Iran moved up to the 55th place at the latest FIFA Women’s World Ranking released on Friday.

Despite not qualifying for the 2018 AFC Asian Women’s Cup Finals, Islamic Republic of Iran’s efforts at the qualifiers proved to be notable as the team moved up to 55th place.

Iran was also previously unranked, the-afc wrote.

Jordan is the biggest Asian movers in the ranking, while Japan continue to lead.

In the recent 2018 AFC Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers, Jordan finished undefeated in a six-team Group A with five wins. Its impressive performance was rewarded by the previously unranked team moving to 50th in the FIFA World Ranking.

Come next April, host Jordan will square off against Asia’s best for the continental title.

Asia’s Top 10 (global rankings in brackets):
Japan (6th)
Australia (7th)
DPR Korea (10th)
China PR (14th)
Korea Republic (16th)
Thailand (29th)
Vietnam (32nd)
Uzbekistan (41st)
Chinese Taipei (42nd)
Myanmar (45th)

The next FIFA Women’s World Ranking will be released on September 1.

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Iranian national football team (also known as Team Melli) qualified for the 2018 World Cup in Russia for the second time in a row.

Team Melli defeated Uzbekistan 2-0 in Tehran’s Azadi Stadium.

The two teams observed one minute of silence as a mark of respect to those who lost their lives in terror attacks in Tehran.

Sardar Azmoun, who was chosen as the Man of the Match, opened the scoring for Carlos Queiroz’s team in the 23rd minute. The Rostov striker has scored 19 goals in 26 matches for Team Melli.

Iran could have scored the second goal in the 48th minute but Masoud Shojaei missed penalty kick.

Mehdi Taremi finished off Uzbekistan in the 88th minute, finding the back of the net from inside the area.

Iran cemented its position at the top of Group A with 20 points.

South Korea is second with 13 points with one game in hands.

Uzbekistan sits third with 12 points.

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Syrian footballers held Iranian Cheetahs to a scoreless draw at FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 qualifier in a swampy Malaysian stadium on Tuesday.

Held at the drenched Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Malaysia, the match was delayed for 45 minutes due to wet conditions which also made playing tough for both sides.

The Persians maintained the upper hand all through the encounter against Syria though they failed to find the net and ended the fifth game in the third round of qualification with only one point.

The draw against Syrians, however, confirmed Iran’s position on top of Group A with eleven points followed by South Korea and Uzbekistan who have so far bagged 10 and 9 points respectively.

Meanwhile, Syria’s national football team stays in the fourth place with five points after five games in the FIFA Asian qualifiers.

“I have nothing to say about the game, just that I’m proud of every single one of my players,” said Iran’s coach Carlos Queiroz.

He went on to note that “They gave their best right until the end. These were tough conditions to play football in. We are top of the group after five games and there are still five games to go. There is still lots of hard work ahead but we are working hard and we are still unbeaten and have not conceded a goal. We now look towards the next game.”/MNA

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National Iranian junior football team beat Uzbekistan to both cruise to AFC U-19 Championship semifinals and get tickets to next year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup in Korea Republic.

Iran faced Uzbek rivals on Monday evening in Manama’s Bahrain National Stadium in quarterfinals of the AFC U-19 Championship Bahrain 2016 where the Persians handed Uzbekistan a 2-0 defeat.

Reza Jafari gave Iran the lead after just 13 minutes although the Uzbeks dominated possession for what remained of the first half.

A second goal for Jafari less than two minutes into the second half left Uzbekistan with a tough task.

Uzbekistan pushed for goals throughout the match though their attempts were futile thanks to Iran’s disciplined backline

Given the sweeping victory over Uzbekistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran qualified for the finals of the FIFA U-20 World Cup Korea Republic 2017 for the first time in 16 years.

Iran is scheduled to take on Saudi Arabia on Thursday evening in their upcoming encounter of the Asian tournament while Vietnam and Japan comprise the second leg of the semifinal round.

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Iran remains Asia’s top-ranked team, having jumped 10 places to 27th in the latest FIFA World Ranking.

