2026 World Cup: Coach Arnold feels Iraq's passion to pass final playoff test after 40-year wait

ZURICH (AP) — Iraq is one game away from soccer’s 2026 World Cup in North America and its veteran coach senses a little pressure and a huge achievement ahead.

For Iraq fans, a 40-year wait through their nation’s troubled modern history to return to the World Cup can end in the last of an epic 21-game qualifying campaign. That is more games than any other team played getting to the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Iraq just has to win an elimination playoff against Bolivia or Suriname scheduled in March. Bolivia and Suriname meet days earlier — also in Monterrey or Guadalajara.

“If ever a country is desperate to qualify, this is it,” Iraq coach Graham Arnold told The Associated Press in Zurich after FIFA made the playoff pairings draw Thursday.

“I’ve never seen anything like it the other night,” he said, about Iraq scoring a penalty kick in the 17th minute of stoppage time to eliminate the United Arab Emirates in an Asian playoff.

There were 62,000 to see Iraq win 2-1, and 3-2 on aggregate score, inside the stadium in Basra — a city often known for military conflict and turmoil since Iraq last played at the World Cup in 1986.

A video that circulated online showed Arnold behind the team dugout refusing to watch as Amir Al-Ammari prepared to score the decisive spot-kick.

Arnold’s playoff pedigree

Still, Arnold has seen it and done it before in World Cup qualification.

He guided his native Australia through a win-or-go-home game against Peru in Doha to reach the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. His bold coaching helped Australia win the penalty shootout by sending on substitute goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne, who made the decisive save.

“The funny thing is, I didn’t feel this much pressure,” Arnold said of coaching Australia in that playoff, compared to the tension “that I felt the other night.”

“Australia’s my country, and I love Australia so much, but I’ve been given a task that can change a country forever,” he said. “And I’m really enjoying the task.”

Iraq’s soccer passion

Arnold was appointed only in May, deep into a qualifying campaign that started in November 2023, for a job in a nation where soccer is the top sport.

“The people are beautiful people and they’re very passionate about anything that they do,” he said, describing the fans as “sensational.”

“The whole thing of Iraq is a misperception. You know, they had to go through a war, they’re still recovering from that war.”

Baghdad was subjected to “shock and awe” bombing by the United States military in 2003 to begin toppling the regime of Saddam Hussein. For much of the past two decades, FIFA judged Iraq not safe enough to host games in international competitions like the World Cup.

“The roads are busy, everything’s busy. But I’ve been there for five and a half months out of six, and I find it normal,” said Arnold, adding he is unbothered by the heat and dust storms.

Social media ban

Some in Arnold’s squad play for clubs in Europe, including Al-Ammari in Poland, former Manchester United prospect Zidane Iqbal in the Netherlands and German-born Merchas Doski in the Czech Republic. Most are still in Iraq.

“They have carried a lot of pressure and there’s a lot of expectations,” he acknowledged about the mental challenges. “I’ve banned them from social media for the last two camps, from the day they got in, to the day we left. And we haven’t lost a game.”

One more game remains in Mexico, the only country where Iraq played at a World Cup. In 1986, Iraq lost three tight games including to the host nation team.

Iraq wants to return.

“There’s 45 million that live in Iraq and there’s probably about another 10 million live somewhere else, because of the war,” Arnold said. “So there’s a lot of emotion around.”

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer