According to matches held on Tuesday, Syria, Australia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Japan, UAE, and South Korea have advanced to the next stage as their groups leader while China, Iraq, Oman, Vietnam, and Lebanon sealed their places as best runners-up.
The draw for the third stage will be held on July 1. The seeding will be based on FIFA World Rankings released in May 2021.
The teams will play in two groups of six in a round-robin format. Two top teams of each group will win the World Cup ticket while the third-placed teams will face a fourth round.
According to the ranking, the pots will be the following:
Pot 1: Iran, Japan
Pot 2: South Korea, Australia
Pot 3: Saudi Arabia, Iraq
Pot 4: United Arab Emirates, China
Pot 5: Syria, Oman
Pot 6: Vietnam, Lebanon
This stage’s matches will be held from September 2021 to March 2022.
MAH/