second Golden Generation

The 2000s was considered to be the rebirth of a new Iraqi football golden generation. However, Iraq had a rocky beginning. Iraq played in the 2000 AFC Asian Cup but were knocked out at the quarter-final stage again, this time by Japan in a 4–1 loss. Iraq reached the final round of 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification for the first time since 1994 but lost five of their eight second-round games and therefore failed to make the finals. Iraq won their first ever WAFF Championship in 2002, beating Jordan 3–2 in the final after extra time.

In the 2004 AFC Asian Cup, Iraq lost the opening match against Uzbekistan, then they won against Turkmenistan and Saudi Arabia respectively, to reach the quarter-finals before getting knocked out by China. In the same year they were knocked out at the second round of 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers by Uzbekistan.

Iraq were ranked as high as 39th in the World Rankings in October 2004 which is their highest ranking position in their history. The following year, Iraq won the gold medal in the West Asian Games by beating Syria in the final via a penalty shootout. In 2007, Iraq were knocked out at the group stage of the Arabian Gulf Cup after a controversial defeat to Saudi Arabia. Akram Salman was sacked and Jorvan Vieira appointed as head coach. Under him, Iraq reached the final of the WAFF Championship but lost 2–1 to Iran.

2007 AFC Asian Cup: Iraq's famous first continental title

thumbnail|right|250px|Iraq playing against [[Australia men's national soccer team|Australia in Group A of the 2007 AFC Asian Cup; Iraq won the game 3–1 on their way to winning the cup.]]

In July 2007, Iraq kicked off their 2007 AFC Asian Cup campaign. The squad was made mainly of players that won the 2000 AFC Youth Championship, finished fourth at the 2004 Olympic Games and second at the 2006 Asian Games. Vieira only had two months to prepare his team for the tournament, and the team suffered from very poor facilities. The Iraq FA struggled to provide the team with enough kits for the tournament and Iraq had not been able to play any previous games in their own country for security reasons and most of the players had had family members killed in the war.

The team started the tournament with a 1–1 draw against joint-hosts Thailand before producing a 3–1 win over favourites Australia. A draw with Oman followed to put Iraq into the quarter-finals where two goals from Younis Mahmoud against Vietnam put Iraq into the semi-finals for the second time in their history. They manages to knock out one of the best Asian teams, South Korea in the semis via a penalty shootout in which Noor Sabri made a crucial save. but they decided to go on in honour of the dead and succeeded in doing that after defeating Saudi Arabia 1–0 in the final, a game that they dominated from start to finish and that was won by a Younis Mahmoud header. This tournament win is seen as one of the greatest upsets in international history as a war-torn country became international champions in what is described as one of sport's greatest 'fairytales'.

Vieira stated during the final that he would resign after the Asian Cup. He was replaced by Egil Olsen in September 2007.

2010 FIFA World Cup qualification: Controversial early exit

Under Egil Olsen, Iraq advanced from the first round by beating Pakistan 7–0 on aggregate. Then they were drawn with Australia, China, and Qatar for the second round. On the first matchday, Iraq tied China. As a consequence, Olsen was sacked and replaced by Adnan Hamad. The next two matches saw Iraq lose twice to Qatar and Australia. However, Iraq bounced back with an 1–0 win on Australia and 2–1 win against China.

On 26 May 2008, FIFA decided to suspend Iraq from all international competitions after the Iraq Football Association was disbanded by the government on 20 May 2008. The suspension was provisionally and conditionally lifted on 29 May 2008. Iraq needed 1 point to advance to the final stage on the last matchday, but failed to advance to the final round of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers as a 1–0 defeat to Qatar saw them finish in third in the group. Following this, the Iraq FA decided to disband the team and sacked Hamad.

Qatar fielded ineligible player Emerson in the 2–0 defeat to Iraq on 26 March 2008, prompting FIFA to controversially suspend him but clear Qatar of any wrongdoing, in direct contradiction to its decisions against Singapore. Iraq appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport but it was rejected by the CAS, saying that Iraq submitted documents and appeal fees too late.

Jorvan Vieira was reappointed in September 2008. After a disappointing 2009 Arabian Gulf Cup, Vieira was sacked and replaced by Bora Milutinovic.

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup: Iraq on the global stage

In 2009, Iraq participated in only their second FIFA tournament ever: the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, which they qualified for by winning the 2007 AFC Asian Cup. They started the tournament with a 0–0 draw with hosts South Africa, before losing 1–0 to UEFA Euro 2008 winners Spain. Iraq drew the last game 0–0 with New Zealand and were knocked out.

On 20 November 2009, the FIFA Emergency Committee suspended the Iraq FA due to government interference; the suspension was lifted on 19 March 2010.

2010s – Ups and downs

thumbnail|300px|The Iraqi national team pose ahead of their [[2014 FIFA World Cup qualification match against China in Doha.]]

Iraq qualified automatically for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup. They were drawn against Iran, North Korea and UAE in Group D. After a 2–1 loss against Iran, and 1–0 win against UAE, Iraq went into the match against North Korea needing only a draw to progress. Iraq won 1–0 and advanced to the quarterfinals as group runners-up. On 23 January, Iraq lost to Australia, 1–0, in the quarterfinal. The match went into extra time with Harry Kewell heading in a goal in the 117th minute just inside the 18-yard box.

Under coach Wolfgang Sidka, Iraq were drawn into the second round of qualifiers for the 2014 FIFA World Cup where they faced Yemen. Iraq defeated Yemen 2–0 in Arbil on 23 July before drawing 0–0 in Al Ain five days later. Iraq advanced to the third round of qualifiers where they were grouped with Jordan, China and Singapore. The IFA announced it would not renew Wolfgang Sidka's contract on 2 August 2011. On 29 August 2011, Brazilian legend Zico signed a one-year contract to become the new coach of Iraq.

Iraq topped Group A with 15 points, and in the final qualification stage was drawn with Jordan, Japan, Australia and Oman. Iraq started with 1–1 draws against Jordan away and Oman at home. After their slow start, Iraq lost 1–0 to Japan away and lost a crucial home match against Australia 2–1, moving them into bottom position with 2 points. On 14 November 2012, Iraq won 1–0 against Jordan in Doha which elevated them to third in Group B, behind Australia on goal difference and ahead of Oman.

On 28 November 2012, Zico resigned as head coach. The Iraqi FA appointed Vladimir Petrović as his replacement on 25 February 2013. However, on 11 June 2013, Iraq lost 1–0 to Japan in Doha and were eliminated from the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

2015 AFC Asian Cup: Iraq's run to the semi-finals

Iraq were in a 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualifying group alongside Saudi Arabia, China and Indonesia. After losing consecutively against China and Saudi Arabia, Iraq was in danger of missing out on the Asian Cup. They kept alive their hopes of qualifying for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup with a 2–0 away win over Indonesia on 19 November 2013, and on the last matchday, Iraq booked their spot with a commanding 3–1 win at the Sharjah Stadium against China. Due to bad results at the 22nd Arabian Gulf Cup, Hakeem Shaker was sacked and the FA appointed Radhi Shenaishil as caretaker coach.

Iraq began the 2015 AFC Asian Cup campaign with a 1–0 win over Jordan. In the next match, Iraq faced Japan and lost the match 0–1. Iraq then beat Palestine 2–0 and qualified to knockout stage as the Group D runner-up. Iraq defeated Iran in the quarter-finals in penalties, 7–6, after the game ended 3–3 after 120 minutes of play. They faced South Korea in the semi-finals but lost 0–2. Iraq finished the AFC Asian Cup in fourth place, after losing 2–3 to United Arab Emirates in third/fourth place play-off.

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification: Struggles in the final round

For the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Iraq were drawn with Thailand, Vietnam and Chinese Taipei.

In August 2015, Yahya Alwan was appointed coach for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. After initially starting well with a 5–1 win against Chinese Taipei, two consecutive draws against Thailand and Vietnam left Iraq in real danger of missing out on the final round. On 24 March 2016, Iraq tied 2–2 with Thailand and Alwan was replaced with Abdul-Ghani Shahad. Five days later, he led Iraq to the final round and 2019 AFC Asian Cup by beating Vietnam 1–0.

On 15 April 2016, Radhi Shenaishil became the new coach of Iraq in order to lead the team in the final round. For the final round, Iraq was drawn with Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Thailand. After seven matchdays, Iraq only managed to collect 4 points by beating Thailand and tie 1–1 with Australia. As a result, Shenaishil was sacked on April 10, 2017.

