2026 WAFF U-20 Championship
International football competition
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The 2026 WAFF U-20 Championship (Arabic: بطولة غرب آسيا للشباب 2026) will be the fourth edition of the WAFF U-20 Championship, the international youth football championship organised by West Asian Football Federation for the men's under-20 national teams of West Asia. Kuwait will host the tournament from 23 March to 2 April 2026.[1] A total of eleven teams will play in the tournament, with players born on or after 1 January 2007 eligible to participate in the competition.[2]
| بطولة غرب آسيا للشباب الكويت 2026 | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Host country | Kuwait |
| City | Sulaibikhat Mangaf |
| Dates | 23 March – 2 April |
| Teams | 11 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue | 2 (in 2 host cities) |
← 2024 TBA → | |
Saudi Arabia were the defending champions, having won their first title in the last edition.[3]
Format
11 teams were distributed into three groups (two groups of 4 teams and one group of 3). Each group plays a round-robin tournament in which each team is scheduled for two or three matches against other teams within the group. The first-placed teams and the best-placed runners-up across the three groups would qualify to the semi-finals.[4]
Participating teams
11 of the 12 WAFF member nations will compete in the tournament.
| Team | Appearance | Last appearance | Previous best performance |
|---|---|---|---|
 Bahrain | 4th | 2024 (Group stage) | Group stage (2019, 2021, 2024) |
 Iraq | 4th | 2024 (Group stage) | Champions (2019, 2021) |
 Jordan | 4th | 2024 (Semi-finals) | Third place (2019) |
 Kuwait | 3rd | 2024 (Group stage) | Group stage (2021, 2024) |
 Lebanon | 3rd | 2024 (Group stage) | Group stage (2024) |
 Oman | 2nd | 2024 (Group stage) | Runners-up (2021) |
 Palestine | 4th | 2024 (Group stage) | Fourth place (2019) |
 Qatar | 2nd | 2019 (Group stage) | Group stage (2019) |
 Saudi Arabia | 2nd | 2024 (Champions) | Champions (2024) |
 Syria | 3rd | 2024 (Semi-finals) | Semi-finals (2024) |
 United Arab Emirates | 4th | 2024 (Runners-up) | Runners-up (2019, 2024) |
- Did not enter
Draw and schedule
The draw was held on 5 February 2026 at the WAFF headquarters in Amman.[1] The full schedule was later announced on 17 February 2026.[5][6]
Group stage
The times are according to Arabia Standard Time (UTC+3).
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oman |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Saudi Arabia |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | Bahrain |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 4 | Qatar |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iraq |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | United Arab Emirates |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | Syria |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 4 | Jordan |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
Group C
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kuwait (H) |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Lebanon |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | Palestine |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Ranking of best runners-up
| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A | Saudi Arabia |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | B | United Arab Emirates |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | C | Lebanon |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |