A B C D
E F G H
Saudi Arabia qualifies for World Cup
DOHA, Qatar (AP) -- Saudi Arabia qualified for the World Cup finals today for the second successive time after it beat Qatar 1-0 in the last match of Asia's Group A.The win puts Saudis atop the group with 14 points, leaving second-placed Iran having to take on Japan, Group B's second-placed team, in a playoff for a third Asian berth later this month.
Qatar, who needed a win to gain the finals for the first time ever, started out strong, surrounding the Saudis in their own half for the first 20 minutes.
The experienced Saudi players however, shrugged off the pressure and mounted their own attacks, but without much success and the first half ended in a goalless draw.
Striker Ibrahim Swayed won the match for the Saudis, firing the ball home from the edge of the area in the 63rd minute.
The Qataris, desperately needing the match's three points, pushed for an equalizer, but their strikers couldn't find the back of the net with the Saudi defence and goalkeeper returning everything the Qataris sent their way.
The Saudis qualified for the 1994 World Cup finals in the United States and became the only Gulf team ever to reach the second round of the World Cup finals when they got there.
Group B's leader South Korea is Asia's other automatic qualifier for the finals in France next year.
Iran and Japan will meet in a playoff in Malaysia on Nov. 16 to decide the continent's third berth in the finals. The loser of that match will play Australia -- the Oceania winner -- for a fourth spot in France.
NEXT ROUNDS: Round of 16 || Quarter-finals || Semi-finals
GROUP A: Brazil, Morocco, Norway, Scotland
GROUP B: Austria, Cameroon, Chile, Italy
GROUP C: Denmark, France, Saudi Arabia, South Africa
GROUP D: Bulgaria, Nigeria, Paraguay, Spain
GROUP E: Belgium, Holland, Mexico, South Korea
GROUP F: Germany, Iran, United States, Yugoslavia
GROUP G: Colombia, England, Romania, Tunisia
GROUP H: Argentina, Croatia, Jamaica, Japan