# 2018 AFC U-19 Championship qualification

The 2018 AFC U-19 Championship qualification was an international men's under-19 football competition to decide the participating teams for the 2018 AFC U-19 Championship.
A total of 16 teams qualified to play in the final tournament, including Indonesia who qualified automatically as hosts.

## Draw

Of the 47 AFC member associations, a total of 43 teams entered the competition. The final tournament hosts Indonesia also entered in qualification despite having automatically qualified for the final tournament (they had not been confirmed as hosts at the time of the qualification draw).
The draw was held on 21 April 2017, 16:00 MYT (UTC+8), at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The 43 teams were drawn into ten groups: three groups of five teams and seven groups of four teams. For the draw, teams were divided into two zones:
* West: 22 teams from West Asia, Central Asia and South Asia, to be drawn into five groups: two groups of five teams and three groups of four teams (Groups A–E).
* East: 21 teams from ASEAN and East Asia, to be drawn into five groups: one group of five teams and four groups of four teams (Groups F–J).
The teams were seeded in each zone according to their performance in the 2016 AFC U-19 Championship final tournament and qualification (overall ranking shown in parentheses; NR stands for non-ranked teams). The following restrictions were also applied:
* The eight teams which indicated their intention to serve as qualification group hosts prior to the draw were drawn into separate groups.
| | Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 | Pot 5 |
| West Zone | Saudi Arabia (2) (H) Iran (3) (H) Iraq (5) Bahrain (6) Uzbekistan (7) | Tajikistan (8) (H) United Arab Emirates (10) Qatar (12) (H) Yemen (14) Palestine (17) | Oman (18) Bangladesh (20) Lebanon (21) Jordan (22) (H)* Turkmenistan (23) | Sri Lanka (24) Afghanistan (26) (W) Nepal (32) Syria (33) India (34) | Kyrgyzstan (35) (H) Maldives (38) |
| East Zone | Japan (1) Vietnam (4) South Korea (9) (H) Australia (11) (H)* China (13) | Thailand (15) North Korea (16) Myanmar (19) Laos (25) Malaysia (27) | Timor-Leste (28) Singapore (29) Hong Kong (30) Chinese Taipei (31) (H)* Philippines (36) | Macau (37) Brunei (39) Northern Mariana Islands (40) (W) | Cambodia (NR) (H) Indonesia (NR) (Q) Mongolia (NR) (H) |

### Notes

* Teams in bold qualified for the final tournament.
* (H): Qualification group hosts (* Jordan replaced Iran as group hosts, Chinese Taipei chosen as group hosts after the draw, remaining group hosted at neutral venue, after Australia chosen as group hosts after the draw but later replaced)
* (Q): Final tournament hosts, automatically qualified regardless of qualification results
* (W): Withdrew after draw

## Player eligibility

Players born on or after 1 January 1999 are eligible to compete in the tournament.

## Format

In each group, teams play each other once at a centralised venue. The ten group winners and the five best runners-up qualify for the final tournament. If the final tournament hosts Indonesia win their group or are among the five best runners-up, the sixth best runner-up also qualifies for the final tournament.

### Tiebreakers

Teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings (Regulations Article 9.3):
* Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
* Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
* Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
* If more than two teams are tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams are still tied, all head-to-head criteria above are reapplied exclusively to this subset of teams;
* Goal difference in all group matches;
* Goals scored in all group matches;
* Penalty shoot-out if only two teams are tied and they met in the last round of the group;
* Disciplinary points (yellow card = 1 point, red card as a result of two yellow cards = 3 points, direct red card = 3 points, yellow card followed by direct red card = 4 points);
* Drawing of lots.

## Groups

The matches were played between 24 October – 8 November 2017.

### Group A

* All matches were held in Kyrgyzstan.
* Times listed are UTC+6.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | United Arab Emirates | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 3 | +7 | 9 | Final tournament |
| 2 | Oman | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 6 | +4 | 7 | |
| 3 | Bahrain | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 7 | |
| 4 | Kyrgyzstan (H) | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 8 | −3 | 6 | |
| 5 | Nepal | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 12 | −12 | 0 | |

### Group B

* All matches were held in Tajikistan.
* Times listed are UTC+5.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Tajikistan (H) | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 0 | +12 | 10 | Final tournament |
| 2 | Uzbekistan | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 17 | 1 | +16 | 9 | |
| 3 | Bangladesh | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 7 | |
| 4 | Maldives | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 14 | −12 | 1 | |
| 5 | Sri Lanka | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 22 | −20 | 1 | |

### Group C

* All matches were held in Qatar.
* Times listed are UTC+3.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Qatar (H) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 4 | Final tournament |
| 2 | Iraq | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 4 | Final tournament |
| 3 | Lebanon | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 0 | |
| 4 | Afghanistan | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Withdrew |
* 1 2 Ranked by penalties shoot-out (Qatar: 3 goals; Iraq: 2 goals).

### Group D

* All matches were held in Saudi Arabia.
* Times listed are UTC+3.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Saudi Arabia (H) | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | +7 | 9 | Final tournament |
| 2 | Yemen | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 4 | |
| 3 | India | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | −2 | 4 | |
| 4 | Turkmenistan | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | −7 | 0 | |

### Group E

* All matches were held in Jordan; matches were due to be held in Iran, but were moved.
* Times listed are UTC+2.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Jordan (H) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 7 | Final tournament |
| 2 | Iran | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 5 | |
| 3 | Syria | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | |
| 4 | Palestine | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 9 | −7 | 0 | |

### Group F

* All matches were held in South Korea.
* Times listed are UTC+9.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | South Korea (H) | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 0 | +22 | 12 | Final tournament |
| 2 | Malaysia | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 5 | +3 | 9 | Final tournament |
| 3 | Indonesia | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 8 | +3 | 6 | Final tournament |
| 4 | Timor-Leste | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 14 | −11 | 1 | |
| 5 | Brunei | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 19 | −17 | 1 | |
* ↑ Indonesia, as final tournament hosts, automatically qualified regardless of qualification results.

