Syria national football team
The Syria national football team (Arabic: منتخب سُورِيَا لِكُرَّةُ الْقَدَم) represents Syria in international football and is controlled by the Syrian Arab Federation for Football, the governing body for football in Syria. Syria has never qualified for the World Cup finals but did reach the fourth qualification round in 2018. The team is currently banned by FIFA from playing at home, as they have not hosted a game since December 2010.[5] Internationally, Syria won the 2012 WAFF Championship, 1957 Pan Arab Games and the 1987 Mediterranean Games.
History
From 1936 to 1969: The beginnings
The Syrian Football Federation was founded in 1936, 10 years before independence from the French in 1946. It has been affiliated with FIFA since 1937 and has been a member of AFC since 1969.[6][7] Syria played its first unofficial matches under the name of Damascus XI with Lebanon (5–4) in 1939 and with Iraq (1–2) in 1944.[8][9]
Syria played their first official game against Lebanon on 19 April 1942; Qasioun Eagles won 2–1.[10] Syria's first official qualifying match was played in Ankara against Turkey, which ended in a Syrian defeat 7:0 on 20 November 1949.[11] Thanks to that, the Syrian team participated in the 1950 World Cup European qualifiers as one of the first teams in the region to do so.[12] One of the biggest defeats was played in Athens against the Greece, on 25 November 1949, 5 days after its first official match which ended in a score of 8:0 for the Greeks.[13]
At the 1951 Mediterranean Games in Alexandria, on 12 October 1951, one of Syria's biggest defeats was recorded against the Egypt which ended with a score of 8:0 for the Pharaohs.[14]
The first great success of the national team was silver at the 1953 Pan Arab Games, when they were defeated in the final by Egypt (4:0).[15] At the 1957 Pan Arab Games in Beirut, they advanced to the finals after the semi-final defeat of Morocco, in which they defeated Tunisia with goals scored by Shamas and Awadis Kaoulakian 3:1.[16]
In the FIFA World Cup 1958 qualifiers, the Syrian football team was defeated by the Sudan in the 1st round of the playoffs. Between 1958 and 1961, the team combined with Egypt to form the United Arab Republic national football team, although the team's records are attributed only to Egypt by FIFA.[17]
They were twice a finalists in the Arab Cup: in 1963 (beaten by the Tunisia) and 1966 (beaten by Iraq).[18]
In the 1966 World Cup qualifiers they were one of two teams from the Asian zone (the other being Israel) to be allocated to the European qualifying zone and were originally placed with Spain and the Republic of Ireland. However, they joined the Asian and African boycott of the 1966 qualifiers, due to the decision of FIFA to allocate just one place between Asia and Africa.[19]
1970s: Successes in Arab competitions
In the 1970s, they regularly participated in the Palestine Cup, which served as a substitute for the Arab Cup. At the 1972 Palestine Cup, they placed fourth when they lost 1:3 to Algeria.[20] At the 1973 Palestine Cup, they advanced from the group stage to the semifinals, where they eliminated Algeria after penalties (0:0, pen. 3:2). In the final of the cup, they clearly lost to Tunisia 0:4.[21]
In the 1974 Kuneitra Cup, the Qasioun Eagles entered the knockout phase after the group defeat of Sudan, Libya, Palestine and North Yemen. In the semifinals of the cup, they defeated Tunisia (3:1), but in the final they unfortunately lost to Morocco after a penalty shootout.[22]
For the 1974 World Cup, they finished second in the group in the 1st round of the qualification, behind the Iran, insufficient to advance to the next round.[23] The players who made Syrian football famous were the players of Barada SC, with the best elite of football players, such as Faris Sultji, Marwan Dardari, Ahmad Talib Tamim, Mohammad Khair Dhaher, Ahmad Alian, Joseph Chahrestan, Farouq Bozo, Ahmad al-Akad, Jamal al-Sharif.
At the 1975 Palestine Cup, they eliminated Libya in the group stage, but lost to Iraq in the semifinals 0: 4 and in the bronze medal match with Sudan 0:1.[24] In 1976, Damascus hosted the Pan Arab Games, whose football tournament was played at the Abbasiyyin Stadium, where the home Syrian team won bronze medals.[25]
In the 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification, the Qasioun Eagles did not go through the first round, as despite losing one victory over Saudi Arabia (2:0) they lost both matches to Iran, finishing in third place in the group.[26]
The years 1980-1996: an improvement in Syrian football
The Syrian team made it to 1980 Olympics thanks to Iran, as the team withdrew due to the American-led boycott of the Olympics.[27] Despite losing 0:3 to the Algeria and 0:5 to the GDR, they gained experience from big matches. However, the most valuable result in the tournament was a draw with a strong Spain 0:0.[28]
The Syrian team took part in the three editions of the Asian Nations Cup in the 1980s. In 1980 Asian Cup, they finished 3rd out of 5 in the group stage, behind the North Korea and the Iran, ahead of the China and the Bangladesh.[29]
In 1984 Asian Nations Cup, they finished 4th out of 5 in the 1st round, ahead of the South Korea, behind Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.[30] In the 1988 Asian Nations Cup, they finished 3rd out of 5 still in the 1st round, behind the China and Saudi Arabia, ahead of Kuwait and Bahrain.[31] The two Syrian scorers were with one goal each: Walid Nasser and Walid Al-Hel. They were a finalists in the Arab Nations Cup in 1988 (beaten by Iraq). During this period, Syria shows that it is very present on the Asian scene.
For the qualifiers of the 1982 World Cup, they finished last in the group stage behind the Qatar, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.[32] As for the qualification round of the 1986 World Cup, Syria came very close to a qualification which would have been historic, since it passed the 1st round ahead of the Kuwait and the North Yemen, beat Bahrain and lost in the final qualifying round to Iraq 1:3 on aggregate, with the only Syrian goal scored by Walid Abu Al-Sel.[33]
One of the greatest successes of the Qasioun Eagles in the 1980s was the participation in the finals of the 1987 Mediterranean Games, which took place in Latakia, and the defeat of the France team 2:1.[34][35]
In the 1990 World Cup qualifiers, the national team placed second in the first round after losing to Saudi Arabia 4:5 (goal scorers: Mahrous, Jakalan, Al-Nasser and Helou).[36]
In 1992, the Pan Arab Games were held in Syria, which included the Arab Cup In this tournament, the Syrian national team led by Virgil Dridea placed 4th after advancing to the semifinals (losing to Egypt 4:3 on penalties) and losing in the bronze medal match with Kuwait 1:2.[37]
During the 1994 World Cup qualifiers, they led the qualifying group after winning over Taiwan and Oman, but due to draws with Iran (0:0 and 1:1, goal scored by Abdul Latif Helou), they did not advance to the second round.[38]
In the 1st round of the 1996 Asian Cup, the Syrian team beat Uzbekistan (2:1), thanks to goals from Nader Joukhadar and Ali Dib, but they were beaten by Japan (1:2 , goal by Nader Joukhadar) and by China (0:3). By finishing 3rd in the group, they had a chance to qualify for the quarterfinals but having a low score compared to the other two countries (Iraq and South Korea), the team finished as the worst 3rd, again missed the knockout phase by a close margin.
From 1996 to 2007: Years of hope and disappointment
At the 1997 Pan Arab Games in Beirut, they reached the final, in which Jordan defeated them 0–1.[39]
One of Syria's biggest victories was recorded in Tehran on 4 June 1997, against the Maldives, a match that ended by a final score of 12–0 for the Syrians. 5 days later it faces again the Maldives, still in Tehran, which ends with the same score of 12–0. These two matches were played as a part of the qualification of the 1998 World Cup, where it was eliminated in the first preliminary round, ahead of the Iran.[40]
The Syrian team was twice finalist in 2000 and in 2004 of a regional competition, the West Asian Football Championship, beaten each time by the Iran; as they reached the semi-finals of the West Asian Championship 2002 held at home but lost to the Jordan on a golden goal scored in the last minutes of extra time (1–2), before losing to Iran on penalties during the match for the 3rd place (2–2, 2–4).
As for the qualification of the World Cup 2002, they were overtaken by the Oman at 1st, while being ahead of the Philippines and the Laos.[41]
In the qualifiers for the 2006 World Cup, they did not advance to the third stage after uncertain match performances and losses with Bahrain (1–2) and Kyrgyzstan (0–1).[42]
During this period, the national team participated in the 2007 Nehru Cup, where after the first victory over Bangladesh (2–0) they defeated Kyrgyzstan (4–1), India (3–2) and Cambodia (5–1) and advanced to the finals.[43] The top scorers were famous Syrian stars Zyad Chaabo (5 goals) and Maher Al-Sayed (4 goals). But the cup final for the team did not turn out well, because they lost to India 0–1.[44][45]
From 2007 to 2012: Great achievements
In 2007, Syria advanced to the WAAF Cup under the leadership of coach Fajr Ibrahim, where they after victories over Lebanon and Jordan (both 1–0), lost in the semifinals to Iraq 0–3.[46]
A year later, the Qasioun Eagles took part in the 2008 WAAF Cup, where after a 2–1 victory over Oman and a draw with Jordan, they advanced to the semifinals, where they lost to Iran (0–2).[47]
At the 2009 Nehru Cup, Syria sovereignly won the group stage, defeating Sri Lanka, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon and, in a close match, India (1–0). In the final of the cup, they encountered India, with which they lost 1–2 on penalties (the only Syrian scorer was Ali Diab).[48]
In the qualifications for the World Cup 2010, the team of Syria beat the Afghanistan in the 1st round, then the Indonesia in the 2nd round, but narrowly failed in the 3rd round to qualify for the 4th round, due to a unfavorable goal average, behind UAE and Iran, but ahead of Kuwait.[49]
The Syrian team qualified for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar after a long absence from it since 1996, where it ascended to the championship without any loss in the qualifiers. They were eliminated from the group stage again after losing to Jordan and Japan and defeating Saudi Arabia.[50] Shortly afterwards, they were disqualified from the 2014 World Cup due to the use of an ineligible player.[51]
In December 2012, Syria beat Iraq in the final of West Asia Cup to collect its first major trophy and Ahmad Al Saleh became the scorer of the historic winning goal (1–0).[52] Official Syrian television interrupted its broadcasts to announce the victory and show the presentation of the cup live.[53]
From 2013 to 2016: Withdrawal from positions
In 2013, the Syrian team withdrew from the WAAF Cup due to the war in the country. In the following years, the situation in the national team was not good because they could not play at home stadiums.
