Football fans glum as China drawn in Fifa World Cup 2026 qualifying ‘group of death’

Men’s national team will play against South Korea, Thailand, and Singapore in the first round of Asian qualifiers

Supporters stay away from latest loss to Uzbekistan in Dalian, with hopes not high for reaching first World Cup since 2002

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China’s early exit to South Korea in the Asian Games men’s football event left players and fans glum. Photo: AFP

Published: 8:04pm, 17 Oct 2023

Chinese football fans were left despairing after the men’s national team were drawn in a “group of death” in the first round of the Asian World Cup qualifiers.

China, No 80 in the Fifa world rankings, will play against South Korea, Thailand, and Singapore in group C. The top two teams will go through to a second Asian qualifying round.

Aleksandar Jankovic’s side will start their campaign away to world No 112 Thailand on November 16, then host 25th-ranked South Korea five days later.

March brings a double header against Singapore – No 155 in the Fifa rankings – before a home clash against Thailand on June 6 and a daunting trip to Seoul on June 11.

Song Min-kyu celebrates after scoring for South Korea against China at the Asian Games. Photo: Xinhua

Fans on social media did not seem positive regarding China’s chances of progressing.

“Group of death! None of them are easy for the Chinese team to play!” one supporter wrote on Weibo, China’s Twitter-like platform.