Qatar, a World Cup host with zero participation in the event

CAIRO – 1 September 2017: Following their FIFA World Cup qualifiers defeat Thursday at the hand of the Syrians, Qatar officially becomes the first cup host to never have qualified for any prior edition of the world cup.

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, Mauritania and Bahrain
previously asked FIFA to revoke the 2022 World Cup hosting rights from Qatar.

The Syrian national team thrashed its Qatari counterpart 3-1 in the Russia 2018 World Cup qualifiers, reviving hopes again for qualifying to their first world cup ever.

In the first half of the game, Omar Kharbin earned his Syrian side a brace, while Mahmoud Al-Mawas added a third in injury time, sending Syria to stand firmly in the Group B third place above Uzbekistan.

Syria has one match with the group leaders Iran on Tuesday and must win the two-legged play offs to get their first appearance in the world cup. Qatar will make their world cup debut as the host country for the following edition.