The Iraq FA Cup, known as the Iraq Cup (Arabic: كأس العراق) in Arabic, is an annual knockoutfootball competition in men's domestic Iraqi football.[1] First held in the 1948–49 season for clubs and institutions before returning in 1975–76 for clubs only, it is organised by the Iraq Football Association. The tournament begins with several rounds played between lower division clubs, twelve of which advance to the Round of 32, where the Iraqi Premier League clubs are entered. This is followed by the Round of 16, the quarter-finals, the semi-finals and the final which is played as a single leg in Baghdad.
The winners of the competition are awarded a place in the next season's AFC Cup group stage as well as qualifying for the Iraqi Super Cup where they play against the league champions at the start of the following season (or the league runners-up, if the cup winners have won the double).
The Iraq Football Association was founded on 8 October 1948 and within its first week it had decided to hold a national knockout cup called the Iraq Football Association Cup for clubs and institute-representative teams.[2] The tournament kicked off on 21 January 1949 and culminated in Sharikat Naft Al-Basra winning the final on 7 April.[3] For the next 26 years, cup tournaments for clubs and institutions were played at a regional level (such as the Iraq FA Baghdad Cup which was played in the 1973–74 season) until the national knockout cup competition returned as a clubs-only competition in 1975 as the Iraq Cup.[4]
In the 1976–77 season, the tournament was not held due to scheduling difficulties, and in the 1984–85 season, it was cancelled at the semi-final stage to allow the Iraq national team to prepare for their 1986 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches, which was the same reason why the 1984–85 Iraqi National League was cancelled. The cup was also not held the following season, but returned for the 1986–87 campaign. It was also not held in the 2000–01 season due to scheduling difficulties.[1]
The 2003 edition of the Iraq FA Cup Final was not hosted in Al-Shaab Stadium; instead it was hosted in Erbil at the Franso Hariri Stadium for security reasons. The tournament was not held from 2003–04 up until 2011–12 as the Iraq War caused travel problems for clubs and difficulties with scheduling. The cup finally returned in the 2012–13 season, but was eventually cancelled midway through due to scheduling difficulties with the 2012–13 Iraqi Elite League.[6]
It was not held again until the FA decided to hold it in the 2015–16 season.[7] This time, the cup was not cancelled, although a large number of Premier League teams withdrew from the competition. The 2016 Iraq FA Cup Final was the first Iraq FA Cup final held for 13 years, and was played between Baghdad rivals Al-Zawraa and Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya with the latter winning 2–0. In the first edition of the tournament, there were 25 teams; by the 2021–22 season, there was an all-time high of 168 teams in the tournament.
Eligibility
The competition is open to clubs from Level 1 to Level 4 of the Iraqi football league system which meet the eligibility criteria.
Competition format
2021–22 season
Overview
Beginning in September, the competition proceeded as a knockout tournament throughout, consisting of eight rounds, a quarter-final, semi-final and then a final. A system of byes ensured clubs in Levels 1 and 2 entered the competition at later stages. There was no seeding, the fixtures in each round being determined by a random draw. The first six rounds were qualifiers, with the draws organised on a regional basis. The next five rounds were the "proper" rounds where all clubs were in one draw.
Schedule
Entrants from the bottom two levels (3 and 4) began the competition in the qualifying rounds. Clubs from higher levels were then added in later rounds, as per the table below. The qualifying rounds were regionalised to reduce the travel costs for lower division sides.
Round
New entrants at this round
Month
No. of matches
Qualifying Competition
First round
Level 3 and 4 clubs
September
59
Second round
none
32
Third round
20
Fourth round
Level 2 clubs
October
22
Fifth round
none
11
Sixth round
5
Competition Proper
Round of 32
Level 1 clubs
November
16
Round of 16
none
December
8
Quarter-finals
January
4
Semi-finals
March
2
Final
June
1
Trophy
Current design from 2022
The Iraq FA Cup trophy is designed in the shape of a tree with eighteen roots, branches and leaves encircling a ball.[8] The number eighteen refers to the eighteen governorates of Iraq. The image of Iraq as a tree is a metaphor suggesting that the nation may fall ill (just like a tree in autumn) but will inevitably bloom again. Unveiled on 6 April 2022, the trophy is the work of the famous sculptor Ahmed Albahrani who also designed the 2015 World Men's Handball Championship trophy.[9]
The trophy is kept by the Iraq Football Association and only a replica model is given permanently to the winning club.
