Iran
Group:
B
First Match:
November 21, 2022, 9 PM SGT
Stadium:
Khalifa International Stadium
Iran had advanced to the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia with three games to spare, and they will be looking to become the first team in their history to go past the group stage. Having qualified for the World Cup for the third time in a row, and appearing in the finals for the sixth time overall, cemented their position as one of Asia's top footballing nations.
While they did manage to upset Morocco in their opening match of the 2018 tournament in Russia owing to a stoppage-time own goal, subsequent losses to Spain and Portugal prevented them from advancing out of their group.
Their sole other World Cup victory came in 1998, against the United States, whom they will meet again in this tournament.
Key Player: Sardar Azmoun (Bayer Leverkusen)
At 27, Azmoun is now the third all-time goalscorer for Iran, and while he still has ways to go before he catches up to Ali Daei, he may feel confident about passing Karim Bagheri for the second position in the near future, as he needs only 10 more goals to do so.
After spending the majority of his professional career in Russia, during which he became the second-highest-paid Iranian of all time when he joined to Zenit, he made the switch to German powerhouse Bayer Leverkusen in January.