Iran defeat Jordan to complete line-up for Women's Asian Cup
Second-half goals from Sara Didar and Negin Zandi earned Marziyeh Jafari's team a win that secured top spot in Group A of the preliminaries ahead of the Jordanians due to their better head-to-head record.
The Iranians are the last team to qualify for the finals after matches in Group A were postponed due to the recent Israel-Iran conflict.
Australia will host the 12-team tournament in Sydney, Perth and Gold Coast from March 1 to 21 and Joe Montemurro's home side will be among the favourites to lift the trophy.
Defending champions China, who have won the title a record nine times, will also be joined at the finals by South Korea, Japan, Bangladesh, India, Taiwan, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, the Philippines and North Korea.
The draw will take place in Sydney on July 29.
"There's a real energy building, not just here in Australia but across Asia, and this diverse, high-quality line-up shows just how far women's football has come," said Sarah Walsh, the event's chief organising officer.
"With so much talent and so many great stories coming together, this is going to be a tournament to remember."
The competition will also serve as Asia's qualifying tournament for the Women's World Cup in 2027 with six automatic berths available at the finals in Brazil. A further two nations will progress to a series of intercontinental playoffs.
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The Guardian
26 minutes ago
- The Guardian
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From Sydney to Basel with two years and, for those who took in both Euro 2025 semi-finals, several lifetimes in between. Spain will be England's opponents in the decider on Sunday, ensuring a delicious rerun of the World Cup final, but that barely tells the story of a tie with a resolution arriving only seven minutes from the end of extra time. The scorer simply had to be Aitana Bonmatí, whose meningitis infection last month cast a severe cloud over Spain's preparations. They will now play to win their first European Championship title but it was impossible not to sympathise with an excellent Germany side and, particularly, their goalkeeper, Ann-Katrin Berger. She had been immaculate until Bonmatí, slipped in towards the right byline by Athenea del Castillo, let fly from a tight angle and beat her inside the near post. Germany had come agonisingly close to victory themselves and sank to the floor in deflation at the end. With its oval curves and all-encompassing athletics track this venue lacks the acoustic force that propelled England and Italy on Tuesday night. The stakes here were no lower, though, and the context a novelty. It has taken a colossal stretch, down the years, for Germany to be cast as plucky underdogs but they could make that case here. Christian Wück's weakened team spluttered through the group stage but located staggering depths of resolve in edging past France despite being a player short for 107 minutes. They would be required to 'suffer' to stand any chance of going one better, according to Wück. That was hardly rocket science: Spain's football has been several levels above the rest in a tournament high on drama but variable on technical quality. The world champions had barely been scratched in progressing this far, a shade of doubt perhaps offering itself in the time it took to puncture a resilient Switzerland in their quarter‑final on Friday. 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Daily Mail
26 minutes ago
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Daily Mail
26 minutes ago
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