Basim Qasim was appointed for the remainder of the qualifiers and Iraq finished fifth in the final round of the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification.

thumbnail|300px|The Iraqi national team pose ahead of their [[2019 AFC Asian Cup match against Iran in Dubai.]]

2019 AFC Asian Cup: Defeat to the eventual champions

The 2019 AFC Asian Cup draw put Iraq in Group D, with Iran, Vietnam, and Yemen.

On 3 September 2018, Srečko Katanec was appointed as head coach on a three-year contract to lead Iraq in the 2019 AFC Asian Cup and 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification.

Their first match took place on 8 January 2019 against Vietnam and ended in a 3–2 victory for Iraq. Their second match against Yemen on January 12 ended in a 3–0 victory, with goals coming from Mohanad Ali, Bashar Resan, and Alaa Abbas. In their final group game, Iraq faced Iran on January 16, resulting in a 0–0 draw. With these performances, Iraq finished second in Group D and advanced to the knockout stage.

In the Round of 16, Iraq faced Qatar. Despite their efforts, Iraq suffered a 1–0 defeat, with Bassam Al-Rawi scoring the only goal, ending their journey in the tournament. Qatar later won the tournament.

2020s – Return to prominence

Iraq participated in the second round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. They were placed in Group C alongside Bahrain, Iran, Cambodia, and Hong Kong and reached the final round with five wins from eight matches including a 2–1 victory against Iran.

Iraq went 19 consecutive matches without losing between 2019 and 2021 and moved up from 89th to 68th in the FIFA rankings during Katanec's tenure. Katanec departed in July 2021 after six months of unpaid wages and filed a complaint with FIFA.

On 31 July 2021, Dutchman Dick Advocaat was appointed head coach of Iraq. Under Advocaat, Iraq made to a slow start to the final round of World Cup Qualifiers, drawing four games and losing two, and on 21 November 2021, Advocaat resigned. Željko Petrović took charge of the team for the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup, where Iraq were eliminated from the group stage. Petrović was sacked after two further winless qualifying games and Abdul-Ghani Shahad was appointed as an interim manager, but Iraq were eliminated after finishing fourth in the group.

On 7 November 2022, Jesús Casas was appointed head coach of the Iraq national football team, with a contract running until the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In his first tournament in charge, Iraq hosted and won the 25th Arabian Gulf Cup, defeating Oman 3–2 after extra time in the final.

Iraq was drawn in Group D of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup with Japan, Vietnam, and Indonesia. On 15 January 2024, Iraq overcame Indonesia 3–1. Four days later, Iraq created the biggest shock in the tournament, stunning Japan (who had been undefeated in the last 11 matches) by beating them 2–1 in the second group match to ensure first place in the group; both Iraq goals were scored by Aymen Hussein. With the outcome confirmed, Iraq largely rotated their squad on the final match against Vietnam, and ended up triumphant 3–2 to make history by earning a perfect record of nine points. However, Iraq suffered a shock defeat in the Round of 16, losing 2–3 to Jordan to exit the tournament. The result was controversial due to a second yellow card shown to Aymen Hussein by the referee for his celebration after he had scored to take a 2–1 lead.

2026 FIFA World Cup: Return to the World Cup after forty years

During the second round of World Cup qualification, Iraq was placed in Group F alongside Vietnam, the Philippines, and Indonesia. The team had an impressive run, winning all six matches, securing qualification to the next round and for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. In the third round of qualification, Iraq was drawn into Group B, which included South Korea, Jordan, Palestine, Oman, and Kuwait. However, despite early momentum, Iraq struggled to maintain consistency. Following a 2–1 defeat to Palestine on 27 March 2025, the Iraq Football Association (IFA) held an urgent meeting and unanimously decided to dismiss Casas and his coaching staff. His contract was officially terminated on 15 April 2025.

Casas was succeeded by Australian coach Graham Arnold, who previously coached his own national team in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Arnold took over for the final matches of the third round, but Iraq finished third in the group and missed out on direct qualification to the World Cup, instead proceeding to the fourth round of qualifiers. In the fourth round, Iraq were drawn with hosts Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. Iraq ended Indonesia's hope of qualification with a 1–0 victory, however Iraq finished as group runners-up after a goalless draw with Saudi Arabia, who qualified to the World Cup on goals scored. Iraq advanced to the two-legged fifth round playoff against the United Arab Emirates; in the first leg in Abu Dhabi, the teams drew 1–1. In the return leg in Basra, Iraq triumphed 2–1, winning the tie 3–2 on aggregate, thanks to a dramatic stoppage-time penalty converted by Amir Al-Ammari. With that victory, Iraq advanced to the inter-confederation play-offs, where they were drawn to face the winner of the game between Bolivia and Suriname in a play-off match held in Mexico to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Iraq ultimately faced Bolivia and defeated them 2–1, with Aymen Hussein scoring the decisive goal to secure Iraq's place at the World Cup.

Iraq's successful qualifying campaign for the 2026 World Cup is considered one of the longest ever by a national team, spanning 21 matches over a period of 28 months beginning in November 2023.

Team image

Colours

The traditional colours of the Iraq national football team are green, white and black. Green and white are often interchangeable as Iraq's home and away colours, while black is used as the third colour.

The national team frequently wore white kits during the 1960s and early 1970s, including at the 1966 Arab Cup and during early FIFA World Cup qualifying campaigns. Green became increasingly prominent from the mid-1970s onward, notably during the 4th Arabian Gulf Cup and the 1976 AFC Asian Cup. Over time, it developed into the team’s primary football colour and was often combined with white details inspired by the national flag. The shade of green has varied across different periods, ranging from brighter tones in earlier decades to darker modern interpretations introduced by manufacturers such as Adidas and Umbro.

Iraq have also previously worn red, yellow and blue kits. One of the most notable departures from the traditional colour scheme occurred during the 1986 FIFA World Cup, when Iraq wore yellow against Paraguay and blue against Belgium and Mexico despite having mainly used green and white during qualification. Former Iraqi players later stated that members of the team delegation had attempted to retain the traditional colours, but the request was rejected by then-Iraq Football Association president Uday Hussein, who reportedly insisted on using yellow and blue kits. Following the tournament, Iraq gradually returned to green-and-white combinations.

Since the 2000s, green and white have again formed the basis of Iraq’s visual identity, while black has increasingly been used for alternative kits, particularly in designs incorporating references to Mesopotamian civilisation, Babylonian ornamentation and traditional Iraqi motifs. One of the most notable examples was Umbro’s black third kit introduced in November 2021 for the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup, which featured geometric patterns inspired by Mesopotamian art, including Babylonian palm motifs symbolising victory, ornamental Assyrian flowers and decorative elements referencing the walls of the Ishtar Gate. The shirt also incorporated the word “Iraq” in Kufic script on the back and later received international attention among football shirt collectors, including a nomination by Classic Football Shirts among the best football shirts of the year.

Kits

Iraq’s kits have been manufactured by several international and regional sportswear brands, including Umbro, Adidas, Puma, Jako, Peak, Givova, Lotto, Diadora and Jack & Jones. The current kit supplier is Jako.

Kit suppliers

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:left;"

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Kit supplier

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Period

| Umbro

|1984–1986, 2007, 2020–2022

| Adidas

|1986–1994, 2007, 2014, 2024

| Puma

|1996

| Patrick

|2000

| Jako

|2003–2004, 2014–2019, 2022–2023, 2024–present

| Jack & Jones

|2004–2006

| Diadora

|2006

| Lotto

|2006

| Peak

|2008–2014

| Givova

|2019–2020

Nickname

thumb|Lion in ceramic tile from the [[Ishtar Gate in Babylon]]

The Iraqi team is commonly known as Usood al-Rafidayn (), meaning "Lions of Mesopotamia". In ancient Mesopotamia, the Babylonian lion was a symbol of power, impetuosity, ferocity, prestige and dominance. This is reflected in the sculpted lions in Babylon, where the processional path is ornamented with ceramic tile bas-reliefs representing a prestigious lion from the time of Nebuchadnezzar II. This kind of representation aimed to glorify the king, master of the beasts, and also represent the defeat of the enemy. Moreover, the Mesopotamian royal inscriptions depict the king as a ferocious lion to whom nothing can be resisted. The presence of lions in ancient Iraqi civilization was based on the belief, or desire, that the animals represented would bring with them the virtues they symbolized, so that they could be transmitted to the owners.

Team logo

Iraq kits throughout history have usually featured the flag of Iraq on them, although the coat of arms of Iraq and the Iraq Football Association logo have both appeared on kits in the past. The national team has occasionally had its own unique logo, the first of which was from 1982 to 1983. This logo was based on the Iraq flag, with Iraqi written at the top of the crest. From 2000 to 2002, the national team's logo featured a green outline with the word Iraq written at the top in green Arabic text. In the 2005 West Asian Games, the team wore a new logo with the red band of the flag appearing in a large semi-circle shape, and in 2007, Iraq briefly reverted to using the logo that they had used from 2000 to 2002. On 23 October 2020, the national team's current logo was revealed, with a star featuring above the crest from 2021 to 2022 to commemorate the nation's 2007 AFC Asian Cup victory.

File:Iraq national football team logo (1983).png|1982–1983

File:Iraq National Team Logo (2007).png|2000–2002, 2007

File:Iraq West Asian Games Badge.png|2005

File:Iraq National Team Badge 2021 v1.svg|2020–2021, 2022–present

File:Iraq National Team Badge 2021 v2.svg|2021–2022

</gallery>

Rivalries

Due to its geographical location, Iraq maintains strong rivalries with many neighbours.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"

! Opponent

! width="30" |GP

! width="30" |W

! width="30" |D

! width="30" |L

! width="30" |GF

! width="30" |GA

! width="30" |GD

! width="30" |Win %

|- bgcolor="#ffcccc"

|align="left"|

|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"

|align="left"|

|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"

|align="left"|

Iraq's main and traditional rival has been Iran, and they are often considered to be two of the greatest football teams in the Middle East and Asia with one of the greatest rivalries. At the early stage, Iran had proved to be more dominant than Iraq, remaining undefeated from 1964 until 1993. In the contemporary era, especially during the reign of Saddam Hussein, the two countries had bad relations and fought the Iran–Iraq War for eight years. Iraqis have considered any matches against Iran as a must-win encounter and are known to treat it differently from any other football matches. Iraq has played 31 matches against Iran with 6 victories, 7 draws, and 18 losses.

Iraq's other rival is Saudi Arabia, and matches between the two teams also draw significant attention from Iraqi fans, with Iraq and Saudi Arabia being recognised as the two most successful Arab teams in Asia. The beginnings of the footballing rivalry between them dates back to the 1970s, but it was only after the 1990s that the rivalry between the two Arab nations truly developed since it was previously overshadowed by Iraq's rivalries with Iran and Kuwait. One of these reasons for the rivalry to develop is due to the bitter Gulf War, where Iraq fought against Saudi Arabia over Kuwait, an ally of Saudi Arabia. These encounters have also been marred with various controversies and hostilities, such as the 21st Arabian Gulf Cup hosting rights, where Iraq was stripped from hosting with the tournament instead being moved to Bahrain, a move which was believed by Iraqis as a deliberate act by Saudi Arabia to remove Iraq's home advantage.

Another famous chant is "the first goal is coming" ("هسه يجي الاول") which is chanted in the beginning of the match. A succeeding chant is "the second goal is coming" ("هسه يجي الثاني"); this is usually chanted repeatedly after Iraq score a goal to motivate the players to score another.

Home matches in Iraq

thumbnail|220px|[[Al-Shaab Stadium, Iraq's home ground from its opening in 1966 up until 2013]]

thumbnail|300px|[[Basra International Stadium, the primary venue for Iraq’s home matches since its opening in 2013]]

Iraq primarily plays its home matches at Basra International Stadium but has also used various other venues across the country. Since 1980, FIFA has imposed bans on Iraq hosting competitive international matches on six occasions.

The first ban came in 1980 after fan and player violence during a match against Kuwait. Although lifted in 1982, the Iran–Iraq War led to a renewed ban. During this period, Iraq played home games at neutral venues but still qualified for the 1986 FIFA World Cup and three Olympic Games tournaments. The ban ended in 1988 after the war.

A new ban followed the Gulf War in 1990 which lasted until 1995. Iraq hosted matches during the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifiers but was again forced to play abroad following the Iraq War in 2003. Home matches resumed in 2009, but security concerns led to another ban in 2011.

Between 2013 and 2018, Iraq hosted friendlies in Baghdad, Basra, and Karbala, culminating in FIFA lifting the ban in 2018. Basra hosted the 2018 AFC Cup Final, while the 2019 WAFF Championship was held in Karbala and Erbil. However, the Iraqi protests in 2019 led to another ban, forcing Iraq to play its home games at neutral venues during the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

In 2023, Iraq successfully hosted the Arabian Gulf Cup for the first time since 1979, and resumed hosting official matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align: center; font-size:90%;"

!scope="col"|Stadium

!scope="col"|City

!scope="col"|Last match hosted

!scope="col"|Map of the host cities

!scope="row" style="text-align: left;"|Al-Shaab Stadium

|style="text-align: left;"|Baghdad

|87

|54

|24

|62.1

|2013

|rowspan="10"|

!scope="row" style="text-align: left;"|Basra International Stadium

|style="text-align: left;"|Basra

|24

|17

|70.8

|2025

!scope="row" style="text-align: left;"|Al-Kashafa Stadium

|style="text-align: left;"|Baghdad

|66.7

|1966

!scope="row" style="text-align: left;"|Karbala International Stadium

|style="text-align: left;"|Karbala

|50.0

|2019

!scope="row" style="text-align: left;"|Franso Hariri Stadium

|style="text-align: left;"|Erbil

|50.0

|2011

!scope="row" style="text-align: left;"|Al-Madina Stadium

|style="text-align: left;"|Baghdad

|100.0

|2022

!scope="row" style="text-align: left;"|Al-Fayhaa Stadium

|style="text-align: left;"|Basra

|50.0

|2021

!scope="row" style="text-align: left;"|Al-Minaa Olympic Stadium

|style="text-align: left;"|Basra

|100.0

|2022

!scope="row" style="text-align: left;"|Sulaymaniyah Stadium

|style="text-align: left;"|Sulaymaniyah

|0.0

|2010

!colspan="2"|Total

!136

!86

!34

!16

!63.2%

!2025

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

2025

2026

2027

All-time results

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="50%"

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Year

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|GP

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|W

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|D

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|L

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Win %

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Matches

|1957–1969

|Matches

|1970–1979

|Matches

|1980–1989

|Matches

|1990–1999

|Matches

|2000–2009

|Matches

|2010–2019

|Matches

|2020–present

|Matches

!Total

!—

</onlyinclude>

Coaching staff

As of 9 May 2025.

{| class="wikitable"

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Position

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Name

| Head Coach

| Graham Arnold

| Assistant Coach

| René Meulensteen <hr/> Robert Stanton

| Goalkeeping Coach

| Zeljko Kalac

| Fitness Coach

| Chris Pappas

| Lead Technical Analyst

| Adam Barbera

| Technical Analyst

| Stevan Antonić

| Data and Insights Analyst

| Huw Cox

| Lead Opposition Scout

| Doug Kors

| Physiotherapist

| Brahim Boubaker<hr /> Marouan Slim

| Chief Medical Officer

| Mokhtar Chaabane

| Team Doctor

| Mourad Mokrani

| Team Manager

| Mustafa Jalal

| Interpreter

| Ali Abbas

| Media Coordinator

| Salam Al-Manaseer

| Security Coordinator

| Samed Abu Jaber

| Kitman

| Abdallah Al-Mahmoudi

Players

Current squad

The following 34 players were called up for the preliminary 2026 FIFA World Cup squad.

Caps and goals correct as of 29 May 2026, after the match against Andorra.

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up within the last 12 months and remain eligible for selection.

SUS Player suspended

INJ Player injured

PRE Player was named in preliminary squad

CLB Player refused by club or unable to attend due to club commitments

RET Player retired from the national team

WD Player withdrew for non-injury related reasons

Previous squads

{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center"

! colspan="1" style="text-align:center" | FIFA World Cup squads

! Squads

| 1986 FIFA World Cup squad

| 2026 FIFA World Cup squad

{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center"

! colspan="1" style="text-align:center" | AFC Asian Cup squads

! Squads

| 1972 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 1976 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 1980 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 1984 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 1988 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 1996 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 2000 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 2004 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 2007 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 2011 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 2015 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 2019 AFC Asian Cup squad

| 2023 AFC Asian Cup squad

{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center"

! colspan="1" style="text-align:center" | FIFA Confederations Cup squads

! Squads

| 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup squad

{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center"

! colspan="1" style="text-align:center" | Summer Olympics squads

! Squads

| Olympics 1980 squad

| Olympics 1984 squad

| Olympics 1988 squad

| style="font-size:90%; font-style:italic;" | For Olympic squads since 1992, see the Iraq U-23 team.

Records

:Players in bold are still active with Iraq.

Most appearances

thumb|236x236px|Younis Mahmoud is Iraq's all-time most capped player, having played in 148 official matches.

