The FIFA World Cup, sometimes called the Football World Cup or the Soccer World Cup, but usually referred to simply as the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every four years since the first tournament in 1930, except in 1942 and 1946, due to World War II.
The tournament consists of two parts, the qualification phase and the final phase (officially called the World Cup Finals). The qualification phase, which currently take place over the three years preceding the Finals, is used to determine which teams qualify for the Finals. The UAE have appeared in the finals of the FIFA World Cup on one occasion in 1990 where they lost all three games.
As of 18 November 2025, UAE has once again failed to qualify for the final tournament as the team drew 1–1 on its first leg and losing 2–1 on the final leg against Iraq.
The impact of qualifying for the World Cup Numerous nations view their involvement in the World Cup as a strategic move to increase their likelihood of hosting the event in the future. Countries that compete in the tournament have a 17% greater chance of securing the bid for hosting the World Cup. Hosting this prestigious event yields substantial economic advantages and promotes tourism. With its sights set on the National Sports Strategy 2031 objective of enhancing its involvement in multiple international competitions, the United Arab Emirates is eager to capitalize on this occasion.
UAE national team in the World Cup qualifiers
1986 World Cup qualifiers In 1986, the UAE national football team embarked on its first-ever journey in the World Cup qualifiers. The team competed against several other nations in their qualifying group, including Saudi Arabia and Iraq. Despite their best efforts, the UAE team could not secure enough wins to progress to the next stage of the qualifiers. Nevertheless, this experience marked an important milestone in the country's football history, paving the way for future generations of players to represent the UAE on the international stage.
1990 World Cup qualifiers The UAE national team made history in the 1990 World Cup by earning a place in the finals for the first time. The UAE national team started in the preliminary qualifiers and advanced to the final qualifiers topping their group with 6 points in February 1989.
In the last leg of the World Cup qualifiers, the UAE national team competed in a group that included: North Korea, South Korea, China, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. Despite winning just one match against the Chinese national team with a one-goal lead, the UAE national team again managed to secure 6 points, securing a commendable second position. The top spot was taken by the South Korean national team, with 8 points.
The difficulties faced by the UAE national team The qualification earned by the UAE national team is a historical accomplishment, not only for being their first, but also for the adversities they had to overcome during the qualifying period. A player for the UAE national team, was suspended before the last match in the qualifiers against South Korea. Along with this setback, the team persevered through adversity as several injured players required medical injections to withstand their injuries and play the match.
Despite the remarkable achievement of the UAE national team, the UAE Football Association has decided to part ways with coach Mario Zagallo. Mr. Zagallo led the team during the qualifiers, yet he was relieved of his duties only a few days after the team's successful qualification. Coach Carlos Alberto was selected to lead the UAE national football team in the 1990 World Cup finals.
Overall record record recordYearRoundPosition 1930Not eligible to enterNot eligible to enter 1934 1938 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978Did not enterDid not enter 1982 1986Did not qualify421154 1990Group stage24th3003211 9441167 1994Did not qualify8611194 1998125431613 2002147253120 2006631266 2010164391924 201482151416 2018189363717 2022199373116 20262010553616 2030To be determined (TBD)To be determined 2034TotalGroup stage1/223003211135612847230143
* Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.