The Syrian national team missed the 2015 AFC Asian Cup after failing to qualify and occupying third place in the Group A that included Jordan, Singapore and Oman.[54] In 2016, Syria took part in the King's Cup under national team captain Mosab Balhous and head coach Ayman Hakeem, where they lost in the semifinals after a penalty shootout with Thailand and defeated the United Arab Emirates 1–0 in third place match.[55]
2018 World Cup qualifiers: Syria close to great success
Ever since war broke out in the country, Syria have been banned from playing home games in their own country and in fact were one day away from being thrown out of the 2018 World Cup only for Malaysia to swoop in at the last minute and offer to host all of Syria's home games.
After finishing on second place in Group E during the 2018 World Cup 2nd qualifying round, behind Japan, but ahead of Singapore, Afghanistan and Cambodia. Syria was among the top 4 (2nd) and obtained the right to play in the 3rd round , in addition to being qualified for the next Asian Cup.[56]
They were transferred to the group A, along with the Iran, South Korea, Uzbekistan, China and the Qatar. On 5 September 2017, Syria qualified for the first time in their history for the play-offs of a World Cup by finishing 3rd in their group with 13 points, level on points with Uzbekistan, but ahead in the standings thanks to better goal difference, following of their draw gleaned in stoppage time on the lawn of the Iran (2–2) in the last match.[57]
This the best of Qasioun Eagles performance to date in a qualifying phase of a World Cup.[58] The prospect of a historic qualification for a final phase of the World Cup has given rise to a momentary halt to the conflict which has ravaged the country for six years, as well as the installation of giant screens by the authorities in the main public squares of major cities to follow the decisive match against the Iran.[59][60]
Syria v Australia
On 5 October 2017 in Malacca, Syria managed to draw (1–1) against Australia thanks to a converted penalty in the 85 minute by Syrian best striker Omar Al Somah, who had already equalized in stoppage time in the last pool match against Iran, responding to the opening goal in the first half of Robbie Kruse.[61]
In the return match played five days later in Sydney, the Syrians opened the scoring in the 6th minute of play, once again thanks to Al Somah, but Tim Cahill tied the two teams seven minutes after the opening goal.
The two teams continued to neutralize each other and it was in extra time that the Australia took a decisive advantage in the 109th minute of play thanks to a new goal from Cahill, dashing Syria's last hopes of participating in a World Cup. Reduced to 10 at the start of extra time, Syria nevertheless bravely tried their luck, narrowly missing the equalizer and qualification for the intercontinental play-off during stoppage time in the 2nd half of extra time on a free kick from the essential Al Somah who found the post.[62]
2019 Asian Cup: missed opportunity
At the 2019 AFC Asian Cup (Group B) in the United Arab Emirates, Syria under the leadership of then-head coach Bernd Strange, the national team drew 0–0 with Palestine in the first match of the tournament. Syria failed to advance from the group stage after losing to Australia (2–3) and Jordan (0–2).[63][64]
The Syrian coach Bernd Stange was sacked after this tournament, and replaced with former manager Fajr Ibrahim.[65] The team's game didn't improve much after this intervention, and a new head coach Nabil Maâloul, had to come to improve the situation around the national team.
From 2019 to the present
In qualifying for the 2022 World Cup, which began in the fall of 2019, they were placed second in Group A of 2nd round after the draw.[66] In the first matches of the group, the Qasioun Eagles comfortably won first over the Philippines (5–2), Maldives (2–1) and Guam (4–0).[67] Subsequently, in an important match, they defeated China 2–1 after Osama Omari's goal and Zhang Linpeng's own goal.[68] In the next match, the national team defeated the Philippines 1–0 with a decisive goal by midfielder Ward Al Salama.[69] On 11 March 2020, Tunisian Nabil Maâloul was appointed head coach of Syria.[70]
The last matches in the group were played in 2021 due to COVID-19 in Asia, when they first defeated the Maldives (4–0) and Guam (3–0), and then lost to China 1–3.[67] In Group A, they took a perfect 1st place, and advanced to the 2023 AFC Asian Cup and also to the third stage of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup.[67]
Nabil Maâloul resigned on June 15, 2021 due to disagreements with the leadership of the football federation. Nizar Mahrous replaced him for the next qualification phase.[71] The team started this part of the qualification with unconvincing results with Iran (0–1), UAE (1–1) and South Korea (1–2), with both Syrian goals scored by Omar Khribin and Mahmoud Al Baher.[72] After a humiliating defeat in the Levantine derby with Lebanon (2–3, the scorers were Khrbin and Somah), a draw with Iraq (1–1 only goal was scored by Somah) and a high defeat with Iran (0–3), the head coach Mahrous was fired.[72]
At 2021 FIFA Arab Cup, under the leadership of new coach Valeriu Tița, they showed up in good form.[73] They played the first match in Group B against the UAE, which they lost 1–2.[74] In the next match, Syria played well despite the previous results, as Oliver Kass Kawo and Mouhamad Anez scored 2–0 over the big favorite from Tunisia.[75][76] In their last group match, the Qasioun Eagles lost very badly to Mauritania 1–2 when the equalizing goal was scored by Mahmoud Al Baher in the 52nd minute. They took 3rd place in the group and 9th place in overall.[77]
In the last qualifying matches, they lost first to the UAE 0–2 then to South Korea with the same score, and due to these results Tița was dismissed.[78] Ghassan Maatouk was appointed as the new national head coach on February 9, 2022, leading the team to victory in the derby with Lebanon (3–0) and a draw with Iraq (1–1) in the last two matches. As a result, the Syrian team finished 5th in Group A.[79]
Stadiums
| Home stadiums list | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Stadium | Capacity | Location | Last match |
| Aleppo International Stadium | 53,200 | Aleppo | v Vietnam (18 November 2009; (2011 Asian Cup Q) | |
| Abbasiyyin Stadium | 30,000 | Damascus | v Iraq (22 December 2010; Friendly) | |
| Al-Hamadaniah Stadium | 15,000 | Aleppo | v South Korea (22 February 2006; (2007 Asian Cup Q) | |
| Al-Jalaa Stadium | 10,000 | Damascus | v Palestine (26 March 2004; Friendly) | |
Team image
Rivalries
Syria's common rivals are mostly from the Levant and the Gulf, notably are Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, Iraq and Iran.[80]
Syria vs. Lebanon
| 1. Only matches recognized by FIFA. |
Due to historical reasons, matches against Lebanon have been frequently followed and seen by Syrians as the most important rival.[81] Syria played until today 25 games against Lebanon. The first match took place on 19 April 1942 in a friendly match against the Cedars in Beirut, when Lebanon and Syria were a French colonies.[10] In 1947 Syria played two more friendlies against Lebanon: 4–1 victory in Beirut on 4 May,[82] and 1–0 victory in Aleppo on 18 May.[83] It was at this time that the matches were the most regular. Syria is trailing behind the series with 15 wins, 5 draws and 5 losses.
Syria vs. Jordan
| 1. Only matches recognized by FIFA. |
Syria played their first official match against Jordan on 1 August 1953 in Alexandria, Egypt as part of the 1953 Pan Arab Games, winning 3–1. In later years, the derby gained mutual popularity mainly due to historical and political reasons, as Syrians consider Jordan as part of the original territory of Bilad al-Sham.[84]
Nickname
The Syria is known by supporters and the media as Nosour Qasioun, meaning The Eagles of Qasioun in reference to the Mount Qasioun, which stretch over Damascus.[1]
Kits
The Syria national football team's home color is red and away is white. In 2021, new versions of the jerseys were designed, which changed the white color borders and edges to gold. The national flag of Syria was replaced by the new emblem of the SFA, which symbolizes the eagle of Qasioun.
