It does not really mean improvement. It's all slot based eventually. Yes Australia beat Peru but in my opinion they are like a European team and not an Asian team
CONCACAF and AFC looks like most improved confederation this time.
Think about that
Only 4 countries from CONMEBOL managed to qualify Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Ecuador
5 from Africa and 6 from Asia went thru
I will wait for performance in WC. I'm expecting Iran to maybe qualify out of group stage ? They have home like conditions, tons of fans and probably easier group of all Asians ?
Iran are having trouble organising friendlies. They were set to play against Canada, but the match got cancelled at the last minute after Iran booked flight tickets and made hotel reservations, due to political lobbying in Canada.
And then the Canadian players went on strike and cancelled their next friendly due to a disagreement with their FA over WC qualifying bonuses.
Iran is very closed being suspended by FIFA from world football, fingers crossed this happens before the WC. Sunni Arab countries and Israel + USA are doing non stop lobbying.
No way are Iran going to be suspended before the World Cup. Their fans will easily fill up the stadiums and will guarantee lots of revenue for FIFA. Their two most famous clubs Esteghlal and Persepolis are suspended from AFC Champions League though, since they are state-owned and thus goes against AFC's club licensing regulations.
I'm hoping one or two AFC teams manage to go deep into the knockouts this time, but Japan and Korea have been drawn into tricky groups. I can't see the rest being able to muster too much.
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And then the Canadian players went on strike and cancelled their next friendly due to a disagreement with their FA over WC qualifying bonuses.
I'm hoping one or two AFC teams manage to go deep into the knockouts this time, but Japan and Korea have been drawn into tricky groups. I can't see the rest being able to muster too much.