Lebanon have participated three times at the AFC Asian Cup. Their first participation came in 2000, when they hosted the tournament after healing from the Lebanese Civil War. The 2019 edition was Lebanon's first participation via qualification. Lebanon's most recent appearance was at the 2023 edition.
Historically, Lebanon was considered one of the weakest Asian teams in football, proven by qualification results and lack of participation in the tournament. Also, prior to the 2019 Asian Cup, they were the only Arab country, alongside Yemen, not to qualify to the Asian Cup through regular qualification. From the late 2010s, Lebanon's results improved. After having reached the final round of qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the team maintained a 15-game unbeaten streak from 2016 to 2018, and qualified for the 2019 Asian Cup undefeated in the third round of qualifications.
Lebanon have never qualified past the group stage in the Asian Cup, with them narrowly missing out on the knock-out stage in 2019 due to the fair play rule; the eliminations in 2000 and 2019 involved teams from Southeast Asia, respectively Thailand and Vietnam.
AFC Asian Cup record Lebanon were unable to qualify past the first round in their three appearances at the AFC Asian Cup. After a 4–0 defeat to Iran in 2000, Abbas Chahrour scored Lebanon's first goal of the tournament against Iraq in a 2–2 draw. In 2019, after losing against Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Lebanon achieved their first Asian Cup win against North Korea (4–1). However, they missed out on the round of 16 as, in the third-place ranking, Vietnam had accumulated less yellow-cards than Lebanon. The 2023 edition was Lebanon's worst to date, only managing a draw against China and defeats against Tajikistan and hosts Qatar, finishing in last place in their group with one point.
2000 AFC Asian Cup In 2000, Lebanon hosted the Asian Cup despite concerns by FIFA regarding the stadiums' conditions. Under coach Josip Skoblar, Lebanon, captained by Jamal Taha, were drawn into Group A alongside Iran, Iraq and Thailand; they finished last in the group with only two points; had Lebanon defeated Thailand in the final game, they would have qualified for the knockout stage as one of the best third-placed teams.
2019 AFC Asian Cup On 9 January 2019, Lebanon played their first game against Qatar. In the 37th minute of play, Ali Hamam scored a goal for Lebanon only for it to be disallowed for a dubious foul on a Qatari player. In the second half, two goals by the opposition without reply gave them all three points from the encounter. Three days later, Lebanon lost to Saudi Arabia 2–0, sentencing Lebanon to their second defeat in the tournament. In the final group stage game, played on 17 January against North Korea, Lebanon won their first Asian Cup game 4–1 with goals by Felix Michel Melki, Hassan Maatouk and a brace by Hilal El-Helwe. However, this was not enough to qualify Lebanon to the knock-out stages, as they lost out to Vietnam in the third-place ranking on the fairplay rule.
2023 AFC Asian Cup Lebanon played the opening game of the tournament against hosts Qatar on 12 January 2024, in front of 82,490 spectators at Lusail Stadium. Lebanon suffered a 3–0 defeat against the host nation. A subsequent goalless draw with China left Lebanon needing a victory in the final match against Tajikistan to progress. Bassel Jradi of Lebanon secured an early lead in the second half, but the momentum shifted when Kassem El Zein received a red card in the 52nd minute, reducing Lebanon to 10 players. Tajikistan scored twice late in the game, eliminating Lebanon from the competition. Lebanon finished last in their group with only one point.
Overview
Tournaments
Champions Runners-up Third place
AFC Asian Cup recordQualification recordYearHostPositionSquad1956 to 1968 Did not enterDid not enter—1972Did not qualify2nd of 3, semi-final loss52036101976WithdrewWithdrew1980Did not qualify3rd of 32011011984WithdrewWithdrew1988Did not enterDid not enter—1992—1996Did not qualify2nd of 34211762000Group stage302137SquadQualified as hosts2004Did not qualify3rd of 46114282007WithdrewWithdrew2011Did not qualifyPreliminary round win, 4th of 4821581420153rd of 4622212142019Group stage310245Squad2nd of 5, 1st of 41483326102023Group stage301215Squad2nd of 563121182027Did not qualify3rd of 4, 2nd of 4125431910Total9135817—632514249181—
Lebanon's Asian Cup recordFirst Match 0–4 (12 October 2000; Beirut, Lebanon)Biggest Win 4–1 (17 January 2019; Sharjah, United Arab Emirates)Biggest Defeat 0–4 (12 October 2000; Beirut, Lebanon)Best ResultGroup stage in 2000, 2019, and 2023Worst Result
Matches List of AFC Asian Cup matchesYearRoundOpponentScoreResultRecord2000Group stage0–4Loss0–0–1Group stage2–2Draw0–1–1Group stage1–1Draw0–2–12019Group stage0–2Loss0–2–2Group stage0–2Loss0–2–3Group stage4–1Win 1–2–32023Group stage0–3Loss1–2–4Group stage0–0Draw1–3–4Group stage1–2Loss1–3–5
Player records
Most appearances RankPlayerMatchesAsian Cups1Mohamad Haidar62019, 2023Hilal El-Helwe62019, 2023Hassan Maatouk62019, 2023Robert Alexander Melki62019, 20235Bassel Jradi42019, 2023Kassem El Zein42019, 20237 18 players32000, 2019, 20232517 players22000, 2019, 2023428 players12000, 2019, 2023
Goalscorers +PlayerGoals200020192023Hilal El-Helwe22Abbas Chahrour11Luís Fernandes11Moussa Hojeij11Hassan Maatouk11George Felix Melki11Bassel Jradi11Total8341
References
External links Lebanon at the AFC