Schedule and recent results
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
Win Draw Loss Fixture
2022
| 24 March 2022 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification | Lebanon | 0–3 | Syria | Sidon, Lebanon |
| 14:00 UTC+2 | Report (FIFA) | Al Dali 14' Mardikian 38' (pen.) Marmour 44' | Stadium: Saida Municipal Stadium Attendance: 5,422 Referee: Abdulrahman Al-Jassim (Qatar) |
| 29 March 2022 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification | Syria | 1–1 | Iraq | Dubai, United Arab Emirates |
| 17:45 UTC+4 |
| Report (FIFA) |
| Stadium: Rashid Stadium Attendance: 3,710 Referee: Ryuji Sato (Japan) |
| 23 September 2022 2022 Jordan International Tournament | Jordan | 2–0 | Syria | Amman, Jordan |
| Samir 25' Al-Naimat 42' | Report | Stadium: King Abdullah II Stadium Attendance: 2,119 Referee: Mahmoud El Banna (Iraq) |
| 26 September 2022 2022 Jordan International Tournament | Syria | 0–1 | Iraq | Amman, Jordan |
| Report |
| Stadium: Amman International Stadium Referee: Ahmed Al Ali (Jordan) |
| 13 November 2022 Unofficial Friendly | Syria | 0–1 | Algeria A' | Sharjah, UAE |
| Stadium: Sharjah Stadium |
| 20 November 2022 Friendly | Syria | 1–2 | Venezuela | Dubai, United Arab Emirates |
| 21:00 UTC+4 | Rihanieh 49' | Report | Torregrossa 39' Rondón 50' | Stadium: Rashid Stadium Referee: Omar Al Ali (UAE) |
| 23 December 2022 Friendly | Oman | 2–1 | Syria | Dubai, United Arab Emirates |
| 20:30 UTC+4 | Report |
| Stadium: Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum Stadium |
2023
| 24 May 2023 Friendly | Syria | v | Algeria | Tendō, Yamagata, Japan |
| Stadium: ND Soft Stadium Yamagata |
| 15 June 2023 2023 Kirin Challenge Cup[85] | Japan | v | Syria | Aichi, Japan |
| Stadium: Toyota Stadium |
Coaching history
Current technical staff
As of 5 February 2023
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Héctor Cúper |
| Assistant coaches | José Carlos Fantaguzzi Mahmoud Fayez |
| Goalkeeping coach | Essam El Hadary |
| Team manager | Vacant |
| Fitness coach | Antonio Sarioglou |
Coaching history
| Name | Nat | Period | Matches | Wins | Draws | Losses | Honours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vinzenz Dittrich | 1951 | ||||||
| Francisc Mészáros | 1954 | ||||||
| József Albert | 1956–1959 | 1957 Pan Arab Games winners[86] | |||||
| Miklós Vadas | 1960–1965 | ||||||
| Cornel Drăgușin[87] | 1965–1966 | ||||||
| Ezzat Abdel-Wahab | 1969 | ||||||
| Mehana Jabour | 1971 | ||||||
| Khalil Nadaf | 1971–1972 | ||||||
| Mohamed Azzam | 1972 | ||||||
| Khalil Nadaf | 1972–1973 | ||||||
| Mousa Shamas | 1973–1974 | ||||||
| Lofti Kerkuli | 1974 | ||||||
| Petre Rădulescu[88] | 1974–1975 | ||||||
| Vladimir Bolotov | 1975 | ||||||
| Mohamed Azzam | 1976–1977 | ||||||
| Lofti Kerkuli | 1977 | ||||||
| Zaki Natour | 1978 | ||||||
| Horst Zokoll | 1978–1979 | ||||||
| Mustafa Huseinagić | 1979 | ||||||
| Mousa Shamas | 1980 | ||||||
| Joseph Chadli[89] | 1980 | ||||||
| Bill Asprey[90] | 1980–1982 | ||||||
| Karl Trautmann | 1983–1984 | ||||||
| Viktor Vasilyev | 1984 | ||||||
| Avedis Kavlakian | 1984–1985 | ||||||
| Valeriy Yaremchenko | 1985–1987 | 1987 Mediterranean Games winners | |||||
| Anatoliy Azarenkov | | 1987–1992 | |||||
| Virgil Dridea[91] | 1992–1993 | ||||||
| Marwan Khouri | 1994–1995 | ||||||
| Yuri Kurnenin | 1995–1997 | ||||||
| Anwar Abdul-Kader | 1997 | ||||||
| Kevork Mardikian | 1997 | ||||||
| Angel Stankov | 1997 | ||||||
| Mircea Rădulescu | 1997–1998 | Joel Camargo | |||||
| Joel Camargo | 1998–1999 | ||||||
| Mousa Shamas | March 1999 – September 1999 | ||||||
| Dragoslav Popović | September 1999 – February 2000 | ||||||
| Dragoslav Sridović | March 2000 – April 2000 | ||||||
| Božidar Vukotić | March 2001 – October 2001 | ||||||
| Jalal Talebi | November 2001 – September 2002 | 10 | 9 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Janusz Wójcik | March 2003 – August 2003 | ||||||
| Božidar Vukotić | September 2003 – November 2003 | ||||||
| Ahmed Rifaat | December 2003 – November 2004 | ||||||
| Nizar Mahrous | November 2004 – 2005 | ||||||
| Miloslav Radenović | 2005 – August 2006 | ||||||
| Fajr Ibrahim | 5 August 2006 – February 2008 | 24 | 13 | 5 | 6 | ||
| Mohammad Kwid | 10 May 2008 – 20 August 2008 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | ||
| Fajr Ibrahim | 13 November 2008 – 13 September 2010 | 28 | 13 | 9 | 6 | ||
| Ayman Hakeem (Interim) | 14 September 2010 – 20 December 2010 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | ||
| Ratomir Dujković | 28 October 2010 – 8 December 2010 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Valeriu Tiţa | 21 December 2010 – 9 February 2011 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | ||
| Claude Le Roy | 16 April 2011 – 4 May 2011 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Nizar Mahrous | 22 May 2011 – 18 August 2011 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Marwan Khoury | 7 July 2012 – 30 August 2012 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| Hussam Al Sayed | 21 October 2012 – 10 April 2013 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2012 WAFF Championship winners | |
| Anas Makhlouf | 13 April 2013 – 23 October 2013 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| Hussam Al Sayed (Interim) | 9 November 2013 – 20 November 2013 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | ||
| Ahmad Al Shaar | 13 February 2014 – 5 March 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Muhannad Al Fakeer | 18 September 2014 – 5 January 2015 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Fajr Ibrahim | 6 January 2015 – 29 March 2016 | 14 | 10 | 1 | 3 | ||
| Ayman Hakeem | 9 May 2016 – 20 November 2017 | 21 | 6 | 11 | 4 | ||
| Bernd Stange | 31 January 2018 – 10 January 2019 | 11 | 3 | 5 | 3 | ||
| Fajr Ibrahim | 10 January 2019 – 31 December 2019 | 17 | 7 | 3 | 7 | ||
| Nabil Maâloul | 11 March 2020 – 15 June 2021 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | ||
| Nizar Mahrous | 7 July 2021 – 16 November 2021 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | ||
| Valeriu Tiţa | 18 November 2021 – 1 February 2022 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | ||
| Ghassan Maatouk | 9 February 2022 – 1 June 2022 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Hussam Al Sayed | 23 August 2022 – 2 February 2023 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Hector Cúper | 2 February 2023 – | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Players
Current squad
The following players were called up for the friendly matches against Oman on 23 and 30 December 2022.
Information correct as of 30 December 2022, after the match against Oman.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Ahmad Madania | 1 January 1990 | 17 | 0 | Tishreen | |
| GK | Shaher Al Shaker | 1 April 1993 | 2 | 0 | Al-Ittihad | |
| GK | Abdullatif Al Nassan | 30 January 1993 | 0 | 0 | Al-Jaish | |
| DF | Ahmad Al Saleh | 20 May 1989 | 56 | 2 | Al-Jaish | |
| DF | Amro Jenyat | 15 January 1993 | 40 | 1 | Al-Karamah | |
| DF | Hussein Jwayed | 1 January 1993 | 36 | 0 | Al-Ittihad | |
| DF | Youssef Al Hamwi | 1 February 1997 | 13 | 0 | Al-Ittihad | |
| DF | Abdulrazzak Al Mohammad | 16 January 1995 | 8 | 0 | Tishreen | |
| DF | Karam Omran | 11 November 1996 | 4 | 0 | Al-Fotuwa | |
| DF | Ahmad Al Shemali | 15 August 1994 | 3 | 0 | Al-Ittihad | |
| DF | Hamza Al Kurdi | 26 February 1995 | 1 | 0 | Jableh | |
| DF | Al-Laith Ali | 18 May 2000 | 0 | 0 | Al-Fotuwa | |
| DF | Abdullah Jenyat | 18 January 1996 | 0 | 0 | Al-Karamah | |
| MF | Ahmed Ashkar | 12 December 1996 | 26 | 1 | Al-Ittihad | |
| MF | Mohamad Rihanieh | 1 January 2001 | 19 | 1 | Hatta | |
| MF | Mustafa Jneid | 11 January 2000 | 5 | 0 | Hutteen | |
| MF | Ahmad Al Dali | 21 March 2002 | 4 | 0 | Tishreen | |
| MF | Sobhi Shofan | 25 February 1998 | 4 | 0 | Al-Fotuwa | |
| MF | Ayman Akil | 9 February 1999 | 3 | 0 | Hutteen | |
| MF | Mohamad Krouma | 1 September 1996 | 1 | 0 | Al-Wathba | |
| MF | Khalil Ibrahim | 21 January 1997 | 0 | 0 | Al-Fotuwa | |
| FW | Alaa Al Dali | 3 January 1997 | 15 | 2 | Al-Fotuwa | |
| FW | Ali Beshmani | 14 January 2000 | 7 | 0 | Al-Zawraa | |
| FW | Yassin Samia | 22 February 1998 | 4 | 0 | Naft Missan | |
Recent call-ups
The following players have also been called up to the Syria squad within the last 12 months.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Taha Mosa | 24 May 1987 | 5 | 0 | Al-Fotuwa | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| GK | Ibrahim Alma | 18 October 1991 | 72 | 0 | Jableh | v. Tajikistan, 1 June 2022 |
| GK | Hussain Rahal | 1 January 1988 | 0 | 0 | Al-Wathba | v. Tajikistan, 1 June 2022 |
| GK | Khaled Haj Othman | 1 May 1987 | 7 | 0 | Qilwah | v. Iraq, 29 March 2022 |
| DF | Khaled Kurdaghli | 31 January 1997 | 19 | 0 | Naft Al-Wasat | v. Venezuela, 20 November 2022 |
| DF | Zakaria Hanan | 21 August 1997 | 1 | 0 | Al-Ittihad | v. Venezuela, 20 November 2022 |
| DF | Omar Midani | 26 January 1994 | 54 | 1 | Al-Nasr | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| DF | Saad Ahmad | 10 August 1989 | 11 | 0 | Al-Fotuwa | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| DF | Abdul Rahman Weiss | 14 June 1998 | 7 | 0 | Athens Kallithea | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| DF | Belal Halbouni | 29 December 1999 | 1 | 0 | 1. FC Magdeburg | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| DF | Abdullah Al Shami | 2 March 1994 | 13 | 0 | Al-Fahaheel | v. Tajikistan, 1 June 2022 |
| DF | Youssef Mohammad | 26 June 1999 | 10 | 0 | Dhaka Abahani | v. Tajikistan, 1 June 2022 WD |
| DF | Moayad Ajan | 16 February 1993 | 62 | 1 | East Riffa | v. Iraq, 29 March 2022 |
| DF | Muayad Al Khouli | 16 October 1993 | 10 | 0 | Tishreen | v. Iraq, 29 March 2022 |
| MF | Thaer Krouma | 2 February 1990 | 26 | 0 | Al-Ain | v. Venezuela, 20 November 2022 |
| MF | Kamel Hmeisheh | 23 July 1998 | 25 | 0 | Al-Karkh | v. Venezuela, 20 November 2022 |
| MF | Kamel Kawaya | 6 June 1998 | 1 | 0 | Al-Manama | v. Venezuela, 20 November 2022 |
| MF | Hozan Osman | 16 May 2003 | 1 | 0 | De Graafschap | v. Venezuela, 20 November 2022 |
| MF | Mahmoud Al Aswad | 14 September 2003 | 0 | 0 | Al-Karamah | v. Venezuela, 20 November 2022 |
| MF | Mustafa Sheikh Youssef | 29 September 1993 | 0 | 0 | Al-Ittihad | v. Venezuela, 20 November 2022 |
| MF | Mohammad Marmour | 4 January 1995 | 31 | 4 | Al-Manama | v. Belarus, 17 November 2022 |
| MF | Mohammad Al Hallak | 1 January 1999 | 12 | 0 | Al-Manama | v. Belarus, 17 November 2022 |
| MF | Mahmoud Al-Mawas | 1 January 1993 | 85 | 15 | Al-Shorta | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| MF | Maher Daaboul | 4 December 1993 | 3 | 0 | Al-Fotuwa | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| MF | Hosam Aiesh | 14 April 1995 | 2 | 0 | FC Seoul | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| MF | Ammar Ramadan | 5 January 2001 | 2 | 0 | DAC Dunajská Streda | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| MF | Fahd Youssef | 15 May 1987 | 34 | 0 | Al-Shorta | v. Tajikistan, 1 June 2022 |
| MF | Mohammad Anz | 14 May 1995 | 23 | 1 | Al-Khaldiya | v. Tajikistan, 1 June 2022 |
| MF | Oliver Kass Kawo | 3 December 2001 | 6 | 1 | Helsingør | v. Iraq, 29 March 2022 |
| FW | Mahmoud Al Baher | 3 January 1994 | 11 | 2 | Jableh | v. Venezuela, 20 November 2022 |
| FW | Omar Al Somah | 28 March 1989 | 34 | 18 | Al-Arabi | v. Iraq, 26 September 2022 |
| FW | Mardik Mardikian | 14 March 1992 | 39 | 7 | Al-Hamriyah | v. Tajikistan, 1 June 2022 |
| FW | Nasouh Al Nakdali | 15 June 1993 | 15 | 0 | Tishreen | v. Tajikistan, 1 June 2022 |
| FW | Molham Babouli | 2 January 1993 | 2 | 0 | York United | v. Iraq, 29 March 2022 |
SUS Player suspended. | ||||||
Previous squads
- Asian Cup
Player records
- As of 21 November 2022[92]
- Players in bold are still active with Syria.
Most capped players
| Rank | Player | Caps | Goals | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maher Al-Sayed | 109 | 29 | 1999–2013 |
| 2 | Ali Diab | 97 | 4 | 2004–2013 |
| 3 | Mosab Balhous | 86 | 0 | 2006–2016 |
| 4 | Mahmoud Al-Mawas | 85 | 15 | 2012– |
| 5 | Raja Rafe | 84 | 32 | 2002–2015 |
| 6 | Tarek Jabban | 83 | 5 | 1996–2007 |
| 7 | Nizar Mahrous | 75 | 12 | 1985–1993 |
| 8 | George Khouri | 73 | 8 | 1982–1989 |
| 9 | Ibrahim Alma | 72 | 0 | 2012– |
| Firas Al-Khatib | 72 | 36 | 2001–2019 |
Top goalscorers
| Rank | Player | Goals | Caps | Ratio | Career |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Firas Al-Khatib | 36 | 72 | 0.5 | 2001–2019 |
| 2 | Raja Rafe | 32 | 84 | 0.38 | 2006–2016 |
| 3 | Maher Al-Sayed | 29 | 109 | 0.27 | 1999–2013 |
| 4 | Said Bayazid | 24 | 24 | 1 | 1997–2001 |
| 5 | Zyad Chaabo | 22 | 49 | 0.45 | 2001–2010 |
| 6 | Omar Khribin | 21 | 51 | 0.41 | 2012–present |
| 7 | Omar Al Somah | 17 | 34 | 0.55 | 2012–present |
| 8 | Mohamed Al-Zeno | 15 | 44 | 0.34 | 2004–2011 |
| Mahmoud Al-Mawas | 15 | 85 | 0.18 | 2012–present | |
| 10 | Avedis Kavlakian | 14 | — | — | 1953–1966 |
Competitive record
FIFA World Cup
| FIFA World Cup record | FIFA World Cup qualification record | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |||
| 1930 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||
| 1934 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1938 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1950 | Withdrew | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | |||||||||
| 1954 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||
| 1958 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |||||||||
| 1962 | Withdrew | Withdrew | ||||||||||||||
| 1966 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1970 | Did not enter | Did not enter | ||||||||||||||
| 1974 | Did not qualify | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 6 | |||||||||
| 1978 | Withdrew | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 6 | |||||||||
| 1982 | Did not qualify | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 7 | |||||||||
| 1986 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 4 | ||||||||||
| 1990 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 5 | ||||||||||
| 1994 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 4 | ||||||||||
| 1998 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 27 | 5 | ||||||||||
| 2002 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 40 | 6 | ||||||||||
| 2006 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 7 | ||||||||||
| 2010 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 23 | 10 | ||||||||||
| 2014 | Disqualified | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | |||||||||
| 2018 | Did not qualify | 20 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 36 | 22 | |||||||||
| 2022 | 18 | 8 | 3 | 7 | 31 | 23 | ||||||||||
| 2026 | TBD | TBD | ||||||||||||||
| Total | 0/22 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 102 | 44 | 23 | 35 | 205 | 120 | |||
- *Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.
AFC Asian Cup
| AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup qualification | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| 1956 | Not a AFC member | Not a AFC member | ||||||||||||
| 1960 | ||||||||||||||
| 1964 | ||||||||||||||
| 1968 | ||||||||||||||
| 1972 | Did not qualify | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 5 | |||||||
| 1976 | Withdrew | Withdrew | ||||||||||||
| 1980 | Group stage | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1984 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 9 | ||
| 1988 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 2 | ||
| 1992 | Did not qualify | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | |||||||
| 1996 | Group stage | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2000 | Did not qualify | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 3 | |||||||
| 2004 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 16 | 10 | ||||||||
| 2007 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 6 | ||||||||
| 2011 | Group stage | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 2 | |
| 2015 | Did not qualify | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 7 | |||||||
| 2019 | Group stage | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 26 | 11 | |
| 2023 | Qualified | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 22 | 7 | |||||||
| 2027 | To be determined | To be determined | ||||||||||||
| Total | Group stage | 21 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 68 | 38 | 12 | 19 | 134 | 68 | |
- *Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.
| AFC Asian Cup history | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Score | Result |
| 1980 | |||
| Round 1 | Syria 0–0 Iran | Draw | |
| Round 1 | Syria 1–0 Bangladesh | Win | |
| Round 1 | Syria 1–2 North Korea | Loss | |
| Round 1 | Syria 1–0 China | Win | |
| 1984 | |||
| Round 1 | Syria 1–1 Qatar | Draw | |
| Round 1 | Syria 0–1 Saudi Arabia | Loss | |
| Round 1 | Syria 1–0 South Korea | Win | |
| Round 1 | Syria 1–3 Kuwait | Loss | |
| 1988 | |||
| Round 1 | Syria 0–2 Saudi Arabia | Loss | |
| Round 1 | Syria 0–3 China | Loss | |
| Round 1 | Syria 1–0 Kuwait | Win | |
| Round 1 | Syria 1–0 Bahrain | Win | |
| 1996 | |||
| Round 1 | Syria 1–2 Japan | Loss | |
| Round 1 | Syria 0–3 China | Loss | |
| Round 1 | Syria 2–1 Uzbekistan | Win | |
| 2011 | |||
| Round 1 | Syria 2–1 Saudi Arabia | Win | |
| Round 1 | Syria 1–2 Japan | Loss | |
| Round 1 | Syria 1–2 Jordan | Loss | |
| 2019 | |||
| Round 1 | Syria 0–0 Palestine | Draw | |
| Round 1 | Syria 0–2 Jordan | Loss | |
| Round 1 | Syria 2–3 Australia | Loss | |
Olympic Games
| Olympic Games record | Olympic Games qualification record | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | |
| 1900 to 1968 | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
| 1972 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |||||||
| 1976 | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
| 1980 | Round 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | |
| 1984 | Did not qualify | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 10 | |||||||
| 1988 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | ||||||||
| 1992 to present | See Syria national under-23 team | See Syria national under-23 team | ||||||||||||
| Total | 0 Titles | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 14 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 9 | 17 | |
- *Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.
WAFF Championship
| WAFF Championship record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | |
| 2000 | Runners-up | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2002 | Fourth place | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 6 | |
| 2004 | Runners-up | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 13 | |
| 2007 | Semi-finals | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 2008 | Semi-finals | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 2010 | Group stage | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 2012 | Champions | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 3 | |
| 2014 | Withdrew | |||||||
| 2019 | Group stage | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 7 | |
| 2023 | Qualified | |||||||
| Total | 1 Title | 29 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 32 | 40 | |
- *Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.
FIFA Arab Cup
| FIFA Arab Cup record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | |
| 1963 | Runners-up | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 4 | |
| 1964 | Did not enter | |||||||
| 1966 | Runners-up | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 4 | |
| 1985 | Did not enter | |||||||
| 1988 | Runners-up | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 5 | |
| 1992 | Fourth place | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1998 | Group stage | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | |
| 2002 | Group stage | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 6 | |
| 2012 | Did not enter | |||||||
| 2021 | Group stage | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | |
| Total | 0 Titles | 28 | 11 | 6 | 11 | 38 | 32 | |
- *Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.