Fastest goal: 6 seconds, Saif Raheem (for Al-Sulaikhv.Al-Jinsiya, 11 November 2021)
Cup runs and giant killings
Lower division teams have knocked out top-flight sides on numerous occasions. In the cup's first season in 1948–49, Baghdad top-flight side Wizarat Al-Maarif lost 3–2 to second-tier team Al-Tayour Al-Zarqaa in the second round. In the 1977–78 edition of the cup, the second team of Al-Tayaran (Al-Tayaran B), who played in the Iraq Division One, eliminated Al-Jaish, who finished in fourth place in the 1977–78 Iraqi National League, from the first round of the cup with a 1–0 win.[10] In the same edition, Al-Zawraa were defeated by Division One team Al-Bahri in the quarter-finals, 2–1.[10] In the 1982–83 edition, Division One club Al-Hudood knocked out Arab Club Champions Cup holders Al-Shorta 7–6 on penalties.
In the 1989–90 edition, Al-Rasheed, who had won the Premier League in each of the past three seasons and the FA Cup in two of the past three seasons, were defeated by Division One club Al-Tijara 3–2 on aggregate in the Round of 16.[11] In the 1992–93 edition, Al-Tijara pulled off another shock by defeating Al-Shorta in the first round, 2–1, and they also defeated another top-flight team in Al-Jaish in the Round of 16 with the same result.[12] The 2016–17 Iraq FA Cup saw two major upsets in the Round of 32 as Al-Naft and Al-Shorta lost 3–2 and 3–1 to Division One clubs Al-Sinaa and Al-Jaish respectively, both at home.
Al-Minaa are the only team to have participated in every edition of the tournament from 1948–49 up until 2021–22.
^ abcHashim, Refel; Mubarak, Hassanin; Qayed, Mohammed. "Iraq – List of Cup Winners". RSSSF.
^"Football leagues set up in Iraq's main centres". The Iraq Times. 16 October 1948.
^"The Cup goes to Basrah". The Iraq Times. 8 April 1949.
^Al-Munshi', Dhiyaa. Encyclopedia of the Iraqi Football (in Arabic). Baghdad.
^"All the Story". Iraqi Football Archive (in Arabic).
^"Masoud: The draw of the Iraq FA Cup will commence today with 22 teams participating from the Iraqi Premier League" (in Arabic). Iraq Football Photos Gallery. September 22, 2012.[permanent dead link]
^"The draw of the first round of the Iraq FA Cup is over with the participation of 19 teams" (in Arabic). Hamrin News. Al-Mada Press. September 1, 2015.