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

! width="30px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Rank

! width="150px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Player

! width="50px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Caps

! width="50px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Goals

! width="100px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Career

| 1 || style="text-align:left;"|Younis Mahmoud || 148 || 57 || 2002–2016

| 2 || style="text-align:left;"|Hussein Saeed || 137 || 78 || 1976–1990

| 3 || style="text-align:left;"|Alaa Abdul-Zahra || 124 || 17 || 2007–2021

| 4 || style="text-align:left;"|Adnan Dirjal || 122 || 8 || 1978–1990

| 5 || style="text-align:left;"|Ahmed Radhi || 121 || 62 || 1982–1997

| 6 || style="text-align:left;"|Ahmed Ibrahim || 117 || 5 || 2010–2022

| rowspan=3|7 || style="text-align:left;"|Hawar Mulla Mohammed || 113 || 20 || 2001–2012

| style="text-align:left;"|Nashat Akram || 113 || 17 || 2001–2013

| style="text-align:left;"|Ali Rehema || 113 || 2 || 2005–2016

| 10 || style="text-align:left;"|Mahdi Karim || 110 || 11 || 2001–2018

Top goalscorers

thumb|200px|Hussein Saeed is Iraq's all-time leading goalscorer, having scored 78 goals in 137 official matches.

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

! width="30px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Rank

! width="150px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Player

! width="50px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Goals

! width="50px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Caps

! width="50px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Ratio

! width="100px"style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF; |Career

| 1 || align=left|Hussein Saeed (list) || 78 || 137 || || 1976–1990

| 2 || align=left|Ahmed Radhi || 62 || 121 || || 1982–1997

| 3 || align=left|Younis Mahmoud || 57 || 148 || || 2002–2016

| 4 || align=left|Ali Kadhim || 36 || 84 || || 1970–1980

| 5 || align=left|Aymen Hussein (list) || 33 || 93 || || 2015–present

| 6 || align=left|Falah Hassan || 29 || 102 || || 1970–1986

| rowspan=2|7 || align=left|Mohanad Ali || 27 || 71 || || 2017–present

| align=left|Emad Mohammed || 27 || 103 || || 2001–2012

| 9 || align=left|Razzaq Farhan || 25 || 63 || || 1998–2007

| 10 || align=left|Laith Hussein || 22 || 80 || || 1986–2002

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="90%"

! colspan=10 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|FIFA World Cup record

! rowspan="39" style="width:0%" |

! colspan=6 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|FIFA World Cup qualification record

!Year

!Round

!Position

!Squad

|1930 to 1950

| colspan="9"|Not a FIFA member

| colspan="6"|Not a FIFA member

|1954 to 1970

| colspan="9"|Did not enter

| colspan="6"|Did not enter

| 1974

|colspan=9|Did not qualify

||6||3||2||1||11||6

| 1978

| colspan="9"|Withdrew

| colspan="6"|Withdrew

| 1982

|colspan=9|Did not qualify

||4||3||0||1||5||2

| 1986

|Group stage

|23rd

|Squad

||8||5||1||2||14||11

| 1990

|rowspan=9 colspan=9|Did not qualify

||6||3||2||1||11||5

| 1994

||13||7||4||2||37||13

| 1998

||4||2||0||2||14||8

| 2002

||14||6||3||5||37||15

| 2006

||6||3||2||1||17||7

| 2010

||8||3||2||3||11||6

| 2014

||16||7||3||6||20||12

| 2018

||16||6||5||5||24||18

| 2022

||18||6||8||4||20||16

| 2026

|Group stage

|TBD

|Squad

||21||13||5||3||32||14

| 2030

|colspan="9" rowspan="2"|To be determined

| 2034

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Total:

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|23rd

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|3

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|0

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|3

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|4

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|—

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|140

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|67

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|37

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|36

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|253

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|133

{|class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center;"

!colspan=6 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;" | FIFA World Cup history

!Year

!Manager

!Round

!Score

!Result

!Goalscorers for Iraq

|rowspan=4|1986

|rowspan=4| Evaristo de Macedo

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 1–2 ||Loss|| Radhi

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=4|2026

|rowspan=4| Graham Arnold

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|align="left"| – ||TBD||

!colspan="6"|

|colspan="6" style="text-align:left; font-size:90%;"|

First match: 0–1 – 4 June 1986, Estadio Nemesio Díez, Toluca, Mexico

Biggest win: None

Biggest defeat: 1–2 – 8 June 1986, Estadio Nemesio Díez, Toluca, Mexico

Best finish: Group stage (1986)

Worst finish: Group stage (1986)

Overall top scorer: Ahmed Radhi (1 goal)

Most goals in a single tournament: Ahmed Radhi (1 goal, 1986)

AFC Asian Cup

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="90%"

! colspan=10 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|AFC Asian Cup record

! rowspan="22" style="width:0%" |

! colspan=6 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|AFC Asian Cup qualification record

!Year

!Round

!Position

!Squad

| 1956|| colspan="9" rowspan="4" |Not an AFC member|| colspan="6" rowspan="4" |Not an AFC member

| 1960

| 1964

| 1968

| 1972||Group stage||6th||3||0||2||1||1||4||Squad||6||5||1||0||13||2

|- style="background:#9acdff;"

| 1976||Fourth place||4th||4||1||0||3||3||6||Squad||6||5||1||0||14||3

| 1980|| colspan="9" rowspan="3" |Withdrew|| colspan="6" rowspan="3" |Withdrew

| 1984

| 1988

| 1992|| colspan="9"|Banned due to Gulf War||colspan=6|Banned due to Gulf War

| 1996|| rowspan="3" |Quarter-finals||6th||4 ||2 ||0 ||2 ||6 ||4||Squad||2||2||0||0||4||0

| 2000||8th||4 ||1 ||1 ||2 ||5 ||7||Squad||3||3||0||0||9||2

| 2004||8th||4 ||2 ||0 ||2 ||5 ||7||Squad||6||4||1||1||16||4

|- style="background:gold;"

| 2007||Champions||1st ||6 ||3 ||3 ||0 ||7 ||2||Squad||6||3||2||1||12||8

| 2011|| Quarter-finals||8th||4 ||2 ||0 ||2 ||3 ||3||Squad||colspan=6|Qualified as defending champions

|- style="background:#9acdff;"

| 2015|| Fourth place||4th||6 ||2 ||1 ||3 ||8 ||9||Squad||6||3||0||3||7||6

| 2019|| rowspan="2" | Round of 16 ||14th||4 ||2 ||1 ||1 ||6 ||3||Squad||6||3||3||0||13||6

| 2023||12th ||4 ||3 ||0 ||1 ||10 ||7||Squad||8||5||2||1||14||4

| 2027||colspan="9"|Qualified||6||6||0||0||17||2

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;| Total

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1 Title

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|11/15

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|43

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|18

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|8

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|17

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|54

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|52

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|—

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|55

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|39

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|10

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|6

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|119

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|37

|colspan="99" style="background:white;padding:.5em"|

| Champions   Runners-up   Third place   Fourth place

|*Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

{|class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center;"

!colspan=6 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;" | AFC Asian Cup history

!Year

!Manager

!Round

!Score

!Result

!Goalscorers for Iraq

|rowspan=5|1972

|rowspan=5| Abdelilah Hassan

|rowspan=2|Group allocation matches

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw||

|rowspan=3|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–3 ||Loss||

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| Yousif

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=7|1976

|rowspan=7| Lenko Grčić

|rowspan=3|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–2 ||Loss||

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| Waal

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 2–3 ||Loss|| Abdul-Jalil , Hassan

|rowspan=2|Third place

|- style="background:#9ACDFF;"

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=6|1996

|rowspan=6| Yahya Alwan

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win|| Fawzi , Sabbar

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 4–1 ||Win|| H. Mahmoud , L. Hussein

|rowspan=2|Quarter-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=6|2000

|rowspan=6| Milan Živadinović

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–0 ||Win|| Chathir , H. Mahmoud

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 2–2 ||Draw|| Jeayer

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

|rowspan=2|Quarter-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 1–4 ||Loss|| Obeid

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=6|2004

|rowspan=6| Adnan Hamad

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–2 ||Win|| H. M. Mohammed , Farhan , Munir

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win|| N. Akram , Y. Mahmoud

|rowspan=2|Quarter-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–3 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=10|2007

|rowspan=10| Jorvan Vieira

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| Y. Mahmoud

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–1 ||Win|| N. Akram , H. M. Mohammed , K. Jassim

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw||

|rowspan=2|Quarter-finals

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–0 ||Win|| Y. Mahmoud

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw||

|rowspan=2|Final

|- style="background:gold;"

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| Y. Mahmoud

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=6|2011

|rowspan=6| Wolfgang Sidka

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 1–2 ||Loss|| Y. Mahmoud

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| Abbas

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| K. Jassim

|rowspan=2|Quarter-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=10|2015

|rowspan=10| Radhi Shenaishil

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| Y. Kasim

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–0 ||Win|| Y. Mahmoud , Yasin

|rowspan=2|Quarter-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 3–3 ||Draw|| Yasin , Y. Mahmoud , Ismail

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–2 ||Loss||

|rowspan=2|Third place

|- style="background:#9ACDFF;"

|align="left"| 2–3 ||Loss|| W. Salim , Kalaf

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=6|2019

|rowspan=6| Srečko Katanec

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–2 ||Win|| M. Ali , Tariq , Adnan

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win|| M. Ali , Resan , A. Abbas

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw||

|rowspan=2|Round of 16

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=6|2023

|rowspan=6| Jesús Casas

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–1 ||Win|| M. Ali , Rashid , A. Hussein

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win|| A. Hussein

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–2 ||Win|| Sulaka , A. Hussein

|rowspan=2|Round of 16

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 2–3 ||Loss|| Natiq , A. Hussein

!colspan="6"|

|colspan="6" style="text-align:left; font-size:90%;"|

First match: 0–0 – 7 May 1972, National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand

Biggest win: 4–1 – 11 December 1996, Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Biggest defeat: 1–4 – 24 October 2000, Sports City Stadium, Beirut, Lebanon

Best finish: Champions (2007)

Worst finish: Group stage (1972)

Overall top scorer: Younis Mahmoud (8 goals)

Most goals in a single tournament: Aymen Hussein (6 goals, 2023)

Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

FIFA Confederations Cup

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="60%"

! colspan=10 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|FIFA Confederations Cup record

!Year

!Round

!Position

!Squad

| 1992 to 1995

| colspan="10"|Did not enter

| 1997 to 2005

| colspan="10"|Did not qualify

| 2009

|Group stage

|7th

|Squad

| 2013 to 2017

| colspan="10"|Did not qualify

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Total

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Best: Group stage

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1/10

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|3

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|0

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|2

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|0

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|—

{|class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center;"

!colspan=5 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;" | FIFA Confederations Cup history

!Year

!Manager

!Round

!Score

!Result

|rowspan=4|2009

|rowspan=4| Bora Milutinović

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

|colspan="5" style="text-align:left; font-size:90%;"|

First match: 0–0 – 14 June 2009, Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa

Biggest win: None

Biggest defeat: 0–1 – 17 June 2009, Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein, South Africa

Best finish: Group stage (2009)

Worst finish: Group stage (2009)

Summer Olympics

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="90%"

! colspan=10 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Summer Olympics record

! style="width:0%" rowspan="14"|

! colspan=6 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Qualification record

!Year

!Round

!Position

!Squad

| 1900 to 1936

| colspan="9"|Not an IOC member || colspan="6"|Not an IOC member

| 1948 to 1956

| colspan="9"|Did not enter || colspan="6"|Did not enter

| 1960

| rowspan="5" colspan="9"|Did not qualify ||4||2||0||2||14||10

| 1964 ||2||0||1||1||0||4

| 1968 ||4||1||1||2||7||5

| 1972 ||5||3||0||2||4||5

| 1976 ||4||2||0||2||6||4

| 1980

|Quarter-finals||8th||4||1||2||1||4||5||Squad||5||3||1||1||10||3

| 1984

|Group stage||14th||3||0||1||2||3||6||Squad||8||4||3||1||10||7

| 1988

|Group stage||10th||3||1||1||1||5||4||Squad||8||6||1||1||14||6

| 1992–present

| colspan="9"|See Iraq national under-23 football team || colspan="6"|See Iraq national under-23 football team

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Total

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Quarter-finals

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|3/11

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|10

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|2

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|4

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|12

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|15

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|—

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|40

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|21

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|7

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|12

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|65

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|44

{|class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center;"

!colspan=6 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;" | Summer Olympics history

!Year

!Manager

!Round

!Score

!Result

!Goalscorers for Iraq

|rowspan=6|1980

|rowspan=6| Anwar Jassam

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win|| H. Ahmed , H. Saeed , F. Hassan

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw||

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| F. Hassan

|rowspan=2|Quarterfinals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–4 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=4|1984

|rowspan=4| Ammo Baba

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| H. Saeed

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 2–4 ||Loss|| H. Saeed , Shihab

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=4|1988

|rowspan=4| Ammo Baba

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 2–2 ||Draw|| Radhi , Allawi

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win|| Radhi , Jabbar , Mazariegos

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–2 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=2|1992–present

|colspan="5"|See Iraq national under-23 football team

!colspan="6"|

|colspan="6" style="text-align:left; font-size:90%;"|

First match: 3–0 – 21 July 1980, Republican Stadium, Kyiv, Soviet Union

Biggest win: 3–0 – 21 July 1980 and 3–0 – 19 September 1988

Biggest defeat: 0–4 – 27 July 1980, Republican Stadium, Kyiv, Soviet Union

Best finish: Quarter-finals (1980)

Worst finish: Group stage (1984, 1988)

Overall top scorer: Hussein Saeed (3 goals)

Most goals in a single tournament: 2 goals — Falah Hassan (1980), Hussein Saeed (1984), Ahmed Radhi (1988)

Asian Games

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="60%"

! colspan=10 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Asian Games record

!Year

!Round

!Position

!Squad

|| 1951 to 1970 ||rowspan=1 colspan=10| Did not enter

|| 1974|| Second round ||5th||6 ||3 ||2 ||1 ||6 ||2||Squad

|- style="background:#9acdff;"

|| 1978 || Fourth place ||4th||7 ||4 ||1 ||2 ||11 ||4 ||Squad

|-bgcolor=gold

|| 1982 || Gold medalists ||1st||6 ||5 ||0 ||1 ||11 ||2 || Squad

|| 1986 || Quarter-finals ||6th||5 ||3 ||1 ||1 ||13 ||5 || Squad

|| 1990 to 1998 ||rowspan=1 colspan=9| Banned due to Gulf War

|| 2002–present || colspan="9"|See Iraq national under-23 football team

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Total

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1 Title

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|4/13

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|24

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|15

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|4

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|5

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|41

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|13

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|—

{|class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center;"

!colspan=4 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Asian Games history

!Year

!Round

!Score

!Result

|rowspan=8|1974

|rowspan=4|First round

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win

|rowspan=4|Second round

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=10|1978

|rowspan=4|First round

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw

|rowspan=4|Second round

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Bronze play-off

|- style="background:#9ACDFF;"

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=10|1982

|rowspan=4|First round

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 4–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 1–2 ||Loss

|rowspan=2|Quarter-finals

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Final

|- style="background:gold"

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=7|1986

|rowspan=5|First round

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 4–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 5–1 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 1–2 ||Loss

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Quarter-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=2|2002–present

|colspan="3"|See Iraq national under-23 football team

Regional competitions

WAFF Championship

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="60%"

! colspan=9 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|WAFF Championship record

!Year

!Result

!Squad

|-bgcolor="#cc9966"

| 2000

|Third place||5||3||2||0||10||2||Squad

|-bgcolor=gold

| 2002

|Champions||4||3||1||0||6||2||Squad

|- style="background:#9acdff;"

| 2004

|Fourth place||4||1||0||3||4||8||Squad

|-bgcolor=silver

| 2007

|Runners-up||4||2||1||1||5||2||Squad

| 2008

| colspan="8"|Withdrew

|-bgcolor="#81c846"

| 2010

|Semi-finals||3||2||0||1||6||3||Squad

|-bgcolor=silver

| 2012

|Runners-up||4||2||1||1||4||2||Squad

| 2013

|Group stage||2||0||2||0||0||0||Squad

|-bgcolor=silver

| style="border: 3px solid red"| 2019

|Runners-up||5||3||1||1||5||3||Squad

|| 2026

| colspan="8" |To be determined

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Total

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1 Title

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|31

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|16

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|8

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|7

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|40

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|22

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|—

{|class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center;"

!colspan=4 style="background:#007A3D; color:#FFFFFF;"|WAFF Championship history

!Year

!Round

!Score

!Result

|rowspan=8|2000

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 4–0 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

|rowspan=2|Third place

|- bgcolor=#cc9966

|align="left"| 4–1 ||Win

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=7|2002

|rowspan=3|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

|rowspan=2|Final

|- style="background:gold;"

|align="left"| 3–2 ||Win

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=7|2004

|rowspan=3|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–2 ||Loss

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 1–2 ||Loss

|rowspan=2|Third place

|- style="background:#9ACDFF;"

|align="left"| 1–3 ||Loss

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=7|2007

|rowspan=3|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Final

|- style="background:silver;"

|align="left"| 1–2 ||Loss

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=5|2010

|rowspan=3|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 1–2 ||Loss

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=7|2012

|rowspan=3|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–0 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Final

|- style="background:silver;"

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=3|2013

|rowspan=3|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

!colspan="4"|

|rowspan=7|2019

|rowspan=5|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win

|rowspan=2|Final

|- style="background:silver;"

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss

FIFA Arab Cup

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="60%"

! colspan=9 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|FIFA Arab Cup record

! rowspan="15" style="width:0%" |

! colspan=6 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Qualification record

!Year

!Result

!Squad

|| 1963||rowspan=1 colspan=9| Did not enter || colspan=6|Did not enter

|-bgcolor=gold

|| 1964||Champions ||4 ||3 ||1 ||0 ||6 ||2||Squad || colspan=6 rowspan=2|Qualified automatically

|-bgcolor=gold

| style="border: 3px solid red"| 1966||Champions ||6 ||5 ||1 ||0 ||20 ||5||Squad

|-bgcolor=gold

|| 1985||Champions ||4 ||3 ||1 ||0 ||7 ||3||Squad||1 ||0 ||0 ||1 ||2 ||3

|-bgcolor=gold

|| 1988|| Champions ||6 ||2 ||4 ||0||7 ||2||Squad|| colspan=6|Qualified as defending champions

|| 1992 to 2002||colspan=9| Banned due to Gulf War|| colspan=6|Banned due to Gulf War

|-bgcolor="#cc9966"

|| 2012|| Third place ||5 ||3 ||1 ||1 ||6 ||4||Squad || colspan=6|Qualified automatically

|| 2021|| Group stage ||3 ||0 ||2 ||1 ||1 ||4||Squad || colspan=6 rowspan=2|Qualified automatically

| 2025|| ||4 ||2 ||0 ||2 ||4 ||4||Squad

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Total

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|4 Titles

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|32

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|18

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|10

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|4

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|51

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|24

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|—

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|0

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|2

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|3

{|class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center;"

!colspan=6 style="background:#007A3D; color:#FFFFFF;" | FIFA Arab Cup history

!Year

!Manager

!Round

!Score

!Result

!Goalscorers for Iraq

|rowspan=5|1964

|rowspan=5| Adil Basher

|rowspan=5|Final tournament

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| S. Ismail

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| S. Tabra

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| H. Atta

|- style="background:gold;"

|align="left"| 3–1 ||Win|| H. Atta , Q. Mahmoud

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=9|1966

|rowspan=9| Adil Basher

|rowspan=5|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–1 ||Win|| S. Yousif , N. Dhiab , H. Atta

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win|| M. Assad , H. Atta

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 10–1 ||Win|| G. Ismail , N. Dhiab , A. Jameel , S. Dawood , Q. Hameed , M. Najim

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw||

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–1 ||Win|| Q. Mahmoud , H. Balah , H. Atta

|rowspan=2|Final

|- style="background:gold;"

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win|| G. Ismail

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=7|1985

|rowspan=7| Anwar Jassam

|rowspan=3|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| A. Abid

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–0 ||Win|| S. Mahmoud , A. Abid

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–2 ||Win|| A. Abid , H. Rashid

|rowspan=2|Final

|- style="background:gold;"

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| A. Abid

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=9|1988

|rowspan=9| Ammo Baba

|rowspan=5|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| A. Radhi

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw||

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–0 ||Win|| A. Radhi

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw||

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 3–0 ||Win|| A. Radhi , Y. Abed Ali , I. Mohammed Sharif

|rowspan=2|Final

|- style="background:gold;"

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| B. Gorgis

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=8|2012

|rowspan=8| Zico

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| M. Karim

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win|| M. Karim , A. Abdul-Zahra

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| S. Shaker

|rowspan=2|Semi-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 1–2 ||Loss|| M. Karim

|rowspan=2|Third place

|- bgcolor=#cc9966

|align="left"| 1–0 ||Win|| A. Abdul-Zahra

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=4|2021

|rowspan=4| Željko Petrović

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 1–1 ||Draw|| H. Abdulkareem

|- bgcolor=#ffffdd

|align="left"| 0–0 ||Draw||

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–3 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|rowspan=6|2025

|rowspan=6| Graham Arnold

|rowspan=4|Group stage

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–1 ||Win|| E. Lutfalla , M. Ali

|- bgcolor=#ddffdd

|align="left"| 2–0 ||Win|| M. Ali , A. Attwan

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–2 ||Loss||

|rowspan=2|Quarter-finals

|- bgcolor=#ffdddd

|align="left"| 0–1 ||Loss||

!colspan="6"|

|colspan="6" style="text-align:left; font-size:90%;"|

First match: 1–0 – 13 November 1964, Shuwaikh High School Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait

Biggest win: 10–1 – 5 April 1966, Al-Kashafa Stadium, Baghdad, Iraq

Biggest defeat: 0–3 – 6 December 2021, Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Qatar

Best finish: Champions (1964, 1966, 1985, 1988)

Worst finish: Group stage (2021)

Overall top scorer: Hisham Atta (6 goals)

Most goals in a single tournament: Nouri Dhiab (5 goals, 1966)

Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

Arabian Gulf Cup

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="60%"

! colspan=9 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Arabian Gulf Cup record

!Year

!Result

!Squad

| 1970 to 1974||colspan=8|Did not enter

|-bgcolor=silver

| 1976|| Runners-up||7||4||2||1||23||8||Squad

|-bgcolor=gold

| style="border: 3px solid red"| 1979|| Champions||6||6||0||0||23||1||Squad

| 1982|| Withdrew ||4||3||1||0||8||2||Squad

|-bgcolor=gold

| 1984|| Champions||7||4||2||1||12||5||Squad

| 1986|| Sixth place||6||1||3||2||8||9||Squad

|-bgcolor=gold

| 1988|| Champions||6||4||2||0||8||1||Squad

| 1990|| Withdrew ||3||1||2||0||4||3||Squad

| 1992 to 2003–04 ||colspan=9| Banned due to Gulf War

| 2004|| Group stage||3||0||2||1||5||7||Squad

| 2007|| Group stage||3||1||1||1||2||2||Squad

| 2009|| Group stage||3||0||1||2||2||8||Squad

|- style="background:#81c846;"

| 2010|| Semi-finals||4||1||3||0||5||4||Squad

|-bgcolor=silver

| 2013|| Runners-up||5||3||1||1||7||3||Squad

| 2014|| Group stage||3||0||1||2||1||4||Squad

|- style="background:#81c846;"

| 2017–18|| Semi-finals||4||2||2||0||6||2||Squad

|- style="background:#81c846;"

| 2019|| Semi-finals ||4||2||2||0||6||3||Squad

|-bgcolor=gold

| style="border: 3px solid red"| 2023|| Champions ||5||4||1||0||12||3||Squad

| 2024–25|| Group stage ||3||1||0||2||2||5||Squad

| 2026

| colspan="8" |To be determined

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Total

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|4 Titles

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|76

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|38

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|25

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|13

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|134

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|70

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|—

West Asian Games

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="60%"

! colspan=8 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|West Asian Games record

!Year

!Result

|| 1997 to 2002||colspan=8|Did not enter

|-bgcolor=gold

|| 2005|| Gold medalists ||4 ||3 ||1 ||0 ||13 ||3

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Total

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1 Title

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|4

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|3

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|0

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|13

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|3

Arab Games

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="60%"

! colspan=9 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Arab Games record

!Year

!Result

!Squad

|| 1953||rowspan=1 colspan=8| Did not enter

|| 1957|| Group stage ||3 ||1 ||1 ||1 ||8 ||8||Squad

|| 1961||rowspan=1 colspan=8| Did not enter

|| 1965|| Group stage ||4 ||1 ||2 ||1 ||7 ||2||Squad

|| 1976||rowspan=1 colspan=8| Did not enter

|-bgcolor=gold

|| 1985|| Gold medalists ||4 ||4 ||0 ||0 ||7 ||1||Squad

|| 1992 to 1997||rowspan=1 colspan=8| Banned due to Gulf War

|-bgcolor=silver

|| 1999|| Silver medalists ||7 ||4 || 1 ||2 ||17 ||9||Squad

|| 2007||rowspan=1 colspan=8| Did not enter

|| 2011|| Group stage ||2 ||0 ||1 ||1 ||0 ||3|| Squad

| 2023–present

| colspan="8"|See Iraq national under-23 football team

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Total

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|1 Title

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|20

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|10

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|5

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|39

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|23

!style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|—

Minor tournaments

{| class="wikitable collapsed" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;" width="60%"

