Qatar to take on Jordan in Asian Men's Youth Beach Handball Championship

Bangkok: Qatar’s U-17 beach handball team will meet their Jordanian counterparts on Wednesday at the start of their journey in the 3rd Asian Men's Youth Beach Handball Championship, hosted by the Thai capital, Bangkok, and running from October 16 to 25. Seven teams are participating in the championship including Qatar, Oman, Iran, Jordan, China, Indonesia, and Thailand. The championship serves as a qualifying event for the 3rd IHF Men’s Youth (U17) Beach Handball World Championship, to be held in Hammamet, Tunisia, from 17 to 22 June 2025. The top three teams from this competition will secure qualification spots for the World Championship.  

Qatar’s Younousse and Tijan set for Elite 16 challenge in Brazil

Joao Pessoa: Qatar’s beach volleyball stars, Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan are aiming to excel in the Beach Pro Tour – Elite 16 tournament, getting underway in Joao Pessoa, Brazil, from October 16. Following a series of strong performances at the Arab Beach Volleyball Championship and the Paris Olympics, the former World No.1 pair will be looking to make their mark on the international stage once again. Competing in Pool A in the opening stage in Joao Pessoa, Younousse and Tijan are set to face stiff competition from two formidable teams. In the first two matches, they will meet the home pair of George Souto Maior Wanderley and Loyola Stein Andre, as well as Argentina’s Nicolas Capogrosso and Tomas Capogrosso. The Qatari pair’s opening match is scheduled for October 17 against the Capogrosso brothers. A day later, they will take on Brazilian pair of Wanderle and Andre, currently ranked fourth in the world. On October 19, Younousse and Tijan will take on Seed 16 in their final pool match.      

Team Qatar lose to Iran in World Cup qualifiers

Dubai: Sardar Azmoun scored twice and set up a third as the Islamic Republic of Iran came from a goal behind to hand Qatar a 4-1 defeat and keep pace with Uzbekistan at the summit of Group A in the AFC Asian Qualifiers™ - Road to 26 in Dubai on Tuesday. Almoez Ali had given the Qataris the lead with a spectacular strike in the 17th minute but Azmoun scored twice – in the 42nd and 48th minutes – before laying on a third for Mohammad Mohebbi in the 65th minute to ensure the Iranians took all three points. Mohebbi added the fourth eight minutes into stoppage time with a deflected header. The win moves Amir Ghalenoei’s side onto 10 points and keeps them level with Uzbekistan, who notched up a 1-0 win over the United Arab Emirates earlier in the evening. Qatar, meanwhile, remain stuck on four points from their opening four games. The Iranians made a lively start but, while Mehdi Taremi’s effort inside the opening minute was called back for an offside decision, Mohebbi should have done better when he dragged his second minute attempt across the face of Meshaal Barsham’s goal. But it was the AFC Asian Cup™ holders who were to take the lead in spectacular fashion. Lucas Mendes’ long ball over the top from deep released Ali behind the defence and the striker smashed a devastating first-time strike into the roof of Alireza Beiranvand’s net. Omid Noorafkan tested Barsham from 20 yards soon after the half hour mark but the attempt was too weak to truly trouble the Qatar goalkeeper, while moments later Azmoun clipped the top of the bar with a thunderous shot from distance as the pace picked up. The Shabab Al Ahli striker did not have to wait much longer to equalise, however, rising unmarked in the penalty area to spear his header from Noorafkan’s cross into the top of Barsham’s goal with three minutes left in the half. Two minutes into first half injury time the Qataris almost restored their lead, Boualem Khoukhi rattling the crossbar from Akram Afif’s searching cross from the right with a header that had Beiranvand beaten. The woodwork was hit again at the other end when Mehdi Ghayedi unleashed a powerful right-foot shot to bring the half to a thrilling conclusion. The drama continued into the early exchanges of the second half as the Iranians took the lead for the first time. Ghayedi’s cross was headed into the air by Mendes but, as Barsham came to collect, he tripped over his team mate and Azmoun smashed into the empty net. Azmoun then went from scorer to provider as the Iranians added a third, the forward bursting through the Qatar defence before unselfishly rolling the ball across goal for Mohebi to pass the ball into an empty net with Barsham well beaten. Mohebi completed the rout when he glanced Noorafkan’s corner across Barsham and into the bottom corner to put the seal on an emphatic win.  

