In line with the rules, the top two teams from each group in the qualifiers for the World Cup will progress to the third round and secure direct qualification for the 2027 Asian Cup.

However, Vietnam and Thailand are now out of the World Cup, meaning they will face tough matches in the third qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup, which is scheduled to take place in March, 2025, in Saudi Arabia.

At the tournament, the 24 teams will be divided into a total of six groups of four teams and will play home-and-away round-robin matches. Only the winners of each group will qualify for the 2027 Asian Cup, where they will be joined by the 18 teams which qualified directly from the second round.

Meanwhile, Iraq and Indonesia have progressed to the third round of World Cup qualification and also made it to the 2027 Asian Cup.

VOV