Palestine Cup of Nations
| Palestine Cup of Nations record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| 1972 | Fourth place | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 10 | |
| 1973 | Runners-up | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 16 | 11 | |
| 1975 | Fourth place | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 | |
| Total | 0 Titles | 16 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 30 | 29 | |
Pan Arab Games
syria, national, football, team, this, article, about, team, women, team, syria, women, national, football, team, arabic, منتخب, ور, ال, represents, syria, international, football, controlled, syrian, arab, federation, football, governing, body, football, syri. This article is about the men s team For the women s team see Syria women s national football team The Syria national football team Arabic منتخب س ور ي ا ل ك ر ة ال ق د م represents Syria in international football and is controlled by the Syrian Arab Federation for Football the governing body for football in Syria Syria has never qualified for the World Cup finals but did reach the fourth qualification round in 2018 The team is currently banned by FIFA from playing at home as they have not hosted a game since December 2010 5 Internationally Syria won the 2012 WAFF Championship 1957 Pan Arab Games and the 1987 Mediterranean Games SyriaNickname s Nosour Qasioun 1 Arabic ن س ور ق اس ي ون lit Qasioun eagles AssociationSyrian Football Association SFA ConfederationAFC Asia Sub confederationWAFF West Asia UAFA Arab world Head coachHector CuperMost capsMaher Al Sayed 109 Top scorerFiras Al Khatib 36 Home stadiumAbbasiyyin StadiumAleppo International StadiumFIFA codeSYRFirst coloursSecond coloursFIFA rankingCurrent90 22 December 2022 2 Highest68 1 July 2018 Lowest152 September 2014 March 2015 First international Lebanon 1 2 Syria Beirut Lebanon 19 April 1942 3 Biggest win Syria 13 0 Muscat and Oman Cairo Egypt 6 September 1965 Biggest defeat Greece 8 0 Syria Athens Greece 25 November 1949 Egypt 8 0 Syria Alexandria Egypt 16 October 1951 Asian CupAppearances6 first in 1980 Best resultGroup stage 1980 1984 1988 1996 2011 2019 Arab CupAppearances7 first in 1963 Best resultRunners up 1963 1966 1988 WAFF ChampionshipAppearances8 first in 2000 Best resultChampions 2012 Medal record WAFF Championship2012 Kuwait Team2000 Jordan Team2004 Iran Team2007 Jordan Team2008 Iran TeamFIFA Arab Cup1963 Lebanon Team1966 Iraq Team1988 Jordan TeamPalestine Cup of Nations1973 Libya TeamMediterranean Games1987 Latakia Team1951 Alexandria TeamWest Asian Games1997 Tehran Team2005 Doha Team2002 Kuwait TeamPan Arab Games1957 Beirut Team1953 Alexandria Team1997 Beirut Team1976 Damascus Team Contents 1 History 1 1 From 1936 to 1969 The beginnings 1 2 1970s Successes in Arab competitions 1 3 The years 1980 1996 an improvement in Syrian football 1 4 From 1996 to 2007 Years of hope and disappointment 1 5 From 2007 to 2012 Great achievements 1 6 From 2013 to 2016 Withdrawal from positions 1 7 2018 World Cup qualifiers Syria close to great success 1 7 1 Syria v Australia 1 8 2019 Asian Cup missed opportunity 1 9 From 2019 to the present 2 Stadiums 3 Team image 3 1 Rivalries 3 1 1 Syria vs Lebanon 3 1 2 Syria vs Jordan 3 2 Nickname 3 3 Kits 4 Schedule and recent results 4 1 2022 4 2 2023 5 Coaching history 5 1 Current technical staff 5 2 Coaching history 6 Players 6 1 Current squad 6 2 Recent call ups 6 3 Previous squads 7 Player records 7 1 Most capped players 7 2 Top goalscorers 8 Competitive record 8 1 FIFA World Cup 8 2 AFC Asian Cup 8 3 Olympic Games 8 4 WAFF Championship 8 5 FIFA Arab Cup 8 6 Palestine Cup of Nations 8 7 Pan Arab Games 8 8 Mediterranean Games 8 9 Asian Games 8 10 West Asian Games 9 Head to head record 10 Honours 11 See also 12 References 13 External linksHistory EditFrom 1936 to 1969 The beginnings Edit The Syrian Football Federation was founded in 1936 10 years before independence from the French in 1946 It has been affiliated with FIFA since 1937 and has been a member of AFC since 1969 6 7 Syria played its first unofficial matches under the name of Damascus XI with Lebanon 5 4 in 1939 and with Iraq 1 2 in 1944 8 9 Syria played their first official game against Lebanon on 19 April 1942 Qasioun Eagles won 2 1 10 Syria s first official qualifying match was played in Ankara against Turkey which ended in a Syrian defeat 7 0 on 20 November 1949 11 Thanks to that the Syrian team participated in the 1950 World Cup European qualifiers as one of the first teams in the region to do so 12 One of the biggest defeats was played in Athens against the Greece on 25 November 1949 5 days after its first official match which ended in a score of 8 0 for the Greeks 13 At the 1951 Mediterranean Games in Alexandria on 12 October 1951 one of Syria s biggest defeats was recorded against the Egypt which ended with a score of 8 0 for the Pharaohs 14 Francisc Meszaros who became the second coach of the Syrian national team in 1954 The first great success of the national team was silver at the 1953 Pan Arab Games when they were defeated in the final by Egypt 4 0 15 At the 1957 Pan Arab Games in Beirut they advanced to the finals after the semi final defeat of Morocco in which they defeated Tunisia with goals scored by Shamas and Awadis Kaoulakian 3 1 16 In the FIFA World Cup 1958 qualifiers the Syrian football team was defeated by the Sudan in the 1st round of the playoffs Between 1958 and 1961 the team combined with Egypt to form the United Arab Republic national football team although the team s records are attributed only to Egypt by FIFA 17 They were twice a finalists in the Arab Cup in 1963 beaten by the Tunisia and 1966 beaten by Iraq 18 In the 1966 World Cup qualifiers they were one of two teams from the Asian zone the other being Israel to be allocated to the European qualifying zone and were originally placed with Spain and the Republic of Ireland However they joined the Asian and African boycott of the 1966 qualifiers due to the decision of FIFA to allocate just one place between Asia and Africa 19 1970s Successes in Arab competitions Edit In the 1970s they regularly participated in the Palestine Cup which served as a substitute for the Arab Cup At the 1972 Palestine Cup they placed fourth when they lost 1 3 to Algeria 20 At the 1973 Palestine Cup they advanced from the group stage to the semifinals where they eliminated Algeria after penalties 0 0 pen 3 2 In the final of the cup they clearly lost to Tunisia 0 4 21 In the 1974 Kuneitra Cup the Qasioun Eagles entered the knockout phase after the group defeat of Sudan Libya Palestine and North Yemen In the semifinals of the cup they defeated Tunisia 3 1 but in the final they unfortunately lost to Morocco after a penalty shootout 22 For the 1974 World Cup they finished second in the group in the 1st round of the qualification behind the Iran insufficient to advance to the next round 23 The players who made Syrian football famous were the players of Barada SC with the best elite of football players such as Faris Sultji Marwan Dardari Ahmad Talib Tamim Mohammad Khair Dhaher Ahmad Alian Joseph Chahrestan Farouq Bozo Ahmad al Akad Jamal al Sharif At the 1975 Palestine Cup they eliminated Libya in the group stage but lost to Iraq in the semifinals 0 4 and in the bronze medal match with Sudan 0 1 24 In 1976 Damascus hosted the Pan Arab Games whose football tournament was played at the Abbasiyyin Stadium where the home Syrian team won bronze medals 25 In the 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification the Qasioun Eagles did not go through the first round as despite losing one victory over Saudi Arabia 2 0 they lost both matches to Iran finishing in third place in the group 26 The years 1980 1996 an improvement in Syrian football Edit Abdul Kader Kardaghli scorer of the winning penalty against France in the 1987 Mediterranean Games finals The Syrian team made it to 1980 Olympics thanks to Iran as the team withdrew due to the American led boycott of the Olympics 27 Despite losing 0 3 to the Algeria and 0 5 to the GDR they gained experience from big matches However the most valuable result in the tournament was a draw with a strong Spain 0 0 28 The Syrian team took part in the three editions of the Asian Nations Cup in the 1980s In 1980 Asian Cup they finished 3rd out of 5 in the group stage behind the North Korea and the Iran ahead of the China and the Bangladesh 29 In 1984 Asian Nations Cup they finished 4th out of 5 in the 1st round ahead of the South Korea behind Qatar Kuwait and Saudi Arabia 30 In the 1988 Asian Nations Cup they finished 3rd out of 5 still in the 1st round behind the China and Saudi Arabia ahead of Kuwait and Bahrain 31 The two Syrian scorers were with one goal each Walid Nasser and Walid Al Hel They were a finalists in the Arab Nations Cup in 1988 beaten by Iraq During this period Syria shows that it is very present on the Asian scene For the qualifiers of the 1982 World Cup they finished last in the group stage behind the Qatar Iraq Saudi Arabia and Bahrain 32 As for the qualification round of the 1986 World Cup Syria came very close to a qualification which would have been historic since it passed the 1st round ahead of the Kuwait and the North Yemen beat Bahrain and lost in the final qualifying round to Iraq 1 3 on aggregate with the only Syrian goal scored by Walid Abu Al Sel 33 Valeriy Yaremchenko the coach who led Syria to victory at the 1987 Mediterranean Games One of the greatest successes of the Qasioun Eagles in the 1980s was the participation in the finals of the 1987 Mediterranean Games which took place in Latakia and the defeat of the France team 2 1 34 35 In the 1990 World Cup qualifiers the national team placed second in the first round after losing to Saudi Arabia 