Qatar to take on Iran in World Cup qualifiers

Doha: Asian champions Qatar will be looking for their second successive win in their journey to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup when they face continental giants Iran in Dubai today. Last week, coach Marquez Lopez's side comfortably beat Kyrgyzstan 3-1 in what was the first win for two-time Asian champions after a loss against the UAE which followed a draw with DPR Korea last month. Coach Lopez yesterday said in Dubai that his squad remains upbeat ahead of their game against Iran, coached by Amir Ghalenoei. "Our victory over Kyrgyzstan (last Thursday) was a great moral boost for the entire squad. We are confident that we can build on it and continue in the same aggressive manner to gain more points," Lopez said yesterday during a pre-match news conference. "We know very well the strength of the Iranian team and yes, we have a difficult match ahead of us but we have prepared well. We can contain the threat their players present. Let me tell you we have developed a strategy that will boost our game," the Spaniard added. Qatar defender Tariq Salman said yesterday: "We are excited about the match against the Iranian team. This match undoubtedly seems very difficult, but everyone on our side is ready to go after a winning result. Our victory in the last game gave us great confidence and now we have the ability to get another win." Lopez will be hoping to see another effective performance from key defender Abdelkarim Hassan who was recalled to the national set-up after almost two years in the wilderness. Against Kyrgyzstan, Hassan was the platform that allowed Qatar to have experience at the back and threatening runs from either of the two flanks. Almoez Ali, Qatar's chief striker, opened the scoring in the 3-1 win against Kyrgyzstan with a slick finish in the 39th minute. With the ever reliable Akram Afif set to start the game today and new legs in Edmilson Jr also available, Almoez can bring much needed teeth in the front of the Iranian goalmouth. Iran coach Ghalenoei admitted Qatar could present a danger to his side today. "Qatar play football with a plan and they are dangerous. A few months ago, we played in the Asian Cup (semi-finals)], which we lost. But this game has its own conditions and it is very different from that match," Ghalenoei said yesterday. "Football is for enjoyment and we must try to win a good game to make the fans happy. We are not looking for revenge, because football is not a place to take revenge, but we want to win to make our fans happy. We respect the good team of Qatar. They have shown that football is progressing in Asia," he added. "If we win this important game, we will have gone more than 50% of our qualifying journey and this is what we are looking for," the coach said. Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand said yesterday: "We knew we could have advanced comfortably by winning against two toughest teams in the group – Uzbekistan and Qatar. Unfortunately, in the first game against Uzbekistan, despite the fact that we played well, the game ended with a goalless draw. Now we are ready to compete with Qatar and I hope we can get a good result."

Qatar prepare for Iran clash as Australia eye win in Japan

DUBAI, UAE - Qatar will hope they have turned the corner after Thursday’s 3-1 win over Kyrgyzstan when they face Asian giants Iran in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier on Tuesday. Qatar, the two-time AFC Asian Cup champions, entered last Thursday’s tie with just a point to their name and another negative result would have had drastic implications on their qualification hopes. However, the Marquez Lopez-coached side lifted the home gloom with a fighting 3-1 win over Kyrgyzstan on Thursday at Al Thumama Stadium where the home side totally dominated the first half and did enough in the second to secure a welcome win. Lopez welcomed back Abdelkarim Hassan to the side after more than two years in the wilderness and the Al Wakrah defender delivered with threatening runs and astute defence. Al Duhail striker Almoez Ali, who opened the scoring in the 39th minute against Kyrgyzstan, kept the visitors backline busy on Thursday. Mercurial Akram Afif – shortlisted for this year’s AFC Player of the Year award – and his teammates will be aiming for a win against Iran and a victoryon Tuesday will complete their turnaround and Qatar can then optimistically look forward to the rest of their campaign. In other Group A games on Tuesday, points leaders Uzbekistan will host the United Arab Emirates looking to return to winning ways after drawing 0-0 with Iran last week. Kyrgyzstan, who were beaten by Qatar, on Tuesday face North Korea in the group’s other game. The first two finishers in each group qualify automatically for the World Cup with the third and fourth-placed finishers advancing to another round of preliminaries. Meanwhile Australia coach Tony Popovic will look to continue the Socceroos’ World Cup qualifying renaissance against a familiar foe on Tuesday as he takes his team to Saitama Stadium to face ex-teammate Hajime Moriyasu and his rampant Japan team. Popovic led Australia to a 3-1 win over China on Thursday in his first game since replacing Graham Arnold, reinvigorating the team’s hopes of an automatic berth at the 2026 World Cup. Australia picked up one point from their opening two matches but victory over the Chinese has moved them up to second in Group C as the Japanese defeated Saudi Arabia and Bahrain were held to a 2-2 draw by Indonesia.  The Samurai Blue lead the standings by five points having won all three of their games so far, scoring 14 times without conceding to go into the clash as favourites with the Australians having never won in Japan. Despite the odds being heavily in the home side’s favour, the journey will hold few concerns for Popovic, who spent four years playing alongside Moriyasu at J-League outfit Sanfrecce Hiroshima. “I know the coach very well, he was my captain when I played in Japan, a wonderful person that’s been there several years now,” the former defender said. “You can see the evolution of Japanese football and how he’s changed, bringing players in and out, how they’ve improved their style of play. “Obviously, it’s a big challenge but also a big opportunity as well to win in Japan,” Popovic said. While Japan and Australia meet in their top-of-the-table encounter, Saudi Arabia host Bahrain in Jeddah aiming to bounce back from their loss to Japan while Indonesia travel to face pointless China looking to pick up a win after three draws.  

Qatari mountaineer Sheikha Asma emerges as first Arab to complete Explorer's Grand Slam

DOHA  - Qatari record-setting mountaineer Sheikha Asma bint Thani Al-Thani made history as the first Arab and Qatari to complete the Explorer's Grand Slam. The Qatari champion summited the Castrensis Pyramid in Central Papua, on Oct. 11, 2024, the last phase of the prestigious adventure challenge. Fewer than 75 people in history have completed this incredible feat. Speaking to the media, Sheikha Asma bint Thani Al-Thani said the achievement was the outcome of her determination to achieve a 2014 dream to break boundaries. Along the way, each summit represented a step closer to realizing potentials, but more importantly, a testament to staying true to one's dreams, even when the path ahead seems impossible, the Qatari champion added. The Qatari champion expressed her deep gratitude to everyone who supported her and made this journey possible, starting with the encouragement of her family, friends and teammates, and the support teams who stood by her until her dream came true.