!colspan=9 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|Minor tournaments

!Tournament

!Round

!GP

!D*

!GS

!GA

|-style="background:Silver;"

| 1966 Tripoli Fair Tournament||Runners-up||4||2||0||2||5||3

|-style="background:Gold;"

| 1967 Tripoli Fair Tournament||Champions||3||2||1||0||7||3

| 1969 Friendship Cup||Fifth place||4||0||0||4||2||7

|-style=background:Silver;"

|style="border: 3px solid red"| 1972 Palestine Cup||Runners-up||5||3||1||1||10||5

|- style="background:#9acdff;"

| 1973 Palestine Cup||Fourth place||6||2||3||1||5||3

|-style=background:Silver;"

| 1975 Palestine Cup||Runners-up||4||2||1||1||10||2

|-style=background:Silver;"

| 1977 Merdeka Tournament||Runners-up||7||3||3||1||11||2

|-style=background:Silver;"

| 1978 Merdeka Tournament||Runners-up||8||5||1||2||12||6

|-style=background:Gold;"

| 1981 Merdeka Tournament||Champions||6||4||1||1||16||4

|-style=background:Gold;"

| 1984 Merlion Cup||Champions||5||4||1||0||10||3

|-style=background:#9acdff;"

| 1985 President's Cup||Fourth place||8||3||2||3||19||12

|-style=background:Gold;"

| 1989 Peace and Friendship Cup||Champions||5||2||2||1||9||5

|-style=background:Silver;"

| 1992 Jordan Tournament||Runners-up||5||4||0||1||20||2

|-style=background:Gold;"

| 1995 Nehru Cup ||Champions||5||3||2||0||8||3

|-style="background:Gold;"

| 1995 Merdeka Tournament ||Champions||4||3||1||0||7||3

|-style="background:Gold;"

| 1997 Nehru Cup ||Champions||6||5||1||0||14||3

|-style="background:Gold;"

| 1999 Friendship Tournament ||Champions||3||1||2||0||6||3

|-style=background:Silver;"

| 2000 Four Nations Tournament ||Runners-up||2||1||0||1||3||4

|-style=background:Silver;"

| 2003 LG Cup ||Runners-up||2||1||0||1||3||5

|-style="background:Silver;"

| 2003 Prime Minister's Cup ||Runners-up||3||1||1||1||4||4

|-style="background:Gold;"

| 2009 UAE Cup ||Champions||2||2||0||0||2||0

|- style="background:#9acdff;"

| 2011 Fuchs Tournament||Fourth place||2||0||1||1||1||3

|-style="background:#cc9966;"

|style="border: 3px solid red"| 2018 IFC||Third place||2||0||1||1||3||4

|- style="background:#9acdff;"

| 2018 Superclásico Championship||Fourth place||2||0||1||1||1||5

|-style="background:Gold;"

|style="border: 3px solid red"| 2019 IFC||Champions||2||2||0||0||4||2

|- style="background:#cc9966;"

| 2022 Jordan Tournament||Third place||2||1||1||0||2||1

|-style="background:Gold;"

| 2023 King's Cup||Champions||2||0||2||0||4||4

|- style="background:#cc9966;"

| 2023 Jordan Tournament||Third place||2||0||2||0||2||2

|-style="background:Gold;"

| 2025 King's Cup||Champions||2||2||0||0||3||1

</onlyinclude>

Head-to-head record

The list below shows the Iraq national football team's all-time international record against opposing nations at a senior level.

;Key

after match against Andorra

Draws include Penalty shoot-outs
Countries that are in italics are now defunct

{| class="wikitable sortable " style="text-align:center; width:80%"

! colspan="10" style="background:#007A3D; color:#FFFFFF;"|Iraq national football team head-to-head records

!width=160|Team

!width=12|Confederation

!width=20|First

!width=30|

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1975 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 7 || 1 || +6

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1973 || 8 || 3 || 4 || 1 || 8 || 4 || +4

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 2026 || 1 || 1 || 0|| 0 || 1 || 0 || +1

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 2018 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 4 || −4

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1973 || 11 || 2 || 2 || 7 || 8 || 14 || −6

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 2009 || 1 || 1|| 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || +1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1966 || 42 || 20 || 16 || 6 || 71 || 35 || +36

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1986 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 2 || −1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 2018 || 2 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 2 || 1 || +1

|-bgcolor=#FFFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 2012 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 0

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 2012 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 6 || −6

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 2019 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 8 || 1 || +7

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1984 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 1 || −1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONCACAF || 1984 || 2 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 7 || 2 || +5

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 2013 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 6 || −6

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1974 || 21 || 11 || 3 || 7 || 27 || 22 || +5

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 2004 || 4 || 4 || 0 || 0 || 17 || 3 || +14

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 2023 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 1 || −1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF|| 1992 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 3 || 0 || +3

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONCACAF|| 1980 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 3 || 0 || +3

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 2005 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 2 || −1

|-bgcolor=#FFFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1986 || 2 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 2 || 2 || 0

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 2015 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 3 || 1 || +2

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| ' || UEFA || 1967 || 9 || 1 || 6 || 2 || 7 || 15 || −8

|-bgcolor=#FFFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 2022 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1965 || 13 || 2 || 5 || 6 || 7 || 13 || −6

|-bgcolor=#FFFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1999 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 0

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1992 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 13 || 0 || +13

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1979 || 3 || 2 || 1 || 0 || 3 || 0 || +3

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 2026 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONCACAF || 1988 || 1|| 1 || 0 || 0 || 3 || 0 || +3

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1989 || 1|| 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 1 || −1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 2019 || 3 || 3 || 0 || 0 || 5 || 1 || +4

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1968 || 7 || 4 || 3 || 0 || 13 || 4 || +9

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1973 || 13 || 10 || 2 || 1 || 31 || 8 || +23

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1962 || 31 || 6 || 7 || 18 || 21 || 43 || −22

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1988 || 1|| 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 2 || −2

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1978 || 14 || 4 || 3|| 7 || 12 || 20 || −8

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1964 || 57 || 31 || 14 || 12 || 91 || 54 || +37

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1997 || 4 || 0 || 2 || 2 || 4 || 7 || −3

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 2003 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 4 || 1 || +2

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1999 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 9 || 1 || +8

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1964 || 43 || 18 || 13|| 12|| 56 || 46 || +10

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 2013 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 1 || −1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1959 || 27 || 16 || 9 || 2 || 51 || 11 || +40

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1957 || 15 || 10 || 3 || 2 || 25 || 9 || +16

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 2001 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 13 || 0 || +13

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1974 || 8 || 5 || 3 || 0 || 14 || 3 || +11

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1985 || 1|| 1 || 0 || 0 || 2 || 0 || +2

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONCACAF || 1986 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 2 || 0 || 5 || −5

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1992 || 1|| 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || +1

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1957 || 10 || 2 || 5 || 3 || 10 || 9 || +1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1977 || 4 || 4 || 0 || 0 || 13 || 1 || +12

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1971 || 11 || 6 || 1 || 4 || 11 || 9 || +2

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 2026 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1982 || 4 || 4 || 0 || 0 || 22 || 5 || +17

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || OFC || 1973 || 3 || 2 || 1 || 0 || 6 || 0 || +6

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1976 || 31 || 15 || 10 || 6 || 51|| 25|| +26

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1969 || 9 || 7 || 1 || 1 || 40 || 6 || +34

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 1986 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 1 || −1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1965 || 19 || 14 || 4 || 1 || 40 || 9 || +31

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 2014 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 2 || −2

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 2024 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 6 || 0 || +6

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1970 || 5 || 1 || 2 || 2 || 3 || 7 || −4

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1975 || 41 || 17 || 10 || 14 || 51 || 45 || +6

|-bgcolor=#FFFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1986 || 2 || 0 || 2 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 0

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 2023 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 2 || −2

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1975 || 44 || 18 || 12 || 14 || 63 || 43 || +20

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 2026 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 2012 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || +1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1978 || 6 || 5 || 0 || 1 || 20 || 5 || +15

|-bgcolor=#FFFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 2009 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1972 || 26 || 2 || 12 || 12 || 17 || 34 || −17

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| ' || AFC || 1965 || 6 || 5 || 0 || 1 || 18 || 4 || +14

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 2009 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 1 || −1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1971 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 5 || 0 || +5

