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2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA–AFC play-off)

The 2002 FIFA World Cup UEFA–AFC qualification play-off was a two-legged home-and-away tie between a group runner-up of the European qualifying tournament, the Republic of Ireland, and the winners of the AFC play-off, Iran. The games were played on 10 November and 15 November 2001 in Dublin and Tehran, respectively.[1]

2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
(UEFA–AFC play-off)
Event2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
Republic of Ireland Iran
Republic of Ireland Iran
2 1
(on aggregate)
First leg
Republic of Ireland Iran
2 0
Date10 November 2001
VenueLansdowne Road, Dublin
RefereeAntonio Pereira da Silva (Brazil)
Attendance36,538
Second leg
Iran Republic of Ireland
1 0
Date15 November 2001
VenueAzadi Stadium, Tehran
RefereeWilliam Mattus Vega (Costa Rica)
Attendance100,000

Ireland beat Iran 2–0 in the first leg held in Dublin, while in the second leg, Iran defeated Ireland 1–0 in Tehran. The Irish side won the series 2–1 on aggregate, therefore qualifying to the World Cup.

Venues

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Lansdowne Road in Dublin (left) and Azadi Stadium in Tehran, venues for the series

Background

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Republic of Ireland Round Iran
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
  Portugal 10 7 3 0 33 7 26 24
  Republic of Ireland 10 7 3 0 23 5 18 24
  Netherlands 10 6 2 2 30 9 21 20
  Estonia 10 2 2 6 10 26 -16 8
  Cyprus 10 2 2 6 13 31 -18 8
  Andorra 10 0 0 10 5 36 -31 0
Final standings
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
  Saudi Arabia 8 5 2 1 17 8 9 17
  Iran 8 4 3 1 10 7 3 15
  Bahrain 8 2 4 2 8 9 −1 10
  Iraq 8 2 1 5 9 10 −1 7
  Thailand 8 0 4 4 5 15 −10 4
AFC play-off Opponent Result
1st leg   United Arab Emirates (H) 1–0
2nd leg   United Arab Emirates (A) 3–0

Match details

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First leg

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First leg
Republic of Ireland  2–0  Iran
Harte   44' (pen.)
Keane   50'		 (Report)
Attendance: 36,538

Assistant referees:
Jorge Oliveira (Brazil)
Aristeu Tavares (Brazil)
Fourth official:
Paulo César de Oliveira (Brazil)

Match rules

Second leg

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Second leg
Iran  1–0  Republic of Ireland
Golmohammadi   90' (Report)
Attendance: 100,000

Assistant referees:
Erick Mora (Costa Rica)
Efraín Rodríguez (Costa Rica)
Fourth official:
Olger Mejías Ovares (Costa Rica)

Match rules:

  • 90 minutes
  • 30 minutes of extra-time if necessary
  • Penalty shoot-out if scores still level:
  • 3 (of 7) substitutions permitted

Aftermath

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The elimination saw Iran manager Miroslav Blažević step down to be replaced by his assistant, Branko Ivanković.

The Republic of Ireland qualified to the 2002 FIFA World Cup and were drawn into Group E with Germany, Cameroon and Saudi Arabia. They drew with Cameroon and Germany with a score of 1–1 and in the final match, they won 3–0 against Saudi Arabia. This qualified them to the Round of 16 but they were eliminated by Spain on penalties (2–3) after the match ended in a 1–1 draw.

References

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  1. ^ "2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan - Qualifiers". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. Archived from the original on 6 April 2015. Retrieved 10 October 2017.
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