Football rivalry between Iraq and Saudi Arabia
Iraq and Saudi Arabia are two fierce rivals of the Arab world . Their matches are often considered to be one of the most heated rivalries in the world.
Although received lesser attention comparing to rivalry with Iran of both sides, it is one of the oldest rivalries in Asia.[ 1] Emotions often run high when two teams meet each others.
Reason behind the rivalry [ edit ] The main reasons for this rivalry are political differences, and historical grievances. During the Gulf War in the 1990s, Iraq invaded Kuwait , an ally of Saudi Arabia, and both fought a short but bloody war that would continue to have a major impact on their relations.[ 2] Due to the Gulf War of 1991, Saudi Arabia and Iraq had no official diplomatic relations, resulting in the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification matches between the two nations being held on neutral grounds of Bahrain and Jordan.
Recently, accusations from Iraq that Saudi Arabia is instigating terrorist groups, like ISIS and Al-Qaeda , further deepened enmity between the two nations.
Major tournament matches [ edit ] 1976 AFC Asian Cup qualification
1976 AFC Asian Cup qualification
1982 FIFA World Cup qualification
1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
1996 AFC Asian Cup
2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
2004 AFC Asian Cup
2007 AFC Asian Cup
2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification
2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification
2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
Source :[ 3] # Date Competition Home team Score Away team Goals (home) Goals (away) Venue 1 22 August 1975 1976 Olympic qualification [ a] Iraq 0–2 Saudi Arabia Tehran 2 25 November 1975 1976 AFC Asian Cup qualification Iraq 1–1 Saudi Arabia Ahmed 86' Al-Mugnim 4' Al-Shaab Stadium , Baghdad 3 2 December 1975 Iraq 2–1 Saudi Arabia Subhi 13' , Hassan 42' Bakhit 54' Al-Shaab Stadium , Baghdad 4 29 March 1976 1976 Gulf Cup Saudi Arabia 1–7 Iraq Suroor 82' Waal 3' , Abdul-Jalil 6' , Hassan 25' , Kadhim 45' , 60' , 68' Subhi 89' Doha 5 31 August 1976 Friendly Saudi Arabia 0–0 Iraq Riyadh 6 14 December 1978 1978 Asian Games Iraq 1–1 Saudi Arabia Ali 40' Bangkok 7 8 April 1979 1979 Gulf Cup Iraq 2–0 Saudi Arabia Hassan 24' , Farhan 36' Al Shaab Stadium , Baghdad 8 21 March 1981 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification Saudi Arabia 1–0 Iraq Dabo 82' Al Malaz Stadium , Riyadh 9 24 March 1982 1982 Gulf Cup Iraq 1–1 Saudi Arabia 10 1 December 1982 1982 Asian Games Saudi Arabia 0–1 Iraq H.Mohammed 17' Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium , New Delhi 11 17 March 1984 1984 Gulf Cup Iraq 4–0 Saudi Arabia Shaker 25' , Saeed 57' , 70' , 84' Royal Oman Police Stadium , Muscat 12 10 July 1985 1985 Arab Nations Cup Iraq 3–2 Saudi Arabia Abid 12' , 18' , Rashid 28' Nu'eimeh 12' (pen. ) , Al-Jawad 88' King Fahd Stadium , Taif 13 14 August 1985 1985 Pan Arab Games [ b] Iraq 2–1 Saudi Arabia Radhi Abdullah 21' (pen. ) Stade Mohammed V , Casablanca 14 30 March 1986 1986 Gulf Cup Iraq 1–2 Saudi Arabia Saddam 75' Manama 15 1 October 1986 1986 Asian Games Saudi Arabia 1–1 (a.e.t. )[ c] Iraq Al-Shehrani 39' H.Mohammed 51' Seoul Olympic Stadium , Seoul 16 4 December 1987 1988 Olympic qualification [ a] Saudi Arabia 0–0 Iraq Riyadh 17 1 January 1988 Iraq 1–1 Saudi Arabia Shaker 