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1967 || 3 || 1 || 2 || 0 || 5 || 3 || 0

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1966 || 34 || 18 || 11 || 5 || 47 || 25 || +22

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1997 || 3 || 2 || 1 || 0 || 7 || 2 || +5

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1968 || 22 || 13 || 6 || 3 || 55 || 23 || +32

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONCACAF || 2004 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 2 || −2

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1957 || 10 || 2 || 3 || 5 || 10 || 14 || −4

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || UEFA || 1959 || 3 || 0 || 1 || 2 || 3 || 10 || −7

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1999 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 6 || 2|| +4

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1977 || 3 || 1 || 2 || 0 || 3 || 2|| +1

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1973 || 38 || 14 || 16 || 8 || 55 || 36 || +19

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 2003 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 2 || 5 || −3

|-bgcolor=#FFFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1997 || 13 || 5 || 3 || 5 || 17 || 12 || +5

| style="text-align:left;"| || CONMEBOL || 2026 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 2007 || 7 || 6 || 1 || 0 || 14 || 6 || +8

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || AFC || 1993 || 15 || 12 || 3 || 0 || 36 || 7 || +29

|-bgcolor=#FFCCCC

| style="text-align:left;"| ' || UEFA || 1980 || 2 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 3 || 5 || −2

|-bgcolor=#CCFFCC

| style="text-align:left;"| || CAF || 1988 || 2 || 1 || 1 || 0 || 5 || 3 || +2

|- class="sortbottom"

!colspan=3|Total!! 763 !! 358 !! 213 !! 192 !! 1,203 !! 721 !! +482

</onlyinclude>

FIFA Rankings

Last update was on 19 November 2025.

Source:

Best Ranking   Worst Ranking   Best Mover   Worst Mover  

{|class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center;"

!colspan=9 style="background: #007A3D; color: #FFFFFF;|FIFA World Rankings|

!rowspan=2|Rank

!rowspan=2|Year

!rowspan=2|Games Played

!colspan=2|Best

!colspan=2|Worst

!Rank

!Move

!Rank

!Move

|58

|2025

|14

|57

| 1

|59

| 3

|56

|2024

|18

|55

| 4

|59

| 1

|63

|2023

|14

|63

| 5

|70

| 2

|68

|2022

|11

|68

| 2

|74

| 0

|75

|2021

|17

|68

| 1

|75

| 3

| 69 || 2020 || 2

| 69 ||align=left| 1 || 70 ||align=left| 0

| 70 || 2019 || 22

| 70 ||align=left| 8 || 80 ||align=left| 2

| 88 || 2018 || 12

| 82 ||align=left| 2 || 91 ||align=left| 5

| 79 || 2017 || 14

| 79 ||align=left| 17 || 122 ||align=left| 3

| 119 || 2016 || 12

| 87 ||align=left| 15 || 128 || align=left| 15

| 89 || 2015 || 16

| 82 ||align=left| 20|| 114 || align=left| 11

| 103 || 2014 || 11

| 81 ||align=left| 15 || 115 || align=left| 23

| 110 || 2013 || 19

| 89 ||align=left| 3 || 110 || align=left| 6

| 92 || 2012 || 20

| 70 || align=left| 6 || 97 || align=left| 17

| 78 || 2011 || 20

| 78 || align=left| 16 || 109 || align=left| 13

| 100 || 2010 || 15

| 80 || align=left| 13 || 107 || align=left| 24

| 88 || 2009 || 13

| 77 || align=left| 9 || 100 || align=left| 17

| 72 || 2008 || 12

| 58 || align=left| 15 || 77 || align=left| 18

| 68 || 2007 || 20

| 64 || align=left| 16 || 84 || align=left| 5

|| 83 || 2006 || 14

| 52 || align=left| 5 || 92 || style="border: 3px solid red" align=left| 36

| 54 || 2005 || 10

| 44 || align=left| 20 || 74 || align=left| 11

|| 44 || 2004 || 21

| style="border: 3px solid blue"| 39 || align=left| 3 || 45 || align=left| 6

| 43 || 2003 || 12

| 43 || align=left| 23|| 75 || align=left| 13

| 53 || 2002 || 10

| 50 || align=left| 9 || 72 || align=left| 3

| 72 || 2001 || 18

| 69 || align=left| 16 || 85 || align=left| 4

| 79 || 2000 || 11

| 78 || align=left| 9|| 89 || align=left| 8

| 78 || 1999 || 13

| 78 || align=left| 16 || 108 || align=left| 5

| 94 || 1998 || 1

| 70 || align=left| 7 || 101 || align=left| 13

| 68 || 1997 || 9

| 68 || align=left| 13 || 98 || align=left| 2

| 98 || 1996 || 7

| 98 || style="border: 3px solid green" align=left| 31 || style="border: 3px solid gold"| 139 || align=left| 15

| 110 || 1995 || 3

| 76 || align=left| 26 || 110 || align=left| 28

| 88 || 1994 || 0

| 61 || align=left| 4 || 88 || align=left| 8

| 65 || 1993 || 15

| 57 || align=left| 25 || 66 || align=left| 5

Honours

:This is a list of honours for the senior Iraq national team

Continental

AFC Asian Cup
Champions (1): 2007
Asian Games
Gold medal (1): 1982

Regional

WAFF Championship
Champions (1): 2002
Runners-up (3): 2007, 2012, 2019
Third place (1): 2000
Arab Cup
Champions (4): 1964, 1966, 1985, 1988 (record)
Third place (1): 2012
Arabian Gulf Cup
Champions (4): 1979, 1984, 1988, 2023
Runners-up (2): 1976, 2013
West Asian Games
Gold medal (1): 2005 (joint record)
Arab Games
Gold medal (1): 1985
Silver medal (1): 1999

Friendly

Merdeka Tournament
Winners: 1981, 1995
Runners-up: 1977, 1978
Nehru Cup
Winners: 1995, 1997
King's Cup
Winners: 2023, 2025
Tripoli Fair Tournament
Winners: 1967
Runners-up: 1966
International Friendship Championship
Winners: 2019
Third place: 2018
Merlion Cup
Winners: 1984
Peace and Friendship Cup
Winners: 1989
UAE Four Nations Friendship Tournament
Winners: 1999
UAE International Cup
Winners: 2009
Palestine Cup
Runners-up: 1972, 1975
Jordan International Tournament
Runners-up: 1992
Third place: 2022, 2023
Four Nations Tournament
Runners-up: 2000
LG Cup
Runners-up: 2003
Bahrain Prime Minister's Cup
Runners-up: 2003

Awards

World Soccer Team of the Year: 2007
AFC National Team of the Year: 2003, 2007

Summary

{| class="wikitable" width=35% style="font-size:90%; text-align:center;"

!Competition!!!!!!!!Total

|align=left|AFC Asian Cup

|1||0||0||1

|align=left|Asian Games

|1||0||0||1

|align=left|WAFF Championship

|1||3||1||5

|align=left|Arab Cup

|4||0||1||5

|align=left|Arabian Gulf Cup

|4||2||0||6

|align=left|West Asian Games

|1||0||0||1

|align=left|Arab Games

|1||1||0||2

!Total!!13!!6!!2!!21

References

External links

Iraq at FIFA
Iraq at AFC

History

Early years and regional success (1948–1979)

1980s – First Golden Generation

1986 FIFA World Cup: Iraq’s historic first qualification

1990s – The Dark Era

1994 FIFA World Cup qualification: The Agony of Doha

1996 AFC Asian Cup: Return after two decades

2000s – Second Golden Generation

2007 AFC Asian Cup: Iraq's famous first continental title

2010 FIFA World Cup qualification: Controversial early exit

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup: Iraq on the global stage

2010s – Ups and downs

2015 AFC Asian Cup: Iraq's run to the semi-finals

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification: Struggles in the final round

2019 AFC Asian Cup: Defeat to the eventual champions

2020s – Return to prominence

2026 FIFA World Cup: Return to the World Cup after forty years

Team image

Colours

Kits

Kit suppliers

Nickname

Team logo

Rivalries

Home matches in Iraq

Results and fixtures

2025

2026

2027

All-time results

Coaching staff

Players

Current squad

Recent call-ups

Previous squads

Records

Most appearances

Top goalscorers

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

AFC Asian Cup

FIFA Confederations Cup

Summer Olympics

Asian Games

Regional competitions

WAFF Championship

FIFA Arab Cup

Arabian Gulf Cup

West Asian Games

Arab Games

Minor tournaments

Head-to-head record

FIFA Rankings

Honours

Continental

Regional

Friendly

Awards

Summary

See also

References

External links