Iraq wins the West Asian Cup U-23 Championships
The 2023 West Asian U-23 Championship trophy lifted by an Iraqi team members. Photo: INA
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi national under-23 football team was crowned the 2023 West Asian U-23 Championship title after defeating its Iranian rival 2-1. After a 1-1 tie in regulation time, the two sides went to penalty kicks, with Iraq winning 5-4.
The final match was held at the Al-Madina International Stadium in Baghdad, on Tuesday, with a stadium of 30,000 supporters cheering for the Lions of Mesopotamia.
The Iraqi team advanced to the final of the West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) for men’s under-23 after achieving a 1-0 win against Oman, on Sunday.
The Iranian U-23 team qualified for the final match after achieving a 4-3 win against Jordan in the semi-final of the U-23 WAFF following penalty shootouts.
This is the first time the Iraqi national under-23 football team has won the U-23 WAFF championship since it was founded in 2015.
Iraq’s Lions of Mesopotamia team won the 25th Gulf Cup title last January, and the youth team achieved second place in the 2023 U-20 Asian Cup last March following a 1-0 loss to Uzbekistan in the final and reached the U-20 World Cup in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
In Iraq, the streets are alive with joyous celebration as they commemorate the victory of an impressive win.