National Competitions - Landing Page

Spaniard Pizzi took over the role vacated by Rui Bento after the Portuguese helped Kuwait return to the third round of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers for the first time since the 2006 edition.

The Iraqis will be returning to the Olympics for their third appearance after a memorable run to the semi-finals in Athens in 2004 and their qualification for Rio de Janeiro 12 years later.

And while the country’s most recent involvement ended in a group phase elimination, Shenaishil is looking to emulate the achievements of the squad led by Younis Mahmood and Nashat Akram by securing a place in the second phase of the competition.

Borussia Dortmund’s Tan starred with a hat-trick while Putri, who plays for Oakland University in the United States, grabbed a brace as Singapore registered their biggest ever victory since their 6-0 win over Maldives in 2007.

The former Kashima Antlers coach, who led the J1 League side to the AFC Champions League title in 2019, steered his team to victory in the continental championship in May to secure the country’s eighth successive Olympic Games qualification.

Oiwa’s team defeated Uzbekistan in the final in Doha to lift the trophy for the second time as the Japanese continued their record of qualifying for every Olympic Games since 1996 and the head coach is targeting further success for his team later this summer.

FAM said Kim, who took charge in 2022, will be replaced by Spaniard Pau Vicente on an interim basis, assisted by E. Elavarasan.

Sweden's Tony Gustavsson will plot Australia's challenge while Futoshi Ikeda will lead Japan.

While Asian teams made their Olympics debut in the 1938 edition, only twice has a side from the continent won a medal at the global showpiece - Japan in 1968 and Korea Republic at the 2012 Games.

The-AFC.com takes an in depth look at the head coaches who will be charting the challenges of Iraq, Japan and Uzbekistan.

The Nadeshiko, despite home ground advantage, failed to win a medal at the 2020 Games but a strong showing in last year's FIFA Women's World Cup indicates their Paris 2024 Group C opponents will have to tread warily against the East Asian side.

Canada, who will be defending their gold medal from the Tokyo Games, came from behind to clinch victory in the 'B' international.

The Southeast Asian side had won the first of their two friendlies 2-1 on Tuesday.

Having sealed qualification after cruising past Uzbekistan in their playoff, Australia will face four-time gold medallists the United States, 2016 champions Germany and Zambia in Group B.

The top two sides from each of the three groups and the two best third-placed teams will advance to the quarter-finals.

Their historical qualification was sealed after finishing runners-up in the AFC U23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024 and the young White Wolves will have to compete with 2020 silver medallists Spain, Egypt and Dominican Republic for one of the Group C quarter-finals slots.