Its remarkable performance recently has placed it on top with Australia (40th) being the second highest ranked, followed by Korea Republic (44th) in third, Uzbekistan (48th) fourth and Japan (51st) fifth in the Asian ranking, the-afc.com reported.

These top five Asian teams are currently competing in the FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 Asian Qualifiers, and are in the top three of their respective group. Iran however, has proved to be a formidable force by being at the top of its group with three wins and a draw to their name.

Some of the top movers up the ranks are Syria with an 18-rank jump to 96th, followed by Chinese Taipei which leaped 17 ranks to 161st, and Iraq with a 15-rank increase to 113th.

Despite the conflicts at home, Syria is Asia’s biggest movers this month, helped by its performance in the World Cup Asian Qualifiers, which includes beating China 1-0.

Asia’s top 10:

Iran 27th

Australia 40th

Korea Republic 44th

Uzbekistan 48th

Japan 51st

Saudi Arabia 54th

United Arab Emirates 70th

China PR 84th

Qatar 91st

Syria 96th

The next FIFA World Ranking will be released on November 24.

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Iran was crowned AFC Beach Soccer Championship Malaysia 2017 champion on Saturday after beating the UAE 7-2 in Kuala Terengganu.

#AFCBeachSoccer2017
M23 United Arab Emirates vs Islamic Republic of Iran – News Report

The UAE’s Haitham Mohamed opened the match with an impressive effort which Iran goalkeeper Peyman Hosseini saved well, but it was to be Iran which would draw first blood, Moslem Mesigar tapping home from close range to hand his side an early lead, the-afc.com reported.

Clearly, boosted by its goal, Iran immediately doubled its advantage through Hosseini’s impressive strike, before Iran skipper Mohammad Ahmadzadeh fired a volley, just inches wide.

With the UAE failing to make an impression, Iran struck again as Mohammad-Ali Mokhtari’s penalty rounded off a fine first period for the Iranians.

Kamal Ali then went close with a volley as the Emiratis tried to rally. However, worse was to come for them as Mesigar’s cool header found the net with keeper Humaid Jamal rooted to the spot.

It was to be Jamal who eventually dragged the UAE back into the game with an impressive finish four minutes from time, a brief glimmer of hope that shone even brighter when Haitham Mohamed scored following neat approach play.

It was, however, not to be for the UAE, as an accurate Ali Nazem free-kick, followed by Amir Akbari’s volley and a Mokhtari penalty sealed a win – and the title – for the Iranians.

President praise

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa congratulated Iran on capturing the Asian title.

In the earlier third and fourth place match, Japan edged out Lebanon 6-3 to secure its spot, alongside Iran and the UAE, as Asia’s three representatives at the upcoming FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017, which will be played in Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas, from April 27 to May 7, 2017.

Shaikh Salman said, “I would like to congratulate Islamic Republic Iran who were a formidable force from start to finish. UAE should also be praised for their brilliant efforts in a captivating final.

“Along with Japan, Asia has three teams of outstanding quality and I am confident that they will do the continent proud in the Bahamas.”

The AFC President also paid tribute to Terengganu, Malaysia and the Local Organizing Committee for hosting a memorable tournament. “On behalf of the Asian football family, I must convey my appreciation to the Terengganu State Sports Council and the Terengganu State Government for their warm hospitality and displaying excellence in organizing a truly exceptional competition.

“This is the first time the tournament was hosted in Southeast Asia and it once again represents the AFC’s Vision and Mission to better engage with passionate football fans across the continent.”

The newly-crowned champion of Asia has been drawn to face Italy, Mexico and Nigeria in Group B at the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017. Meanwhile, runner-up the UAE is in Group C, where it will compete against Panama, Paraguay and Portugal. Third-placed Japan will feature in Group D comprising Brazil, Poland and Tahiti at the Bahamas Beach Stadium in Nassau.

Iran will open Asia’s campaign in the Bahamas against Mexico on April 27, 3.30 p.m. (local time). Japan and the UAE will begin their conquests the following day on April 28 against Poland and Paraguay at 3.30 p.m. and 8 p.m. (local time) respectively.