4 5 goal scorers Mahrous Jakalan Al Nasser and Helou 36 In 1992 the Pan Arab Games were held in Syria which included the Arab Cup In this tournament the Syrian national team led by Virgil Dridea placed 4th after advancing to the semifinals losing to Egypt 4 3 on penalties and losing in the bronze medal match with Kuwait 1 2 37 During the 1994 World Cup qualifiers they led the qualifying group after winning over Taiwan and Oman but due to draws with Iran 0 0 and 1 1 goal scored by Abdul Latif Helou they did not advance to the second round 38 In the 1st round of the 1996 Asian Cup the Syrian team beat Uzbekistan 2 1 thanks to goals from Nader Joukhadar and Ali Dib but they were beaten by Japan 1 2 goal by Nader Joukhadar and by China 0 3 By finishing 3rd in the group they had a chance to qualify for the quarterfinals but having a low score compared to the other two countries Iraq and South Korea the team finished as the worst 3rd again missed the knockout phase by a close margin From 1996 to 2007 Years of hope and disappointment Edit Chadi Cheikh Merai in 1997 At the 1997 Pan Arab Games in Beirut they reached the final in which Jordan defeated them 0 1 39 One of Syria s biggest victories was recorded in Tehran on 4 June 1997 against the Maldives a match that ended by a final score of 12 0 for the Syrians 5 days later it faces again the Maldives still in Tehran which ends with the same score of 12 0 These two matches were played as a part of the qualification of the 1998 World Cup where it was eliminated in the first preliminary round ahead of the Iran 40 The Syrian team was twice finalist in 2000 and in 2004 of a regional competition the West Asian Football Championship beaten each time by the Iran as they reached the semi finals of the West Asian Championship 2002 held at home but lost to the Jordan on a golden goal scored in the last minutes of extra time 1 2 before losing to Iran on penalties during the match for the 3rd place 2 2 2 4 Syria v Iran friendly match 2006 As for the qualification of the World Cup 2002 they were overtaken by the Oman at 1st while being ahead of the Philippines and the Laos 41 In the qualifiers for the 2006 World Cup they did not advance to the third stage after uncertain match performances and losses with Bahrain 1 2 and Kyrgyzstan 0 1 42 Syria v India 2007 Nehru Cup During this period the national team participated in the 2007 Nehru Cup where after the first victory over Bangladesh 2 0 they defeated Kyrgyzstan 4 1 India 3 2 and Cambodia 5 1 and advanced to the finals 43 The top scorers were famous Syrian stars Zyad Chaabo 5 goals and Maher Al Sayed 4 goals But the cup final for the team did not turn out well because they lost to India 0 1 44 45 From 2007 to 2012 Great achievements Edit Fajr Ibrahim led Syria twice to the semifinals of the West Asian Cup In 2007 Syria advanced to the WAAF Cup under the leadership of coach Fajr Ibrahim where they after victories over Lebanon and Jordan both 1 0 lost in the semifinals to Iraq 0 3 46 A year later the Qasioun Eagles took part in the 2008 WAAF Cup where after a 2 1 victory over Oman and a draw with Jordan they advanced to the semifinals where they lost to Iran 0 2 47 At the 2009 Nehru Cup Syria sovereignly won the group stage defeating Sri Lanka Kyrgyzstan Lebanon and in a close match India 1 0 In the final of the cup they encountered India with which they lost 1 2 on penalties the only Syrian scorer was Ali Diab 48 In the qualifications for the World Cup 2010 the team of Syria beat the Afghanistan in the 1st round then the Indonesia in the 2nd round but narrowly failed in the 3rd round to qualify for the 4th round due to a unfavorable goal average behind UAE and Iran but ahead of Kuwait 49 Syrian line up against Japan at the 2011 Asian Cup The Syrian team qualified for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar after a long absence from it since 1996 where it ascended to the championship without any loss in the qualifiers They were eliminated from the group stage again after losing to Jordan and Japan and defeating Saudi Arabia 50 Shortly afterwards they were disqualified from the 2014 World Cup due to the use of an ineligible player 51 In December 2012 Syria beat Iraq in the final of West Asia Cup to collect its first major trophy and Ahmad Al Saleh became the scorer of the historic winning goal 1 0 52 Official Syrian television interrupted its broadcasts to announce the victory and show the presentation of the cup live 53 From 2013 to 2016 Withdrawal from positions Edit In 2013 the Syrian team withdrew from the WAAF Cup due to the war in the country In the following years the situation in the national team was not good because they could not play at home stadiums Syria national football team in Tehran 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification The Syrian national team missed the 2015 AFC Asian Cup after failing to qualify and occupying third place in the Group A that included Jordan Singapore and Oman 54 In 2016 Syria took part in the King s Cup under national team captain Mosab Balhous and head coach Ayman Hakeem where they lost in the semifinals after a penalty shootout with Thailand and defeated the United Arab Emirates 1 0 in third place match 55 2018 World Cup qualifiers Syria close to great success Edit Ever since war broke out in the country Syria have been banned from playing home games in their own country and in fact were one day away from being thrown out of the 2018 World Cup only for Malaysia to swoop in at the last minute and offer to host all of Syria s home games After finishing on second place in Group E during the 2018 World Cup 2nd qualifying round behind Japan but ahead of Singapore Afghanistan and Cambodia Syria was among the top 4 2nd and obtained the right to play in the 3rd round in addition to being qualified for the next Asian Cup 56 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Syria v Iran They were transferred to the group A along with the Iran South Korea Uzbekistan China and the Qatar On 5 September 2017 Syria qualified for the first time in their history for the play offs of a World Cup by finishing 3rd in their group with 13 points level on points with Uzbekistan but ahead in the standings thanks to better goal difference following of their draw gleaned in stoppage time on the lawn of the Iran 2 2 in the last match 57 This the best of Qasioun Eagles performance to date in a qualifying phase of a World Cup 58 The prospect of a historic qualification for a final phase of the World Cup has given rise to a momentary halt to the conflict which has ravaged the country for six years as well as the installation of giant screens by the authorities in the main public squares of major cities to follow the decisive match against the Iran 59 60 Syria v Australia Edit On 5 October 2017 in Malacca Syria managed to draw 1 1 against Australia thanks to a converted penalty in the 85 minute by Syrian best striker Omar Al Somah who had already equalized in stoppage time in the last pool match against Iran responding to the opening goal in the first half of Robbie Kruse 61 Omar Al Somah captain and best Syrian scorer in qualifiers In the return match played five days later in Sydney the Syrians opened the scoring in the 6th minute of play once again thanks to Al Somah but Tim Cahill tied the two teams seven minutes after the opening goal The two teams continued to neutralize each other and it was in extra time that the Australia took a decisive advantage in the 109th minute of play thanks to a new goal from Cahill dashing Syria s last hopes of participating in a World Cup Reduced to 10 at the start of extra time Syria nevertheless bravely tried their luck narrowly missing the equalizer and qualification for the intercontinental play off during stoppage time in the 2nd half of extra time on a free kick from the essential Al Somah who found the post 62 2019 Asian Cup missed opportunity Edit At the 2019 AFC Asian Cup Group B in the United Arab Emirates Syria under the leadership of then head coach Bernd Strange the national team drew 0 0 with Palestine in the first match of the tournament Syria failed to advance from the group stage after losing to Australia 2 3 and Jordan 0 2 63 64 2019 Asia Cup Syria v Palestine The Syrian coach Bernd Stange was sacked after this tournament and replaced with former manager Fajr Ibrahim 65 The team s game didn t improve much after this intervention and a new head coach Nabil Maaloul had to come to improve the situation around the national team From 2019 to the present Edit In qualifying for the 2022 World Cup which began in the fall of 2019 they were placed second in Group A of 2nd round after the draw 66 In the first matches of the group the Qasioun Eagles comfortably won first over the Philippines 5 2 Maldives 2 1 and Guam 4 0 67 Subsequently in an important match they defeated China 2 1 after Osama Omari s goal and Zhang Linpeng s own goal 68 In the next match the national team defeated the Philippines 1 0 with a decisive goal by midfielder Ward Al Salama 69 On 11 March 2020 Tunisian Nabil Maaloul was appointed head coach of Syria 70 Nabil Maaloul Syria s head coach from 2020 to 2021 The last matches in the group were played in 2021 due to COVID 19 in Asia when they first defeated the Maldives 4 0 and Guam 3 0 and then lost to China 1 3 67 In Group A they took a perfect 1st place and advanced to the 2023 AFC Asian Cup and also to the third stage of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup 67 Omar Khribin Asian footballer of the year 2017 and one of the key players of the national team Nabil Maaloul resigned on June 15 2021 due to disagreements with the leadership of the football federation Nizar Mahrous replaced him for the next qualification phase 71 The team