Oman vs Kuwait

Two Gulf sides with different problems

The second match of the tournament, at King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh, puts together the two teams in Group A who are not the hosts and not the first-time knockout side. Both need this one.

Kuwait won the Asian Cup in 1980 and have spent forty-seven years failing to repeat it. An eleventh appearance is a decent number for a country of that size, but the recent record is a story of qualification rather than progress, and the title now sits so far back that most of the squad was not born when it was won.

Oman have the opposite shape of history: no title, no final, but a steadily rising floor. Six appearances since 2004, one round of 16, and qualification for 2027 as second-round group winners, the strongest route available. With Saudi Arabia the clear favourites to top the group, the second place is the prize, and this is the first shot at it for both.

The two records

This is a sixth Asian Cup for Oman, whose best finish is round of 16 (2019), against a eleventh for Kuwait, best winners (1980).