Physical fitness, Iran’s trump card

Following the final showdown, Iran head coach Mohammad Hossein Mirshamsi praised the performance of his players, saying, “We were ready for this game and we knew that the UAE were tired as it was a tough semifinal game against Lebanon for them.

“I think today’s game was easy for us. The most important advantage that we had over the UAE today was physical fitness. We were thankful for that.

“Looking back, I think our most difficult match in this competition was our encounter against Japan in the semifinals, but we analyzed the UAE’s games and I believe we were ahead of them in terms of tactics and technique.”

Mirshami believed Asia is now well placed to challenge for honors come April’s global extravaganza in the Bahamas.

“It is good that Iran, the UAE and Japan are all representing Asia [at the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup],” he said.

“I believe we now have a strong Asian presence at the World Cup.”

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Iran as well as the other twenty nations learned their opponents for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Jordan 2018 qualifiers when the official draw was held in the Jordanian capital of Amman on Saturday.

Iran women football national team has been drawn in Group D of the meet along with host Vietnam, Myanmar, Syria and Singapore.

The squads to take part in the tourney are the Korea Republic, Thailand, Vietnam, Jordan, Myanmar, Chinese Taipei, Uzbekistan, Philippines, Hong Kong, Lebanon, Bahrain, Islamic Republic of Iran, India, Palestine, DPR Korea, Guam, Iraq, Singapore, Syria, Tajikistan and the UAE, the-afc.com reported.

Draw result of AFC Women’s Asian Cup Jordan 2018 qualifiers

Groups are as follows

Group A: A1. Jordan, A2. Philippines, A3. Bahrain A4. Iraq, A5. UAE, A6. Tajikistan (host)

Group B: B1. Korea Republic, B2. Uzbekistan, B3 Hong Kong, B4. India, B5. DPR Korea (host)

Group C: C1. Thailand, C2. Chinese Taipei, C3. Lebanon, C4. Palestine (host), C5. Guam

Group D: D1. Vietnam (host), D2. Myanmar, D3. IR Iran, D4. Syria, D5. Singapore

The three highest-ranked women’s national teams from the last AFC Women’s Asian Cup — Japan, Australia and China PR — received automatic qualification into the eight-team finals. The group winners of each of the four qualifying groups will qualify for the finals in Jordan.

Jordan as host also received automatic qualification, but it has expressed interest to participate in the qualifiers. Therefore, in case it finishes top of its qualifying group, the runner-up team will also advance to the final competition. The qualifiers will kick off on April 3, 2017.

The finals, which will be held from April 7 to 22, 2018, will also serve as the Asian qualifiers for the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019.

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Group A leader Iran got the better of South Korea 1-nil at Tehran’s Azadi Stadium on Tuesday evening as part of 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Asian Qualifiers.

Carlos Queiroz’s boys entertained second-placed South Korea today in group A of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Asian Qualifiers Final Round and pulled out a convincing 1-0 victory over East Asian rivals to solidify their hopes of securing a place at the FIFA World Cup Russia 2018.

The Iranian outfit comprised Alireza Beiranvand, Seyed Jalal Hosseini, Morteza Pourali Ganji, Milad Mohammadi, Ramin Rezaeian, Saied Ezatollahi, Ehsan Hajsafi, Vahid Amiri, Ashkan Dejagah, Alireza Jahanbakhsh (81-Mahdi Taremi) and Sardar Azmun (85-Anderianik Teimuorian).

Iran’s single and decisive goal was scored by Sardar Azmun 25 minutes into the first half of the match in front of a crowd in excess of 70,000 at the Azadi Stadium to move on to 10 points from their opening four games.

Video: Iran vs South Korea, FIFA world cup qualifiers, 11 Oct. 2016- Tehran

The victory for Cheetahs marked their second consecutive 1-0 win in less than a week since they beat Uzbekistan with the same result last Thursday to secure the top position in Group A.

Now national football players of Iran are scheduled to take on Syria in their upcoming showdown to be held on the 15th October in the third-party venue of Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium located in Paroi, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia./ MNA

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Defeating Portugal 4-3 in the playoff, Iran’s national team won the third place in the FIFA Futsal World Cup 2016.

Iran vs Portugal FiFa Report