^"كأسُ العراق .. تأريخٌ ساطعٌ مليءٌ بالإبداع" (in Arabic). ifa.iq. 6 April 2022. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
^"الكشف عن التصميم الجديد لكأس العراق" (in Arabic). kooora.com. 6 April 2022. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
iraq, known, iraq, arabic, كأس, العراق, arabic, annual, knockout, football, competition, domestic, iraqi, football, first, held, 1948, season, clubs, institutions, before, returning, 1975, clubs, only, organised, iraq, football, association, tournament, begins. The Iraq FA Cup known as the Iraq Cup Arabic كأس العراق in Arabic is an annual knockout football competition in men s domestic Iraqi football 1 First held in the 1948 49 season for clubs and institutions before returning in 1975 76 for clubs only it is organised by the Iraq Football Association The tournament begins with several rounds played between lower division clubs twelve of which advance to the Round of 32 where the Iraqi Premier League clubs are entered This is followed by the Round of 16 the quarter finals the semi finals and the final which is played as a single leg in Baghdad Iraq FA CupOrganising bodyIraq Football AssociationFounded1948 75 years ago 1948 institutions 1975 48 years ago 1975 clubs RegionIraqNumber of teams83 2022 23 Qualifier forAFC CupDomestic cup s Iraqi Super CupCurrent championsAl Karkh 1st title Most successful club s Al Zawraa 16 titles Television broadcastersAl Iraqiya TVAl Kass SportsAl Rabiaa SportsWebsiteifa iq fa cup2022 23 Iraq FA CupThe winners of the competition are awarded a place in the next season s AFC Cup group stage as well as qualifying for the Iraqi Super Cup where they play against the league champions at the start of the following season or the league runners up if the cup winners have won the double Al Karkh are the current holders having beaten Al Kahrabaa 2 1 in the 2022 final Contents 1 History 1 1 Foundation and development 2 Eligibility 3 Competition format 3 1 2021 22 season 3 1 1 Overview 3 1 2 Schedule 4 Trophy 4 1 Current design from 2022 5 Records and statistics 5 1 Final 5 2 All rounds 5 2 1 Team 5 2 2 Individual 6 Cup runs and giant killings 7 Winners and finalists 7 1 Performance by team 7 1 1 Clubs 7 1 2 Institutions 8 List of winning managers 8 1 Most successful managers 9 References 10 External linksHistory EditFoundation and development Edit The Iraq Football Association was founded on 8 October 1948 and within its first week it had decided to hold a national knockout cup called the Iraq Football Association Cup for clubs and institute representative teams 2 The tournament kicked off on 21 January 1949 and culminated in Sharikat Naft Al Basra winning the final on 7 April 3 For the next 26 years cup tournaments for clubs and institutions were played at a regional level such as the Iraq FA Baghdad Cup which was played in the 1973 74 season until the national knockout cup competition returned as a clubs only competition in 1975 as the Iraq Cup 4 Al Shaab Stadium was chosen by the Iraq FA to host the cup finals as it was able to accommodate the large number of spectators in the capital city 5 The first club to win the double was Al Zawraa winning the 1975 76 Iraqi National League and the 1975 76 Iraq FA Cup Overall Al Zawraa have eight doubles while Al Quwa Al Jawiya have three Al Rasheed have two and Al Talaba have one 1 In the 1976 77 season the tournament was not held due to scheduling difficulties and in the 1984 85 season it was cancelled at the semi final stage to allow the Iraq national team to prepare for their 1986 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches which was the same reason why the 1984 85 Iraqi National League was cancelled The cup was also not held the following season but returned for the 1986 87 campaign It was also not held in the 2000 01 season due to scheduling difficulties 1 The 2003 edition of the Iraq FA Cup Final was not hosted in Al Shaab Stadium instead it was hosted in Erbil at the Franso Hariri Stadium for security reasons The tournament was not held from 2003 04 up until 2011 12 as the Iraq War caused travel problems for clubs and difficulties with scheduling The cup finally returned in the 2012 13 season but was eventually cancelled midway through due to scheduling difficulties with the 2012 13 Iraqi Elite League 6 It was not held again until the FA decided to hold it in the 2015 16 season 7 This time the cup was not cancelled although a large number of Premier League teams withdrew from the competition The 2016 Iraq FA Cup Final was the first Iraq FA Cup final held for 13 years and was played between Baghdad rivals Al Zawraa and Al Quwa Al Jawiya with the latter winning 2 0 In the first edition of the tournament there were 25 teams by the 2021 22 season there was an all time high of 168 teams in the tournament Eligibility EditThe competition is open to clubs from Level 1 to Level 4 of the Iraqi football league system which meet the eligibility criteria Competition format Edit2021 22 season Edit Overview Edit Beginning in September the competition proceeded as a knockout tournament throughout consisting of eight rounds a quarter final semi final and then a final A system of byes ensured clubs in Levels 1 and 2 entered the competition at later stages There was no seeding the fixtures in each round being determined by a random draw The first six rounds were qualifiers with the draws organised on a regional basis The next five rounds were the proper rounds where all clubs were in one draw Schedule Edit Entrants from the bottom two levels 3 and 4 began the competition in the qualifying rounds Clubs from higher levels were then added in later rounds as per the table below The qualifying rounds were regionalised to reduce the travel costs for lower division sides Round New entrants at this round Month No of matchesQualifying CompetitionFirst round Level 3 and 4 clubs September 59Second round none 32Third round 20Fourth round Level 2 clubs October 22Fifth round none 11Sixth round 5Competition ProperRound of 32 Level 1 clubs November 16Round of 16 none December 8Quarter finals January 4Semi finals March 2Final June 1Trophy EditCurrent design from 2022 Edit The Iraq FA Cup trophy is designed in the shape of a tree with eighteen roots branches and leaves encircling a ball 8 The number eighteen refers to the eighteen governorates of Iraq The image of Iraq as a tree is a metaphor suggesting that the nation may fall ill just like a tree in autumn but will inevitably bloom again Unveiled on 6 April 2022 the trophy is the work of the famous sculptor Ahmed Albahrani who also designed the 2015 World Men s Handball Championship trophy 9 The trophy is kept by the Iraq Football Association and only a replica model is given permanently to the winning club Records and statistics EditFinal Edit Most wins 16 Al Zawraa 1976 1979 1981 1982 1989 1990 1991 1993 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2017 2019 Most consecutive wins 4 Al Zawraa 1993 1994 1995 1996 Most appearances in a final 19 Al Zawraa 1976 1979 1981 1982 1988 1989 1990 1991 1993 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2016 2017 2019 2021 Most appearances without winning 5 Al