FIFA Arab Cup facts for kids
| Organising body | UAFA (1985–2012) FIFA (2021–present) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1963 |
| Region | Arab world |
| Number of teams | 16 (finals) |
| Current champions |  Algeria (1st title) |
| Most successful team(s) |  Iraq (4 titles) |
The FIFA Arab Cup, also known as the Arab Cup, is a big international football competition. It is organized by FIFA, the world's football governing body. This exciting tournament happens every four years.
It features senior men's national teams from countries in the Arab world. These teams are part of the Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA). The current champion is Algeria. They won their first title in 2021 in Qatar.
The very first Arab Cup was held in 1963 in Lebanon. Tunisia won that first tournament. After being played in 1964 and 1966, the Arab Cup took a long break. It returned in 1985. The tournament was played five more times until 2012. The 2021 edition was special because it was the first one organized by FIFA.
So far, ten Arab Cup tournaments have been played. Six different national teams have won the championship. Iraq is the most successful team, winning four times. Saudi Arabia has won twice. Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia have each won one title.
Seven countries have hosted the Arab Cup. Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia have each hosted the event twice. Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, and Syria have each hosted once. All Arab Cups have taken place in Asia.
Contents
History of the Arab Cup
The idea for the Arab Cup started in 1957. It came from a Lebanese journalist named Nassif Majdalani. The Secretary General of the Lebanese Football Association (LFA), Izzat Al Turk, also helped. In 1962, the LFA officially asked for the tournament to be created. Their president, Georges Dabbas, organized a meeting for Arab countries to form the Arab Cup.
The first Arab Cup was held in Beirut, Lebanon. It took place between April and May 1963. Five teams participated in this historic first event.
Between 1966 and 1982, the Arab Cup was not played. During this time, another tournament called the Palestine Cup was held three times. After the Arab Cup returned in the 1980s, the Palestine Cup became a youth tournament. The 1992 Arab Cup was also part of the 1992 Arab Games.
The 2021 tournament was the first one organized by FIFA. It was then officially renamed the FIFA Arab Cup. After the 2021 final, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said that FIFA would keep organizing future tournaments. On May 15, 2024, FIFA announced that Qatar will host the tournament in 2025, 2029, and 2033. These tournaments will be invitational, meaning teams are invited to play.
Tournament Results
This section shows the winners and top teams from each Arab Cup.
- Keys for the table
- a.e.t.: after extra time (the game went longer than normal)
- p: penalty shoot-out (teams took turns shooting penalties to decide the winner)
- awd: awarded result (the result was decided without playing the full game)
- TBD: to be determined (the result is not known yet)
| Ed. | Year | Host | First place game | Third place game | Teams | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Champion |
Score |  Runner-up |
 Third place |
Score |  Fourth place |
||||||
| Arab Cup | |||||||||||
| 1 | 1963 |  Lebanon |
 Tunisia |
 Syria |
 Lebanon |
 Kuwait |
5 | ||||
| 2 | 1964 |  Kuwait |
 Iraq |
 Libya |
Kuwait |
Lebanon |
5 | ||||
| 3 | 1966 |  Iraq |
Iraq |
2–1 | Syria |
Libya |
6–1 | Lebanon |
10 | ||
| 4 | 1985 |  Saudi Arabia |
Iraq |
1–0 |  Bahrain |
 Saudi Arabia |
0–0 (aet) (4–1 p) |
 Qatar |
6 | ||
| 5 | 1988 |  Jordan |
Iraq |
1–1 (aet) (4–3 p) |
 Syria |
 Egypt |
2–0 |  Jordan |
10 | ||
| 6 | 1992 |  Syria |
Egypt |
3–2 | Saudi Arabia |
Kuwait |
2–1 | Syria |
6 | ||
| 7 | 1998 |  Qatar |
Saudi Arabia |
3–1 | Qatar |
Kuwait |
4–1 |  United Arab Emirates |
12 | ||
| 8 | 2002 | Kuwait |
Saudi Arabia |
1–0 (aet) |  Bahrain |
Jordan and  Morocco |
10 | ||||
| – | 2009 | This edition was cancelled because there wasn't enough sponsorship. | |||||||||
| 9 | 2012 | Saudi Arabia |
Morocco |
1–1 (aet) (3–1 p) |
Libya |
 Iraq |
1–0 | Saudi Arabia |
11 | ||
| FIFA Arab Cup | |||||||||||
| 10 | 2021 | Qatar |
 Algeria |
2–0 (aet) |  Tunisia |
Qatar |
0–0 (aet) (5–4 p) |
Egypt |
16 | ||
| 11 | 2025 | TBD | TBD | TBD | |||||||
| 12 | 2029 | TBD | TBD | ||||||||
| 13 | 2033 | TBD | TBD | ||||||||
Teams Reaching the Top Four
This table shows which teams have done best in the Arab Cup, reaching the top four spots.
| Team | Winners | Runners-up | Third place | Fourth place | Semi final | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iraq |
4 (1964, 1966*, 1985, 1988) | — | 1 (2012) | — | — | 5 |
 Saudi Arabia |
2 (1998, 2002) | 1 (1992) | 1 (1985*) | 1 (2012*) | — | 5 |
 Tunisia |
1 (1963) | 1 (2021) | — | — | — | 2 |
 Egypt |
1 (1992) | — | 1 (1988) | 1 (2021) | — | 3 |
 Morocco |
1 (2012) | — | 1 (2002*) | — | 2 | |
| Algeria |
1 (2021) | — | — | — | — | 1 |
 Syria |
— | 3 (1963, 1966, 1988) | — | 1 (1992*) | — | 4 |
 Libya |
— | 2 (1964, 2012) | 1 (1966) | — | — | 3 |
 Bahrain |
— | 2 (1985, 2002) | — | — | — | 2 |
 Qatar |
— | 1 (1998*) | 1 (2021*) | 1 (1985) | — | 3 |
 Kuwait |
— | — | 3 (1964*, 1992, 1998) | 1 (1963) | — | 4 |
 Lebanon |
— | — | 1 (1963*) | 2 (1964, 1966) | — | 3 |
 Jordan |
— | — | — | 1 (1988*) | 1 (2002) | 2 |
 United Arab Emirates |
— | — | — | 1 (1998) | — | 1 |
-
* hosts
Best Performances by Continent
Football teams are grouped into different confederations based on their continent. This section shows how teams from Asia (AFC) and Africa (CAF) have performed in the Arab Cup.
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See also
- Arab Women's Cup
- Football at the Arab Games
- WAFF Championship
- Arabian Gulf Cup
- Arab Club Champions Cup
- AGCFF Gulf Club Champions League