started this part of the qualification with unconvincing results with Iran 0 1 UAE 1 1 and South Korea 1 2 with both Syrian goals scored by Omar Khribin and Mahmoud Al Baher 72 After a humiliating defeat in the Levantine derby with Lebanon 2 3 the scorers were Khrbin and Somah a draw with Iraq 1 1 only goal was scored by Somah and a high defeat with Iran 0 3 the head coach Mahrous was fired 72 At 2021 FIFA Arab Cup under the leadership of new coach Valeriu Tița they showed up in good form 73 They played the first match in Group B against the UAE which they lost 1 2 74 In the next match Syria played well despite the previous results as Oliver Kass Kawo and Mouhamad Anez scored 2 0 over the big favorite from Tunisia 75 76 In their last group match the Qasioun Eagles lost very badly to Mauritania 1 2 when the equalizing goal was scored by Mahmoud Al Baher in the 52nd minute They took 3rd place in the group and 9th place in overall 77 In the last qualifying matches they lost first to the UAE 0 2 then to South Korea with the same score and due to these results Tița was dismissed 78 Ghassan Maatouk was appointed as the new national head coach on February 9 2022 leading the team to victory in the derby with Lebanon 3 0 and a draw with Iraq 1 1 in the last two matches As a result the Syrian team finished 5th in Group A 79 Stadiums EditHome stadiums listImage Stadium Capacity Location Last match Aleppo International Stadium 53 200 Aleppo v Vietnam 18 November 2009 2011 Asian Cup Q Abbasiyyin Stadium 30 000 Damascus v Iraq 22 December 2010 Friendly Al Hamadaniah Stadium 15 000 Aleppo v South Korea 22 February 2006 2007 Asian Cup Q Al Jalaa Stadium 10 000 Damascus v Palestine 26 March 2004 Friendly Team image EditRivalries Edit Syrian fans before the match with Palestine Syria s common rivals are mostly from the Levant and the Gulf notably are Lebanon Jordan Palestine Iraq and Iran 80 Syria vs Lebanon Edit Statistics vs Lebanon 9 Played1 Wins2 Draws Losses GF GA25 15 5 5 50 281 Only matches recognized by FIFA 2 Wins for Syria Due to historical reasons matches against Lebanon have been frequently followed and seen by Syrians as the most important rival 81 Syria played until today 25 games against Lebanon The first match took place on 19 April 1942 in a friendly match against the Cedars in Beirut when Lebanon and Syria were a French colonies 10 In 1947 Syria played two more friendlies against Lebanon 4 1 victory in Beirut on 4 May 82 and 1 0 victory in Aleppo on 18 May 83 It was at this time that the matches were the most regular Syria is trailing behind the series with 15 wins 5 draws and 5 losses Syria vs Jordan Edit Statistics vs Jordan 9 Played1 Wins2 Draws Losses GF GA40 15 9 16 37 391 Only matches recognized by FIFA 2 Wins for Syria Syria played their first official match against Jordan on 1 August 1953 in Alexandria Egypt as part of the 1953 Pan Arab Games winning 3 1 In later years the derby gained mutual popularity mainly due to historical and political reasons as Syrians consider Jordan as part of the original territory of Bilad al Sham 84 Nickname Edit The Syria is known by supporters and the media as Nosour Qasioun meaning The Eagles of Qasioun in reference to the Mount Qasioun which stretch over Damascus 1 Kits Edit The Syria national football team s home color is red and away is white In 2021 new versions of the jerseys were designed which changed the white color borders and edges to gold The national flag of Syria was replaced by the new emblem of the SFA which symbolizes the eagle of Qasioun Kit supplier Period Notes Diadora 2007 2010 Adidas 2011 2014 Lotto 2015 2017 Jako 2018 2020 Uhlsport 2021 2022 Jako 2022 Schedule and recent results EditSee also Syria national football team results 2020 present and Syria national football team results The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months as well as any future matches that have been scheduled Win Draw Loss Fixture 2022 Edit Lebanon v Syria 24 March 2022 2022 FIFA World Cup qualificationLebanon 0 3 SyriaSidon Lebanon14 00 UTC 2 Report FIFA Al Dali 14 Mardikian 38 pen Marmour 44 Stadium Saida Municipal Stadium Attendance 5 422Referee Abdulrahman Al Jassim Qatar Syria v Iraq 29 March 2022 2022 FIFA World Cup qualificationSyria 1 1 IraqDubai United Arab Emirates17 45 UTC 4 Al Dali 3 Report FIFA Hussein 31 Stadium Rashid Stadium Attendance 3 710Referee Ryuji Sato Japan Syria v Tajikistan 1 June 2022 FriendlySyria 1 0 TajikistanDubai United Arab Emirates18 45 UTC 3 Al Somah 16 Report Stadium Shabab Al Ahli Stadium Jordan v Syria 23 September 2022 2022 Jordan International TournamentJordan 2 0 SyriaAmman JordanSamir 25 Al Naimat 42 Report Stadium King Abdullah II Stadium Attendance 2 119Referee Mahmoud El Banna Iraq Syria v Iraq 26 September 2022 2022 Jordan International TournamentSyria 0 1 IraqAmman JordanReport Hussein 27 Stadium Amman International Stadium Referee Ahmed Al Ali Jordan Syria v Algeria A 13 November 2022 Unofficial FriendlySyria 0 1 Algeria A Sharjah UAEMrezigue 71 Stadium Sharjah Stadium Syria v Belarus 17 November 2022 FriendlySyria 0 1 BelarusDubai United Arab Emirates20 00 UTC 4 Report Krouma 81 o g Stadium Rashid Stadium Referee Yahya Ali Al Mulla UAE Syria v Venezuela 20 November 2022 FriendlySyria 1 2 VenezuelaDubai United Arab Emirates21 00 UTC 4 Rihanieh 49 Report Torregrossa 39 Rondon 50 Stadium Rashid Stadium Referee Omar Al Ali UAE Oman v Syria 23 December 2022 2022 12 23 FriendlyOman 2 1 SyriaDubai United Arab Emirates20 30 UTC 4 Al Subhi 21 Saleh 58 Report Ashkar 60 Stadium Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum Stadium Syria v Oman 30 December 2022 FriendlySyria 0 1 OmanDubai United Arab Emirates18 00 UTC 4 Report Al Braiki 86 Stadium Dubai Police Club Stadium 2023 Edit Syria v Algeria 24 May 2023 FriendlySyria v AlgeriaTendō Yamagata JapanStadium ND Soft Stadium Yamagata Japan v Syria 15 June 2023 2023 Kirin Challenge Cup 85 Japan v SyriaAichi JapanStadium Toyota StadiumCoaching history EditCurrent technical staff Edit As of 5 February 2023 Position NameHead coach Hector CuperAssistant coaches Jose Carlos Fantaguzzi Mahmoud FayezGoalkeeping coach Essam El HadaryTeam manager VacantFitness coach Antonio SarioglouCoaching history Edit Name Nat Period Matches Wins Draws Losses HonoursVinzenz Dittrich 1951Francisc Meszaros 1954Jozsef Albert 1956 1959 1957 Pan Arab Games winners 86 Miklos Vadas 1960 1965Cornel Drăgușin 87 1965 1966Ezzat Abdel Wahab 1969Mehana Jabour 1971Khalil Nadaf 1971 1972Mohamed Azzam 1972Khalil Nadaf 1972 1973Mousa Shamas 1973 1974Lofti Kerkuli 1974Petre Rădulescu 88 1974 1975Vladimir Bolotov 1975Mohamed Azzam 1976 1977Lofti Kerkuli 1977Zaki Natour 1978Horst Zokoll 1978 1979Mustafa Huseinagic 1979Mousa Shamas 1980Joseph Chadli 89 1980Bill Asprey 90 1980 1982Karl Trautmann 1983 1984Viktor Vasilyev 1984Avedis Kavlakian 1984 1985Valeriy Yaremchenko 1985 1987 1987 Mediterranean Games winnersAnatoliy Azarenkov 1987 1992Virgil Dridea 91 1992 1993Marwan Khouri 1994 1995Yuri Kurnenin 1995 1997Anwar Abdul Kader 1997Kevork Mardikian 1997Angel Stankov 1997Mircea Rădulescu 1997 1998 Joel CamargoJoel Camargo 1998 1999Mousa Shamas March 1999 September 1999Dragoslav Popovic September 1999 February 2000Dragoslav Sridovic March 2000 April 2000Bozidar Vukotic March 2001 October 2001Jalal Talebi November 2001 September 2002 10 9 0 1Janusz Wojcik March 2003 August 2003Bozidar Vukotic September 2003 November 2003Ahmed Rifaat December 2003 November 2004Nizar Mahrous November 2004 2005Miloslav Radenovic 2005 August 2006Fajr Ibrahim 5 August 2006 February 2008 24 13 5 6Mohammad Kwid 10 May 2008 20 August 2008 8 4 0 4Fajr Ibrahim 13 November 2008 13 September 2010 28 13 9 6Ayman Hakeem Interim 14 September 2010 20 December 2010 5 2 1 2Ratomir Dujkovic 28 October 2010 8 December 2010 1 1 0 0Valeriu Tiţa 21 December 2010 9 February 2011 6 1 0 5Claude Le Roy 16 April 2011 4 May 2011 0 0 0 0Nizar Mahrous 22 May 2011 18 August 2011 7 5 2 0Marwan Khoury 7 July 2012 30 August 2012 4 1 1 2Hussam Al Sayed 21 October 2012 10 April 2013 8 2 3 3 2012 WAFF Championship winnersAnas Makhlouf 13 April 2013 23 October 2013 3 0 1 2Hussam Al Sayed Interim 9 November 2013 20 November 2013 3 1 0 2Ahmad Al Shaar 13 February 2014 5 March 2014 1 0 0 1Muhannad Al Fakeer 18 September 2014 5 January 2015 2 2 0 0Fajr Ibrahim 6 January 2015 29 March 2016 14 10 1 3Ayman Hakeem 9 May 2016 20 November 2017 21 6 11 4Bernd Stange 31 January 2018 10 January 2019 11 3 5 3Fajr Ibrahim 10 January 2019 31 December 2019 17 7 3 7Nabil Maaloul 11 March 2020 15 June 2021 7 3 0 4Nizar Mahrous 7 July 2021 16 November 2021 6 0 2 4Valeriu Tiţa 18 November 2021 1 February 2022 5 1 0 4Ghassan Maatouk 9 February 2022 1 June 2022 3 2 1 0Hussam Al Sayed 23 August 2022 2 February 2023 6 0 0 6Hector Cuper 2 February 2023 0 0 0 0Players EditCurrent squad Edit The following players were called up for the friendly matches against Oman on 23 and 30 December 2022 Information correct as of 30 December 2022 after the match against Oman No Pos Player Date of birth age Caps Goals Club1 GK Ahmad Madania 1990 01 01 1 January 1990 age 33 17 0 Tishreen1 GK Shaher Al Shaker 1993 04 01 1 April 1993 age 29 2 0 Al Ittihad1 GK Abdullatif Al Nassan 1993 01 30 30 January 1993 age 30 0 0 Al Jaish2 DF Ahmad Al Saleh 1989 05 20 20 May 1989 age 33 56 2 Al Jaish2 DF Amro Jenyat 1993 01 15 15 January 1993 age 30 40 1 Al Karamah2 DF Hussein Jwayed 1993 01 01 1 January 1993 age 30 36 0 Al Ittihad2 DF Youssef Al Hamwi 1997 02 01 1 February 1997 age 26 13 0 Al Ittihad2 DF Abdulrazzak Al Mohammad 1995 01 16 16 January 1995 age 28 8 0 Tishreen2 DF Karam Omran 1996 11 11 11 November 1996 age 26 4 0 Al Fotuwa2 DF Ahmad Al Shemali 1994 08 15 15 August 1994 age 28 3 0 Al Ittihad2 DF Hamza Al Kurdi 1995 02 26 26 February 1995 