Shorta 1978 1996 1997 2002 2003 Most appearances without losing 2 Al Rasheed 1987 1988 Biggest win 5 goals Al Zawraa 5 0 Al Baladiyat 1976 Most goals in a final 5 Al Zawraa 5 0 Al Baladiyat 1976 Most defeats 6 Al Talaba 1980 1981 1982 1993 1994 1999 All rounds Edit Team Edit Biggest win Al Jaish 14 0 Babil 12 September 1987 Most clubs competing for trophy in a season 168 2021 22 Individual Edit Most goals by a player in a single tournament 14 Hashim Ridha 1998 99 Most goals by a player in a single game 5 joint record Saeed Nouri for Al Shorta v Salahaddin 1988 89 Sahib Abbas for Al Zawraa v Al Falluja 1993 94 Mahmoud Karim for Al Zawraa v Al Qasim 1997 98 Mohammed Khoshnaw for Erbil v Makhmur 1998 99 Mahmoud Kadhim for Erbil v Makhmur 1998 99 Fastest goal 6 seconds Saif Raheem for Al Sulaikh v Al Jinsiya 11 November 2021 Cup runs and giant killings EditLower division teams have knocked out top flight sides on numerous occasions In the cup s first season in 1948 49 Baghdad top flight side Wizarat Al Maarif lost 3 2 to second tier team Al Tayour Al Zarqaa in the second round In the 1977 78 edition of the cup the second team of Al Tayaran Al Tayaran B who played in the Iraq Division One eliminated Al Jaish who finished in fourth place in the 1977 78 Iraqi National League from the first round of the cup with a 1 0 win 10 In the same edition Al Zawraa were defeated by Division One team Al Bahri in the quarter finals 2 1 10 In the 1982 83 edition Division One club Al Hudood knocked out Arab Club Champions Cup holders Al Shorta 7 6 on penalties In the 1989 90 edition Al Rasheed who had won the Premier League in each of the past three seasons and the FA Cup in two of the past three seasons were defeated by Division One club Al Tijara 3 2 on aggregate in the Round of 16 11 In the 1992 93 edition Al Tijara pulled off another shock by defeating Al Shorta in the first round 2 1 and they also defeated another top flight team in Al Jaish in the Round of 16 with the same result 12 The 2016 17 Iraq FA Cup saw two major upsets in the Round of 32 as Al Naft and Al Shorta lost 3 2 and 3 1 to Division One clubs Al Sinaa and Al Jaish respectively both at home Al Minaa are the only team to have participated in every edition of the tournament from 1948 49 up until 2021 22 Winners and finalists EditWinning team won the DoubleSeason Winner Result Runner upIraq FA Cup Institutions 1948 49 Sharikat Naft Al Basra 2 1 Al Kuliya Al Askariya Al MalakiyaIraq FA Cup Clubs 1975 76 Al Zawraa 5 0 Al Baladiyat1976 77 Not held1977 78 Al Tayaran a 1 1 aet 5 3 pen Al Shorta1978 79 Al Zawraa 3 1 Al Jaish1979 80 Al Jaish 1 1 aet 4 2 pen Al Talaba1980 81 Al Zawraa 1 0 Al Talaba1981 82 Al Zawraa 2 1 Al Talaba1982 83 Al Jaish 2 1 Al Shabab1983 84 Al Sinaa 0 0 aet 5 4 pen Al Shabab1984 85 Cancelled at semi finals1985 86 Not held1986 87 Al Rasheed 1 1 aet 4 3 pen Al Jaish1987 88 Al Rasheed 0 0 aet 4 3 pen Al Zawraa1988 89 Al Zawraa 3 0 Al Tayaran a 1989 90 Al Zawraa 0 0 aet 2 1 pen Al Shabab1990 91 Al Zawraa 1 1 aet 4 3 pen Al Jaish1991 92 Al Quwa Al Jawiya 2 1 Al Tayaran b 1992 93 Al Zawraa 2 1 Al Talaba1993 94 Al Zawraa 1 0 Al Talaba1994 95 Al Zawraa 3 0 Al Jaish1995 96 Al Zawraa 2 1 Al Shorta1996 97 Al Quwa Al Jawiya 1 1 aet 7 6 pen Al Shorta1997 98 Al Zawraa 1 1 aet 4 3 pen Al Quwa Al Jawiya1998 99 Al Zawraa 1 0 agget Al Talaba1999 2000 Al Zawraa 0 0 aet 4 3 pen Al Quwa Al Jawiya2000 01 Not held2001 02 Al Talaba 1 0 Al Shorta2002 03 Al Talaba 1 0 Al Shorta2003 12 Not held2012 13 Cancelled at round of 322013 15 Not held2015 16 Al Quwa Al Jawiya 2 0 Al Zawraa2016 17 Al Zawraa 1 0 