United Arab Emirates's World Cup recordFirst match 0–2 (9 June 1990; Bologna, Italy)Biggest Win—Biggest Defeat 5–1 (15 June 1990; Milan, Italy)Best ResultGroup stage in 1990 Worst ResultGroup stage in 1990
By Match
YearRoundOpponentsScoreScorers 1990Group D 0–2 1–5 Khalid Ismail 1–4 Ali Thani Jumaa
Head-to-head record OpponentWin %Total
1990 FIFA World Cup
UAE vs Colombia
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: GK 17Muhsin MusabahDF 20Yousuf Hussain DF 6 Abdulrahman MohamedDF 2 Khalil GhanimDF 15Ibrahim Meer MF 19Eissa Meer MF 12Hussain GhuloumMF 14Nasir KhameesMF 3 Ali ThaniFW 7 Fahad Khamees (c) FW 10Adnan Al TalyaniSubstitutions:MF 5 Abdullah Sultan FW 11Zuhair Bakhit Manager: Carlos Alberto ParreiraCOLOMBIA: GK 1 René HiguitaDF 4 Luis Fernando HerreraDF 15Luis Carlos PereaDF 2 Andrés EscobarDF 3 Gildardo GómezMF 8 Gabriel GómezMF 14Leonel ÁlvarezMF 11Bernardo RedínMF 10Carlos Valderrama (c)FW 19Freddy RincónFW 16Arnoldo Iguarán Substitutions:MF 7 Carlos Estrada Manager: Francisco Maturana Assistant referees: Alan Snoddy (Northern Ireland) Shizuo Takada (Japan)
West Germany vs UAE Ismaïl Mubarak got the only goal for the UAE in the first minute of the second half when he latched onto a ball in the box after a mistake by a German defender and hit a low left footed shot into the net.
WEST GERMANY: GK 1 Bodo IllgnerSW 5 Klaus AugenthalerDF 14Thomas Berthold DF 6 Guido BuchwaldMF 2 Stefan ReuterMF 8 Thomas HäßlerMF 10Lothar Matthäus (c)MF 15Uwe BeinMF 3 Andreas Brehme FW 9 Rudi VöllerFW 18Jürgen Klinsmann Substitutions:MF 7 Pierre Littbarski FW 13Karl-Heinz Riedle Manager: Franz BeckenbauerUNITED ARAB EMIRATES: GK 17Muhsin MusabahDF 20Yousuf Hussain DF 6 Abdulrahman Mohamed (c)DF 2 Khalil GhanimDF 15Ibrahim Meer MF 19Eissa MeerMF 12Hussain Ghuloum MF 14Nasir KhameesMF 8 Khalid IsmaïlFW 3 Ali ThaniFW 10Adnan Al TalyaniSubstitutions:DF 21Abdulrahman Al-Haddad Manager: Carlos Alberto Parreira Assistant referees: Shizuo Takada (Japan) Pierluigi Pairetto (Italy)
Yugoslavia vs UAE Thani Jumaa got the only goal for the UAE in the 22nd minute when he headed home from six yards after a cross from the left.
YUGOSLAVIA: GK 1 Tomislav IvkovićSW 5 Faruk HadžibegićDF 2 Vujadin StanojkovićDF 3 Predrag SpasićMF 16Refik Šabanadžović MF 10Dragan StojkovićMF 6 Davor JozićMF 8 Safet SušićMF 7 Dragoljub Brnović FW 9 Darko Pančev FW 11Zlatko Vujović (c) Substitutions:DF 4 Zoran Vulić MF 15Robert Prosinečki Manager: Ivica OsimUNITED ARAB EMIRATES: GK 17Muhsin MusabahDF 19Eissa MeerDF 6 Abdulrahman Mohamed (c)DF 2 Khalil Ghanim DF 15Ibrahim MeerMF 21Abdulrahman Al-HaddadMF 12Hussain GhuloumMF 14Nasir Khamees MF 8 Khalid IsmaïlFW 3 Ali Thani FW 10Adnan Al TalyaniSubstitutions:MF 5 Abdullah Sultan FW 7 Fahad Khamees Manager: Carlos Alberto Parreira Assistant referees: Peter Mikkelsen (Denmark) Michel Vautrot (France)
Record players
Nine players have been fielded on all three occasions, making them record World Cup players for their country. Among them are twin brothers Eissa and Ibrahim Meer.
RankPlayerMatches1Adnan Al Talyani3Mubarak Ghanim3Hussain Ghuloum3Nasir Khamees3Eissa Meer3Ibrahim Meer3Abdulrahman Mohamed3Muhsin Musabah3Ali Thani Jumaa3
Top goalscorers
Two UAE players scored one goal each at the 1990 World Cup.
RankPlayerGoals1Khalid Ismaïl1Ali Thani Jumaa1
See also Asian nations at the FIFA World Cup United Arab Emirates at the AFC Asian Cup
References
United Arab Emirates at FIFA