Doha, June 01 (QNA) - Jordan will make its first appearance in the FIFA World Cup 2026 finals, which will be hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada from June 11 to July 19, with the ambition of delivering a respectable performance that reflects the remarkable progress Jordanian football has made in recent years.

Since its first participation in World Cup qualifiers, Jordan has come close to qualifying on several occasions, but the outcomes were never favorable. However, recent years have witnessed a radical transformation, as team Jordan evolved from a side seeking respectable Asian-level performances into a true football project that has succeeded in completely reshaping the image of Jordanian football, culminating in the greatest achievement in its history.

Team Jordan paved its way to the World Cup with a standout Asian campaign, finishing as runners-up to Qatar, the AFC Asian Cup 2023 champions, delivering impressive performances and results that brought them close to their first continental title. They continued their strong form by finishing second in the Arab Cup 2025, with both tournaments held in Doha.

Jordan entered the World Cup qualifiers as Asia's runner-up, making them one of the contenders. However, the final qualifying round was highly competitive, given the strength of a group that included South Korea, Iraq, Oman, Kuwait, and Palestine. Despite the difficulty, Jordan secured historic qualification before the final round after defeating Oman and benefiting from Iraq's loss to South Korea. They finished second with 16 points, earned from four wins, four draws, and two losses, securing direct qualification to the World Cup 2026 and writing a new chapter in Jordanian football history.

The World Cup draw placed Jordan in a strong Group G alongside defending champions Argentina, Austria, and Algeria. They will begin their campaign against Austria on June 16 in San Francisco, then face Algeria on June 22 in the same city, before concluding the group stage against Argentina on June 27 in Arlington.

Team Jordan has followed a comprehensive preparation program for the World Cup, taking advantage of FIFA international breaks in the year following qualification. They played a series of friendly matches in September, October, and November against Russia, Bolivia, the Dominican Republic, Albania, Tunisia, and Mali, before continuing preparations with matches against Costa Rica and Nigeria in March. The final phase of preparation will include friendlies against Switzerland and Colombia.

Jordan relies on a group of key players forming the backbone of the squad, led by Mousa Al Tamari, who plays for France's Rennes, alongside Ali Olwan of Qatar's Al-Sailiya, Ali Olazayza of Saudi Arabia's Al Shabab, defender Yazan Al-Arab of South Korea’s FC Seoul, and Nizar Al Rashdan of Qatar SC.

The team has suffered significant setbacks due to injuries that ruled out several key players, most notably Yazan Al Naimat, formerly of Qatar’s Al-Arabi and now at Shabab Al Ahli in the UAE, who sustained a serious ACL injury during the Arab Cup. West Bromwich Albion midfielder Tamer Bani Odeh will also miss the tournament, along with Adham Al-Quraishi and Issam Smeeri, among others for similar reasons.

The team is led by an Arab coaching staff under Moroccan coach Jamal Sellami, who took charge in June 2024 during a sensitive period following the departure of his compatriot Hussein Ammouta, who had guided Jordan to the Asian Cup 2023 runner-up finish before leaving for personal reasons.

Despite the difficulty of the task, Sellami quickly imposed his style, relying on tactical discipline, teamwork, and quick transitions. He led Jordan to the most significant achievement in its football history by qualifying for the World Cup, and later guided a depleted squad to the Arab Cup final in Doha in 2025, earning widespread praise both locally and internationally.

Team Jordan enter the World Cup finals with high ambitions that go beyond merely making their historic debut, aiming to present a strong image of Jordanian and Arab football and prove that their qualification was not a passing achievement, but the natural result of years of technical and administrative development—hoping to leave a mark worthy of the long-awaited dreams of their fans. (QNA)