# 2023 WAFF U-23 Championship

The 2023 WAFF U-23 Championship was the fourth edition of the WAFF U-23 Championship, the international age-restricted football championship organized by the West Asian Football Federation for the men's under-23 national teams of West Asia. Nine teams competed in the tournament, with one team being invited.
Saudi Arabia, the defending champions, did not take part in the tournament. Iraq won their first title after defeating Iran 5–4 on penalties (1–1 after extra time) in the final.

## Teams

Nine teams took part in the competition.
| Team | Appearance | Previous best performance |
| Iran | 2nd | Winners (2015) |
| Iraq | 2nd | Semi-finals (2021) |
| Jordan | 3rd | Winners (2021) |
| Lebanon | 3rd | Group stage (2021, 2022) |
| Oman | 4th | Fourth place (2022) |
| Palestine | 3rd | Group stage (2015, 2021) |
| Syria | 4th | Runners-up (2015) |
| United Arab Emirates | 3rd | Group stage (2015, 2021) |
| Yemen | 3rd | Fourth place (2015) |

### Draw

The draw for the group stage took place on Thursday 25 May 2023 in Muscat, Oman at 15:00 UTC+3.
Group A :
| Group A PosTeam A1 Iraq A2 United Arab Emirates A3 Jordan | Group B PosTeam B1 Palestine B2 Iran B3 Syria | Group C PosTeam C1 Lebanon C2 Yemen C3 Oman |

### Squads

Each team had to register a squad of 25 players, three of whom must be goalkeepers.

## Match officials

The following referees and assistant referees were appointed for the tournament.

## Venues

| Baghdad | Karbala |
| Al-Madina Stadium | Karbala Stadium |
| Capacity: 30,000 | Capacity: 30,000 |
| BaghdadKarbala ||

## Group stage
### Group A

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Iraq (H) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 4 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Jordan | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 4 | Knockout stage |
| 3 | United Arab Emirates | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 0 | |

### Group B

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Iran | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 4 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Palestine | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 4 | |
| 3 | Syria | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 0 | |

### Group C

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Oman | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 6 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Yemen | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 3 | |
| 3 | Lebanon | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 0 | |

### Ranking of Runners-ups

The best-placed runner-up will qualify for the knockout stage.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Jordan | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 4 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Palestine | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 4 | |
| 3 | Yemen | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 3 | |

## Knockout stage

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 18 June – Baghdad | 18 June – Baghdad |
| Iran | 0 (4) |
| Iran | 0 (4) | 20 June – Baghdad | 20 June – Baghdad |
| Jordan | 0 (3) | 20 June – Baghdad | 20 June – Baghdad |
| Jordan | 0 (3) | Iran | 1 (4) |
| 18 June – Baghdad | 18 June – Baghdad | | Iran | 1 (4) |
| 18 June – Baghdad | 18 June – Baghdad | Iraq | 1 (5) |
| Iraq | 1 | Iraq | 1 (5) |
| Oman | 0 | | |

### Final
#### Winners

* 2023 WAFF U-23 Championship champion
* Iraq First title

## Awards

The following awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament:

### Awards
#### Player of the Tournament

Muntadher Mohammed

#### Golden Boot

Hussein Abdullah (3 goals)

#### Golden Glove

Kumel Al-Rekabe

## Final standing

| Rank | Team |
| | Iraq |
| | Iran |
| | Oman |
| 4 | Jordan |
| 5 | Palestine |
| 6 | Yemen |
| 7 | Lebanon |
| 8 | Syria |
| 9 | United Arab Emirates |

## Goalscorers

There have been 27 goals scored in 12 matches, for an average of 2.25 goals per match.
3 goals
* Hussein Abdullah
2 goals
* Yasin Salmani
* Blnd Hassan
* Mohammad Abualnadi
1 goal
* Aria Barzegar
* Hossein Goudarzi
* Ahmad Shariatzadeh
* Ali Al-Mosawe
* Faisal Abu Shanab
* Mohamad Omar Sadek
* Salem Al-Abdulsalam
* Khalid Al-Gaithiri
* Osama Al-Hadabi
* Nasser Al-Rawahi
* Gibrán Haj Yousef
* Zaid Qunbar
* Mahmoud Al Aswad
* Gassem Al-Sharafi
* Hamza Mahrous
1 own goal
* Mohammad Abualnadi (against United Arab Emirates)
* Nasser Al-Rawahi (against Iraq)
* Nawaf Dhawi (against Jordan)

## Broadcasting rights

The following channels have been given broadcasting rights to broadcast the tournament.
| Territory | Rights holder(s) |
| Iraq | Al Iraqiya Alrabiaa Network Television |
| United Arab Emirates | AD Sports Dubai Sports |
| Jordan | Jordan Sports TV |
| Yemen | Al-Saeeda |