2026 World Cup Asian Qualifiers: Chinese National Team Draws Group C with Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Indonesia.
On June 27th, the draw for the group stage of the Asian Zone 18-team qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup was held. As a fifth-seed team, the Chinese national team was drawn into Group C along with Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Indonesia.
The 18 teams will be divided into three groups (A, B, and C) for the group stage. Each group will consist of six teams, and the matches will be played on a home-and-away basis from September 2024 to June 2025.
The top two teams from each group will directly qualify for the World Cup, while the third and fourth-placed teams will proceed to the fourth stage. In the fourth stage, these six teams will be divided into two groups of three teams each. The group winners will advance to the World Cup, and the second-placed teams will enter the fifth stage.
In the fifth stage, the second-placed teams from the fourth stage will compete in a playoff in November 2025 to determine the intercontinental playoff spot.
The Chinese national team's schedule for the qualifiers is as follows:
Matchday 1: September 5, 2024 - Japan vs China
Matchday 2: September 10, 2024 - China vs Saudi Arabia
Matchday 3: October 10, 2024 - Australia vs China
Matchday 4: October 15, 2024 - China vs Indonesia
Matchday 5: November 14, 2024 - Bahrain vs China
Matchday 6: November 19, 2024 - China vs Japan
Matchday 7: March 20, 2025 - Saudi Arabia vs China
Matchday 8: March 25, 2025 - China vs Australia
Matchday 9: June 5, 2025 - Indonesia vs China
Matchday 10: June 10, 2025 - China vs Bahrain