age 27 1 0 Jableh2 DF Al Laith Ali 2000 05 18 18 May 2000 age 22 0 0 Al Fotuwa2 DF Abdullah Jenyat 1996 01 18 18 January 1996 age 27 0 0 Al Karamah3 MF Ahmed Ashkar 1996 12 12 12 December 1996 age 26 26 1 Al Ittihad3 MF Mohamad Rihanieh 2001 01 01 1 January 2001 age 22 19 1 Hatta3 MF Mustafa Jneid 2000 01 11 11 January 2000 age 23 5 0 Hutteen3 MF Ahmad Al Dali 2002 03 21 21 March 2002 age 20 4 0 Tishreen3 MF Sobhi Shofan 1998 02 25 25 February 1998 age 24 4 0 Al Fotuwa3 MF Ayman Akil 1999 02 09 9 February 1999 age 24 3 0 Hutteen3 MF Mohamad Krouma 1996 09 01 1 September 1996 age 26 1 0 Al Wathba3 MF Khalil Ibrahim 1997 01 21 21 January 1997 age 26 0 0 Al Fotuwa4 FW Alaa Al Dali 1997 01 03 3 January 1997 age 26 15 2 Al Fotuwa4 FW Ali Beshmani 2000 01 14 14 January 2000 age 23 7 0 Al Zawraa4 FW Yassin Samia 1998 02 22 22 February 1998 age 24 4 0 Naft MissanRecent call ups Edit The following players have also been called up to the Syria squad within the last 12 months Pos Player Date of birth age Caps Goals Club Latest call upGK Taha Mosa 1987 05 24 24 May 1987 age 35 5 0 Al Fotuwa v Iraq 26 September 2022GK Ibrahim Alma 1991 10 18 18 October 1991 age 31 72 0 Jableh v Tajikistan 1 June 2022GK Hussain Rahal 1988 01 01 1 January 1988 age 35 0 0 Al Wathba v Tajikistan 1 June 2022GK Khaled Haj Othman 1987 05 01 1 May 1987 age 35 7 0 Qilwah v Iraq 29 March 2022DF Khaled Kurdaghli 1997 01 31 31 January 1997 age 26 19 0 Naft Al Wasat v Venezuela 20 November 2022DF Zakaria Hanan 1997 08 21 21 August 1997 age 25 1 0 Al Ittihad v Venezuela 20 November 2022DF Omar Midani 1994 01 26 26 January 1994 age 29 54 1 Al Nasr v Iraq 26 September 2022DF Saad Ahmad 1989 08 10 10 August 1989 age 33 11 0 Al Fotuwa v Iraq 26 September 2022DF Abdul Rahman Weiss 1998 06 14 14 June 1998 age 24 7 0 Athens Kallithea v Iraq 26 September 2022DF Belal Halbouni 1999 12 29 29 December 1999 age 23 1 0 1 FC Magdeburg v Iraq 26 September 2022DF Abdullah Al Shami 1994 03 02 2 March 1994 age 28 13 0 Al Fahaheel v Tajikistan 1 June 2022DF Youssef Mohammad 1999 06 26 26 June 1999 age 23 10 0 Dhaka Abahani v Tajikistan 1 June 2022 WDDF Moayad Ajan 1993 02 16 16 February 1993 age 29 62 1 East Riffa v Iraq 29 March 2022DF Muayad Al Khouli 1993 10 16 16 October 1993 age 29 10 0 Tishreen v Iraq 29 March 2022MF Thaer Krouma 1990 02 02 2 February 1990 age 33 26 0 Al Ain v Venezuela 20 November 2022MF Kamel Hmeisheh 1998 07 23 23 July 1998 age 24 25 0 Al Karkh v Venezuela 20 November 2022MF Kamel Kawaya 1998 06 06 6 June 1998 age 24 1 0 Al Manama v Venezuela 20 November 2022MF Hozan Osman 2003 05 16 16 May 2003 age 19 1 0 De Graafschap v Venezuela 20 November 2022MF Mahmoud Al Aswad 2003 09 14 14 September 2003 age 19 0 0 Al Karamah v Venezuela 20 November 2022MF Mustafa Sheikh Youssef 1993 09 29 29 September 1993 age 29 0 0 Al Ittihad v Venezuela 20 November 2022MF Mohammad Marmour 1995 01 04 4 January 1995 age 28 31 4 Al Manama v Belarus 17 November 2022MF Mohammad Al Hallak 1999 01 01 1 January 1999 age 24 12 0 Al Manama v Belarus 17 November 2022MF Mahmoud Al Mawas 1993 01 01 1 January 1993 age 30 85 15 Al Shorta v Iraq 26 September 2022MF Maher Daaboul 1993 12 04 4 December 1993 age 29 3 0 Al Fotuwa v Iraq 26 September 2022MF Hosam Aiesh 1995 04 14 14 April 1995 age 27 2 0 FC Seoul v Iraq 26 September 2022MF Ammar Ramadan 2001 01 05 5 January 2001 age 22 2 0 DAC Dunajska Streda v Iraq 26 September 2022MF Fahd Youssef 1987 05 15 15 May 1987 age 35 34 0 Al Shorta v Tajikistan 1 June 2022MF Mohammad Anz 1995 05 14 14 May 1995 age 27 23 1 Al Khaldiya v Tajikistan 1 June 2022MF Oliver Kass Kawo 2001 12 03 3 December 2001 age 21 6 1 Helsingor v Iraq 29 March 2022FW Mahmoud Al Baher 1994 01 03 3 January 1994 age 29 11 2 Jableh v Venezuela 20 November 2022FW Omar Al Somah 1989 03 28 28 March 1989 age 33 34 18 Al Arabi v Iraq 26 September 2022FW Mardik Mardikian 1992 03 14 14 March 1992 age 30 39 7 Al Hamriyah v Tajikistan 1 June 2022FW Nasouh Al Nakdali 1993 06 15 15 June 1993 age 29 15 0 Tishreen v Tajikistan 1 June 2022FW Molham Babouli 1993 01 02 2 January 1993 age 30 2 0 York United v Iraq 29 March 2022SUS Player suspended INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury RET Retired from the national team WD Player withdrew from the squad for non injury related reasons Previous squads Edit Asian Cup1980 Asian Cup squad 1984 Asian Cup squad 1988 Asian Cup squad 1996 Asian Cup squad 2011 Asian Cup squad 2019 Asian Cup squadPlayer records EditAs of 21 November 2022 92 Players in bold are still active with Syria Most capped players Edit Ali Diab is Syria s second most capped player with 97 caps Rank Player Caps Goals Career1 Maher Al Sayed 109 29 1999 20132 Ali Diab 97 4 2004 20133 Mosab Balhous 86 0 2006 20164 Mahmoud Al Mawas 85 15 2012 5 Raja Rafe 84 32 2002 20156 Tarek Jabban 83 5 1996 20077 Nizar Mahrous 75 12 1985 19938 George Khouri 73 8 1982 19899 Ibrahim Alma 72 0 2012 Firas Al Khatib 72 36 2001 2019Top goalscorers Edit Firas Al Khatib is Syria s all time record goalscorer with 36 goals Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career1 Firas Al Khatib 36 72 0 5 2001 20192 Raja Rafe 32 84 0 38 2006 20163 Maher Al Sayed 29 109 0 27 1999 20134 Said Bayazid 24 24 1 1997 20015 Zyad Chaabo 22 49 0 45 2001 20106 Omar Khribin 21 51 0 41 2012 present7 Omar Al Somah 17 34 0 55 2012 present8 Mohamed Al Zeno 15 44 0 34 2004 2011Mahmoud Al Mawas 15 85 0 18 2012 present10 Avedis Kavlakian 14 1953 1966Competitive record Edit Syrian national team before 2019 AFC Asian Cup match against Australia FIFA World Cup Edit FIFA World Cup record FIFA World Cup qualification recordYear Round Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA 1930 Did not enter Did not enter 1934 1938 1950 Withdrew 1 0 0 1 0 7 1954 Did not enter Did not enter 1958 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 1 2 1962 Withdrew Withdrew 1966 1970 Did not enter Did not enter 1974 Did not qualify 6 3 1 2 6 6 1978 Withdrew 4 1 0 3 2 6 1982 Did not qualify 4 0 0 4 2 7 1986 8 4 3 1 8 4 1990 4 2 1 1 7 5 1994 6 3 3 0 14 4 1998 5 2 1 2 27 5 2002 6 4 1 1 40 6 2006 6 2 2 2 7 7 2010 10 6 2 2 23 10 2014 Disqualified 2 0 0 2 0 6 2018 Did not qualify 20 9 5 6 36 22 2022 18 8 3 7 31 23 2026 TBD TBDTotal 0 22 102 44 23 35 205 120 Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot out AFC Asian Cup Edit Main article Syria at the AFC Asian Cup AFC Asian Cup record AFC Asian Cup qualificationYear Round Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA 1956 Not a AFC member Not a AFC member 1960 1964 1968 1972 Did not qualify 3 0 2 1 4 5 1976 Withdrew Withdrew 1980 Group stage 4 2 1 1 3 2 3 2 1 0 2 0 1984 4 1 1 2 3 5 6 3 0 3 9 9 1988 4 2 0 2 2 5 4 3 1 0 8 2 1992 Did not qualify 2 1 0 1 3 4 1996 Group stage 3 1 0 2 3 6 4 3 0 1 6 2 2000 Did not qualify 6 4 1 1 11 3 2004 6 2 1 3 16 10 2007 6 2 2 2 10 6 2011 Group stage 3 1 0 2 4 5 6 4 2 0 10 2 2015 Did not qualify 6 1 1 4 7 7 2019 Group stage 3 0 1 2 2 5 8 6 0 2 26 11 2023 Qualified 8 7 0 1 22 7 2027 To be determined To be determinedTotal Group stage 21 7 3 11 17 28 68 38 12 19 134 68 Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot out AFC Asian Cup historyYear Round Score Result1980Round 1 Syria 0 0 Iran DrawRound 1 Syria 1 0 Bangladesh WinRound 1 Syria 1 2 North Korea LossRound 1 Syria 1 0 China Win1984Round 1 Syria 1 1 Qatar DrawRound 1 Syria 0 1 Saudi Arabia LossRound 1 Syria 1 0 South Korea WinRound 1 Syria 1 3 Kuwait Loss1988Round 1 Syria 0 2 Saudi Arabia LossRound 1 Syria 0 3 China LossRound 1 Syria 1 0 Kuwait WinRound 1 Syria 1 0 Bahrain Win1996Round 1 Syria 1 2 Japan LossRound 1 Syria 0 3 China LossRound 1 Syria 2 1 Uzbekistan Win2011Round 1 Syria 2 1 Saudi Arabia WinRound 1 Syria 1 2 Japan LossRound 1 Syria 1 2 Jordan Loss2019Round 1 Syria 0 0 Palestine DrawRound 1 Syria 0 2 Jordan LossRound 1 Syria 2 3 Australia Loss Olympic Games Edit Olympic Games record Olympic Games qualification recordYear Result Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA 1900 to 1968 Did not enter 1972 Did not qualify 2 0 1 1 0 1 1976 Did not enter 1980 Round 1 3 0 1 2 0 8 4 2 0 2 3 1 1984 Did not qualify 6 2 1 3 6 10 1988 2 0 0 2 0 5 1992 to present See Syria national under 23 team See Syria national under 23 teamTotal 0 Titles 3 0 1 2 0 8 14 4 2 8 9 17 Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot out WAFF Championship Edit Balhous C Al SalihAl MasriJwayedAjanMobayedMidaniAl MawasJafalAl DouniAl Soma2012 WAFF Championship Final starting lineup on 20 December 2012 in Kuwait City Al Sadaqua Walsalam Stadium WAFF Championship recordYear Round Pld W D L GF GA 2000 Runners up 5 2 1 2 5 2 2002 Fourth place 4 1 1 2 5 6 2004 Runners up 4 1 1 2 6 13 2007 Semi finals 3 2 0 1 2 3 2008 Semi finals 3 1 1 1 2 3 2010 Group stage 2 0 1 1 2 3 2012 Champions 4 2 2 0 5 3 2014 Withdrew 2019 Group stage 4 0 2 2 5 7 2023 QualifiedTotal 1 Title 29 9 9 11 32 40 Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot out FIFA Arab Cup Edit FIFA Arab Cup recordYear Round Pld W D L GF GA 1963 Runners up 4 3 0 1 9 4 1964 Did not enter 1966 Runners up 5 3 1 1 9 4 1985 Did not enter 1988 Runners up 6 2 2 2 5 5 1992 Fourth place 4 0 3 1 2 3 1998 Group stage 2 0 0 2 1 6 2002 Group stage 4 2 0 2 8 6 2012 Did not enter 2021 Group stage 3 1 0 2 4 4Total 0 Titles 28 11 6 11 38 32 Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot out Palestine Cup of Nations Edit Main article Palestine Cup of Nations Palestine Cup of Nations recordYear Round Pld W D L GF GA 1972 Fourth place 6 4 0 2 11 10 1973 Runners up 6 3 1 2 16 11 1975 Fourth place 4 1 0 3 3 8Total 0 Titles 16 8 1 7 30 29Pan Arab Games Edit a, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library, article, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games. |
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