Naft Al Wasat2017 18 Not held2018 19 Al Zawraa 1 0 Al Kahrabaa2019 20 Cancelled at round of 322020 21 Al Quwa Al Jawiya 0 0 4 2 pen Al Zawraa2021 22 Al Karkh 2 1 Al Kahrabaa2022 23 To be determinedNotes a b Now known as Al Quwa Al Jawiya Now known as Al Khutoot Al Jawiya Performance by team Edit Clubs Edit Club Winners Runners up Years won Years runner upAl Zawraa 16 3 1976 1979 1981 1982 1989 1990 1991 1993 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2017 2019 1988 2016 2021Al Quwa Al Jawiya 5 3 1978 1992 1997 2016 2021 1989 1998 2000Al Talaba 2 6 2002 2003 1980 1981 1982 1993 1994 1999Al Jaish 2 4 1980 1983 1979 1987 1991 1995Al Rasheed 2 0 1987 1988Al Sinaa 1 0 1984Al Karkh 1 0 2022Al Shorta 0 5 1978 1996 1997 2002 2003Al Shabab 0 3 1983 1984 1990Al Kahrabaa 0 2 2019 2022Al Baladiyat 0 1 1976Al Khutoot Al Jawiya 0 1 1992Naft Al Wasat 0 1 2017Institutions Edit Club Winners Runners up Years won Years runner upSharikat Naft Al Basra 1 0 1949Al Kuliya Al Askariya 0 1 1949List of winning managers EditSeason Nationality Winning manager ClubIraq FA Cup Institutions 1948 49 Iraq Tommy Thomas Sharikat Naft Al BasraIraq FA Cup Clubs 1975 76 Iraq Saadi Salih Al Zawraa1977 78 Iraq Abdelilah Mohammed Hassan Al Tayaran1978 79 Iraq Anwar Jassam Al Zawraa1979 80 Iraq Muayad Mohammed Salih Al Jaish1980 81 Iraq Anwar Jassam Al Zawraa1981 82 Iraq Anwar Jassam Al Zawraa1982 83 Poland Wojciech Przybylski Al Jaish1983 84 Hungary Geza Vincze Al Sinaa1986 87 Iraq Nasrat Nassir Al Rasheed1987 88 Iraq Jamal Salih Al Rasheed1988 89 Iraq Falah Hassan Al Zawraa1989 90 Iraq Falah Hassan Al Zawraa1990 91 Iraq Falah Hassan Al Zawraa1991 92 Iraq Adil Yousef Al Quwa Al Jawiya1992 93 Iraq Anwar Jassam Al Zawraa1993 94 Iraq Ammo Baba Al Zawraa1994 95 Iraq Hadi Mutanish Al Zawraa1995 96 Iraq Adnan Hamad Al Zawraa1996 97 Iraq Ayoub Odisho Al Quwa Al Jawiya1997 98 Iraq Anwar Jassam Al Zawraa1998 99 Iraq Amer Jameel Al Zawraa1999 2000 Iraq Adnan Hamad Al Zawraa2001 02 Iraq Thair Ahmed Al Talaba2002 03 Iraq Thair Ahmed Al Talaba2015 16 Iraq Ahmed Daham Al Quwa Al Jawiya2016 17 Iraq Essam Hamad Al Zawraa2018 19 Iraq Hakeem Shaker Al Zawraa2020 21 Iraq Ayoub Odisho Al Quwa Al Jawiya2021 22 Iraq Ahmed Abdul Jabar Al KarkhMost successful managers Edit No Winning manager 13 Club s No titles1 Anwar Jassam Al Zawraa 52 Falah Hassan Al Zawraa 33 Thair Ahmed Al Talaba 2 Adnan Hamad Al Zawraa Ayoub Odisho Al Quwa Al JawiyaReferences Edit a b c Hashim Refel Mubarak Hassanin Qayed Mohammed Iraq List of Cup Winners RSSSF Football leagues set up in Iraq s main centres The Iraq Times 16 October 1948 The Cup goes to Basrah The Iraq Times 8 April 1949 Al Munshi Dhiyaa Encyclopedia of the Iraqi Football in Arabic Baghdad All the Story Iraqi Football Archive in Arabic Masoud The draw of the Iraq FA Cup will commence today with 22 teams participating from the Iraqi Premier League in Arabic Iraq Football Photos Gallery September 22 2012 permanent dead link The draw of the first round of the Iraq FA Cup is over with the participation of 19 teams in Arabic Hamrin News Al Mada Press September 1 2015 كأس العراق تأريخ ساطع مليء بالإبداع in Arabic ifa iq 6 April 2022 Retrieved 6 April 2022 الكشف عن التصميم الجديد لكأس العراق in Arabic kooora com 6 April 2022 Retrieved 6 April 2022 a b Hashim Refel Iraq 1977 78 RSSSF Hashim Refel Iraq 1989 90 RSSSF Hashim Refel Iraq 1992 93 RSSSF List of Iraq FA Cup winning managersExternal links EditIraq Football Association Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Iraq FA Cup amp oldid 1138835391, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
