2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification – third round


The third round of 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification is played from 25 March 2025 to 31 March 2026.

Format

A total of 24 teams will participate in the third round to compete for the final six slots in the 2027 AFC Asian Cup.
The 24 teams will be divided into six groups of four teams to play home-and-away round-robin matches. Only the group winners of each group will qualify for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, where they will join the 18 teams which qualified directly from the second round.

Qualified teams

Best-ranked losing teams from the first round:
Teams finishing third or fourth in their respective second round groups:
Play-off round winners:

Seeding

The draw was held on 9 December 2024 at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, at 15:00. The teams were drawn into six groups of four teams each, with the seeding based on the November 2024 FIFA World Rankings.
The national teams which qualified are presented in bold.
Pot 1Pot 2Pot 3Pot 4

Schedule

The schedule of each matchday is as follows.
MatchdayDates
Matchday 125 March 2025
Matchday 210 June 2025
Matchday 39 October 2025
Matchday 414 October 2025
Matchday 518–19 November 2025, 26 March 2026
Matchday 631 March 2026

Rules

The winner of each group will qualify for the final tournament, joining the 18 teams that qualified directly.

Groups

Group A

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Group B

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Group C

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Group D

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Group E

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Group F

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