51' (pen. ) Muscat 18 16 March 1988 1988 Gulf Cup Iraq 2–0 Saudi Arabia Radhi 59' , Gorgis 72' King Fahd International Stadium , Riyadh 19 15 July 1988 1988 Arab Nations Cup Iraq 2–0 Saudi Arabia Radhi 13' , 35' Amman 20 24 October 1993 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification Iraq 1–1 Saudi Arabia Radhi 1' Owairan 36' Khalifa International Stadium , Doha 21 8 December 1996 1996 AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 1–0 Iraq Al-Mehallel 26' Al-Maktoum Stadium , Dubai 22 31 August 2001 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification Saudi Arabia 1–0 Iraq Al-Dosari 45' Bahrain National Stadium , Manama 23 5 October 2001 Iraq 1–2 Saudi Arabia Abu Al-Hail 31' Shehan 1' , 77' Amman International Stadium , Amman 24 26 July 2004 2004 AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 1–2 Iraq Al-Montashari 57' Akram 51' , Mahmoud 86' Sichuan Longquanyi Stadium , Chengdu 25 5 December 2005 2005 West Asian Games Iraq 5–1 Saudi Arabia Abdul-Amir 8' , E.Mohammed 19' , Akram 30' , Mahmoud 51' , 78' Al-Qadi 53' Ahmed bin Ali Stadium , Al Rayyan 26 8 December 2005 Iraq 2–0 Saudi Arabia Salah 33' , Farhan 85' 27 15 March 2006 Friendly Saudi Arabia 2–2 Iraq Temyat 18' , Al-Jaber 59' Shakroun 28' , Abdul-Amir 90+4' Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium , Jeddah 28 24 January 2007 2007 Gulf Cup Saudi Arabia 1–0 Iraq Al-Qahtani 12' (pen. ) Al-Nahyan Stadium , Abu Dhabi 29 29 July 2007 2007 AFC Asian Cup Iraq 1–0 Saudi Arabia Mahmoud 72' Gelora Bung Karno Stadium , Jakarta 30 22 March 2009 Friendly Saudi Arabia 0–0 Iraq King Fahd International Stadium , Riyadh 31 28 December 2010 Saudi Arabia 0–1 Iraq Mahmoud 24' Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium , Dammam 32 5 July 2012 2012 Arab Nations Cup Saudi Arabia 0–1 Iraq Abdul-Zahra 16' Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium , Jeddah 33 6 January 2013 2013 Gulf Cup Saudi Arabia 0–2 Iraq Shaker 18' , Hawsawi 72' (o.g. ) Khalifa Sports City Stadium , Isa Town 34 15 October 2013 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification Iraq 0–2 Saudi Arabia Hawsawi 34' , Al-Shamrani 78' Amman International Stadium , Amman 35 15 November 2013 Saudi Arabia 2–1 Iraq Jassim 18' , Al-Shamrani 60' Mahmoud 45+1' Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium , Dammam 36 6 September 2016 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification Iraq 1–2 Saudi Arabia Abdul-Raheem 18' Al-Abed 81' (pen. ) , 88' (pen. ) Shah Alam Stadium , Shah Alam 37 28 March 2017 Saudi Arabia 1–0 Iraq Al-Shehri 53' King Abdullah Sports City , Jeddah 38 28 February 2018 Friendly Iraq 4–1 Saudi Arabia Al-Robeai 21' (o.g. ) , Mohsin 47' , Ali 51' , 73' Fallatah 57' Basra International Stadium , Basra 39 15 October 2018 Saudi Arabia 1–1 Iraq Al-Bishi 90+4' Ali 71' King Saud University Stadium , Riyadh 40 9 January 2023 2023 Gulf Cup Saudi Arabia 0–2 Iraq Bayesh 30' , Rostam 86' Basra International Stadium , Basra
^ a b Not a full FIFA international ^ Iraq competed in the tournament with its B team squad. ^ Saudi Arabia won on penalties . Matches held in Iraq 5 Matches held in neutral venue 23 Matches held in Saudi Arabia 12 Total matches 40 Matches won by Iraq 18 Matches won by Saudi Arabia 11
General Statistics Venues Results Players Goals World Cup Finals Asian Cup Finals Other tournaments Noted rivalries Notable matches Other FA teams