Uzbekistan qualified for the men's World Cup finals for the first time at the eighth attempt after a 0-0 draw with the United Arab Emirates in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.

Goalkeeper Utkir Yusupov made a trio of second-half saves to ensure the Uzbeks picked up the point required to secure progress from Asian Group A alongside Iran , who have already qualified.

Uzbekistan join Japan , New Zealand, Iran and Argentina as the fourth team to have qualified for the 2026 World Cup. Co-hosts the United States , Canada and Mexico automatically qualified for the competition.

Earlier, China were eliminated from 2026 World Cup qualification after a 1-0 loss to Indonesia in Jakarta.

A first-half penalty from Ole Romeny was enough to keep China, whose sole appearance was in 2002,

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