Iraqis have dubbed the Al-Nukhailah Stadium as "Karej Huwayder," a metaphor indicating that Iraq will defeat its rivals in its group for the World Cup qualifying draw set in Basra. "Karej Huwayder" refers to the famous garage that witnessed numerous crimes by the "Mahdi" gang in the popular series "Alam Al-Sitt Wahiba."
The Iraqi national team is competing in the qualifiers with the aims of reaching the World Cup in the USA and the continental tournament hosted by Saudi Arabia. The Lions of Mesopotamia have successfully achieved the first half of their goal by qualifying for the 2027 Asian Cup and the third round of the 2026 World Cup Asian qualifiers, which had its draw in June 2024.
The Lions of Mesopotamia have only participated in the World Cup once, in Argentina 1986, where they were eliminated in the first round after losing to Belgium, Mexico, and Paraguay. The draw placed Iraq in Group B alongside South Korea, Jordan, Oman, Palestine, and Kuwait.
The top two teams in each group will qualify directly for the World Cup, while the teams finishing in third and fourth place will move to the fourth round, where they will be divided into two groups of three teams each; the winners from each group will qualify for the World Cup. The runner-up in the fourth round will participate in the global playoff for a spot in the tournament.
