WHO: Indonesia vs. Saudi Arabia
Content: FIFA World Cup AFC Qualifiers
Location: Alinma Bank Stadium, King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
When: Wednesday, October 8th, 8:15pm (17:15 GMT)
How to follow: Al Jazeera Sport has all the build-up from 5:15pm (14:15 GMT) forward on our live text commentary stream.
Indonesia will face Saudi Arabia as the fourth round of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) qualifiers kick off the FIFA 2026 World Cup on Wednesday, with six teams still hoping to book their places in the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
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The third round of qualification was completed in June, with six AFC teams confirming their qualifications at that stage. However, the fourth round is not a last-chance saloon, but the intercontinental playoffs are still coming.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a look at the qualifiers and how the final teams progress to next year’s global football showpiece event.
Why is Saudi Arabia staging a match against Indonesia?
Saudi Arabia and Qatar were named co-hosts for the current, short fourth stage of the AFC qualifiers in June.
What is the format of the 4th round of AFC World Cup Qualifiers?
The six teams that still have a chance of reaching the FIFA 2026 World Cup are divided into two groups. Each team plays each other once and the top teams advance directly to next summer’s tournament.
The team that finishes second will play a two-legged playoff, with the winner advancing to the Intercontinental playoffs. This is the final chance for teams around the world to join those already eligible.
What is the 4th qualifying round AFC group?
Group A: Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Oman Group B: Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Indonesia
What are the dates for the 4th round of qualification and the playoffs?
The final group stage of AFC qualification for the FIFA 2026 World Cup will be held from October 8 to 14, with Indonesia starting the process on Wednesday against Saudi Arabia and Oman.
The runner-up home and away playoff matches will be played on November 13th and 18th.
What is the complete list of fixtures for the 4th round of qualifying?
Wednesday, October 8th:
Group A: Oman vs. Qatar Group B: Indonesia vs. Saudi Arabia
Saturday, October 11th:
Group A: United Arab Emirates vs Oman Group B: Iraq vs Indonesia
Tuesday, October 14th:
Group A: Qatar vs. United Arab Emirates Group B: Saudi Arabia vs. Iraq
How did Indonesia fare in the third round of AFC qualifiers?
Indonesia finished fourth in Group C in the previous qualification, with Japan and Australia claiming two automatic qualifying spots and Saudi Arabia finishing third. China and Bahrain were excluded from the group.
Indonesia defeated China 1-0 in the penultimate round match to secure their place in the fourth round.
How did Saudi Arabia fare in the third round of AFC qualifiers?
Saudi Arabia had a chance to automatically advance at next summer’s World Cup in their final group stage match, but were beaten 2-1 by Australia and took second place.
Abdulrahman Al-Obud opened the scoring in the match for Saudi Arabia.
What happened the last time Indonesia played Saudi Arabia?
Marselino Ferdinan scored both goals in the 2-0 home win over Indonesia against Saudi Arabia, in the second match between the sides in the group.
Saudi Arabia’s return fixture ended in a 1-1 draw in September.
✨𝙏𝙃𝙀𝙏𝙃𝙀𝙋𝙇𝘼𝙔𝙊𝙁𝙁𝙎𝙃𝙀𝙍𝙀
The road to the #fifaworldcup takes a dramatic turn as the #asianqualifiers playoffs kick off tomorrow! 🌏⚽
Who will stand up and keep their hopes alive? pic.twitter.com/b3m7ft6ded
— #Asianqualifiers (@AfcasianCup) October 7, 2025
Indonesia must not be intimidated by Saudi Arabia
Patrick Kluivert urged his Indonesian players not to be intimidated by the hostile atmosphere at the sold-out King Abdullah Sports City Stadium.
Indonesia is trying to reach the World Cup for the first time since gaining independence from the Netherlands in 1949.
“If you are afraid, I am not afraid because you are showing your weakness,” said the former Barcelona and Netherlands striker. “Showing weakness gives power to the other person.
“We know the power and strength of Saudi Arabia, especially when playing at home, but we need to be focused. Mindset is the most important thing to be calm in warm conditions.
“Tomorrow is the final thing because we have to play two finals. Of course the expectations are very high. We represent a country of 280 million people and we are ambassadors of the game.
“The most important thing is to be sharp in the game. We’re living for this moment, not just us, but everyone backing us up, living in this moment.”
Saudi Arabia is ready for revenge against Indonesia
Saudi Arabia coach Herv Leonard is confident his team can put aside the disappointment of the previous result against the Indonesians and get a victory that will move the country closer to its seventh World Cup appearance.
“I think we’ve made very good improvements since January. We’re continuing along the way,” he said.
“We’re more confident. I think we’re stronger than before. But reality is on the field, so let’s play.”
Indonesia team news
The Indonesians will enter the game without first-choice goalkeeper Emil Audero and striker Marceno Ferdinan, who scored in the win in Saudi Arabia in November, while fellow forward Ole Romeny is also a doubt.
saudi arabia team news
Saudi Arabia will be led in attack by Salem Al-Dawsari, who scored 25 times for his country.
Muhannad Al Shankiet and Saad Al Nasser have muscle and knee injuries respectively, while Nawaf Al Aqidi is doubtful due to a hamstring problem.
Indonesia predicted starting lineup
Argawinata; Ridho, Idzes, Hubner; Sayuri, Haye, Pelupessy, Verdonk; Vikri, Sananta, Kambuaya
Saudi Arabia predicted starting lineup
Al-Aqidi; Al-Amri, Boushal, Al-Tambakti, Al-Harbi; Al-Dosari, Kanno, Al-Hassan, Ali. Al Sheri, Al Buraikan
