5 best matches featuring Asian national teams at the world’s premier football tournament
1xBet invites you to look back at five occasions when Asian teams made headlines across the football world.
North Korea vs Italy 1-0, 1966
On July 19, 1966, in Middlesbrough, North Korea faced one of Europe’s most renowned teams, Italy, in the group stage. Hardly anyone took the team, coached by Myung Rye-hyun, seriously. The Koreans’ path to the tournament had been unusual: they were given a chance after some African and Asian national teams boycotted the qualifiers due to a controversial distribution of spots.
Italy arrived at the tournament as one of the favorites. Edmondo Fabbri’s squad was packed with top-class stars: Sandro Mazzola, Giacinto Facchetti, Giacomo Bulgarelli and future Ballon d’Or winner Gianni Rivera. But the big names were of no help: the only goal, scored by Pak Doo-ik, dashed Italy’s hopes.
That result saw the Koreans reach the quarter-finals and marked the first major breakthrough for Asia in the world’s main football competition. For Italy, the defeat and early exit turned into national humiliation: back home, the team was met with boos, insults and even rotten tomatoes.
United States vs Iran 1-2, 1998
On June 21, 1998, in Lyon, France, Iran faced the United States in the group stage of the global football tournament. But the media’s attention wasn’t focused solely on the football aspect of the encounter – the context was far broader. As there were no diplomatic relations between the two countries, their match was described, even before the kick-off, as one of the most tense of the tournament.
Before the game started, the Iranian players presented their opponents with white roses, and the teams then posed for a group photo. This gesture helped to ease the political tension surrounding the match, but the game itself still provided fans with plenty of thrills.
Iran proved more clinical and composed on the pitch. Hamid Estili opened the scoring with a header, and in the second half, Mehdi Mahdavikia extended the lead to 2-0. A late goal from Brian McBride brought the match back to life, but Iran held on for victory, securing the national team’s first-ever win at the world’s No. 1 football tournament.
South Korea vs Italy 2-1, 2002
36 years after the shock defeat in Middlesbrough, Italy suffered another painful blow from an Asian team. On June 18, 2002, five years before 1xBet was founded, South Korea hosted La Squadra Azzurra in the round of 16 of the home tournament. In the stands, there were references to Italy’s defeat by North Korea, and the slogan “Again 1966” reminded the Italians of one of the most traumatic chapters in their football history.
Everything was going according to the usual Italian script: an early goal from Christian Vieri, a tight defense and a calm approach to maintaining the lead. But in the 88th minute, Seol Ki-hyeon equalized and took the match into extra time. The hero of the day was Ahn Jung-hwan, who redeemed himself for missing a penalty in the first half by scoring the golden goal.
In the quarter-finals, South Korea beat Spain on penalties, but were defeated by Germany in the semi-finals and lost the match for third place to Turkey. Fourth place at that tournament remains the Asian side’s best-ever finish.
Germany vs Japan 1-2, 2022
At the 2022 competition, Japan were drawn in the same group as Germany, Spain and Costa Rica, so few expected Hajime Moriyasu’s side to reach the knockout stage.
However, right from their first match against the Germans, Japan showed that they weren’t intimidated by their opponents’ reputation. Having conceded a goal in the first half, the Japanese withstood the pressure and, having made some effective substitutions after the break, significantly increased the tempo of the game.
First, substitute Ritsu Dōan equalized, and then Takuma Asano, who had also started the match on the bench, scored the winning goal. Japan repeated this scenario in their game against Spain. Once again, they conceded first, but responded after the break to secure another 2-1 victory. The Samurai Blue topped a group featuring two European giants, and in the round of 16, lost to Croatia only on penalties. After a performance like this, even the strongest national teams can no longer dismiss Japan as merely inconvenient underdogs.
Argentina vs Saudi Arabia 1-2, 2022
The 2022 tournament produced yet another sensation from an Asian team – one of the biggest upsets of the group stage. Saudi Arabia went into the match against Argentina as clear underdogs, but ended up recording a historic victory.
Argentina took an early lead thanks to a penalty from Messi and were in complete control of the match. Lionel Scaloni’s men scored three times in the first half alone, but each goal was ruled out for offside. It seemed that the favorites would eventually break down their opponents.
But after half-time, the game turned around in a matter of minutes: first Saleh Al-Shehri equalized, and then Salem Al-Dawsari put his team ahead with a superb strike into the top corner. Saudi Arabia won 2-1.
The significance of that victory quickly spread far beyond the stadium. A public holiday was declared in Saudi Arabia following the match, and the result itself served as yet another reminder that Asian national teams are capable of springing surprises.
The owner of 1xBet has made the brand a prominent part of the world of sports: today, the company is known for its status as an official partner of FC Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Serie A and other major organizations. Follow your favorite teams and support your favorites at the summer tournament alongside the global brand!