### Group G

* All matches were held in Cambodia.
* Times listed are UTC+7.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | China | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | +8 | 9 | Final tournament |
| 2 | Cambodia (H) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 | |
| 3 | Myanmar | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 4 | +4 | 3 | |
| 4 | Philippines | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 12 | −12 | 1 | |

### Group H

* All matches were held in Chinese Taipei.
* Times listed are UTC+8.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Vietnam | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | +7 | 9 | Final tournament |
| 2 | Chinese Taipei (H) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 6 | Final tournament |
| 3 | Macau | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 3 | |
| 4 | Laos | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | −7 | 0 | |

### Group I

* All matches were held in Mongolia.
* Times listed are UTC+8.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Japan | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 1 | +15 | 9 | Final tournament |
| 2 | Thailand | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 6 | Final tournament |
| 3 | Mongolia (H) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 14 | −8 | 3 | |
| 4 | Singapore | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 14 | −11 | 0 | |

### Group J

* All matches were held in Vietnam (neutral venue host); matches were due to be held in Australia, but were moved after Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop refused the North Korean team entry into Australia.
* Times listed are UTC+7.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Australia | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | +6 | 6 | Final tournament |
| 2 | North Korea | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 3 | Final tournament |
| 3 | Hong Kong | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 8 | −7 | 0 | |
| 4 | Northern Mariana Islands | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Withdrew |

## Ranking of second-placed teams

Due to groups having different number of teams and the withdrawal of Afghanistan and Northern Mariana Islands from Groups C and J, the results against the fifth and fourth-placed teams in five and four-team groups are not considered for this ranking.
| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | C | Iraq | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 4 | Final tournament |
| 2 | I | Thailand | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 | +2 | 3 | Final tournament |
| 3 | J | North Korea | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 3 | Final tournament |
| 4 | H | Chinese Taipei | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 3 | Final tournament |
| 5 | F | Malaysia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3 | Final tournament |
| 6 | G | Cambodia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | |
| 7 | B | Uzbekistan | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | |
| 8 | E | Iran | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
| 9 | D | Yemen | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 1 | |
| 10 | A | Oman | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | −4 | 1 | |

## Qualified teams

The following 16 teams qualified for the final tournament.
| Team | Qualified as | Qualified on | Previous appearances in AFC U-19 Championship |
| Indonesia | Hosts | 25 July 2017 | 16 (1960, 1961, 1962, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1986, 1990, 1994, 2004, 2014) |
| United Arab Emirates | Group A winners | 6 November 2017 | 13 (1982, 1985, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| Tajikistan | Group B winners | 8 November 2017 | 3 (2006, 2008, 2016) |
| Qatar | Group C winners | 8 November 2017 | 13 (1980, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2002, 2004, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| Saudi Arabia | Group D winners | 8 November 2017 | 13 (1973, 1977, 1978, 1985, 1986, 1992, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2016) |
| Jordan | Group E winners | 8 November 2017 | 6 (1977, 1978, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012) |
| South Korea | Group F winners | 8 November 2017 | 37 (1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| China | Group G winners | 28 October 2017 | 17 (1975, 1976, 1978, 1982, 1985, 1988, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| Vietnam | Group H winners | 6 November 2017 | 18 (1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1974, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| Japan | Group I winners | 8 November 2017 | 36 (1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| Australia | Group J winners | 8 November 2017 | 6 (2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| Iraq | 1st best runners-up | 8 November 2017 | 16 (1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1982, 1988, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| Thailand | 2nd best runners-up | 8 November 2017 | 32 (1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1980, 1985, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| North Korea | 3rd best runners-up | 8 November 2017 | 12 (1975, 1976, 1978, 1986, 1988, 1990, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016) |
| Chinese Taipei | 4th best runners-up | 8 November 2017 | 9 (1961, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974) |
| Malaysia | 5th best runners-up | 8 November 2017 | 22 (1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 2004, 2006) |
    $^1$ Bold indicates champions for that year. Italic indicates hosts for that year.
    $^2$ As South Vietnam

## Goalscorers

There were 234 goals scored in 66 matches, for an average of 3.55 goals per match.
6 goals
* Cho Young-wook
5 goals
* Sittichok Paso
4 goals
* Liu Ruofan
* Egy Maulana
* Firas al-Buraikan
* Jakhongir Abdusalomov
* Islom Kenjabaev
3 goals
* Moudi Najjar
* Ali Hassan Meftah
* Mahbubur Rahman
* Erpan Ezimjan
* Kyosuke Tagawa
* Hadi Fayyadh
* Jansyerik Maratkhan
* Myat Kaung Khant
* Kim Hwi-hwang
* Arshad Al-Alawi
* Um Won-sang
* Abdulhadi Shalha
* Athamjon Abdulloev
* Khalfan Hassan
2 goals
* Ramy Najjarine
* Sin Kakada
* Wang Chung-yu
* Hanis Saghara Putra
* Saddil Ramdani
* Hossein Nokhodkar
* Hiroki Ito
* Yuta Goke
* Riku Tanaka
* Mohammad Al-Zu'bi
* Lwin Moe Aung
* Soe Moe Kyaw
* Faisal Al-Harthi
* Mohammed Al-Qaidi
* Hashim Ali
* Danial Syafiq
* Lee Kang-in
* Lee Sang-jun
* Lim Jae-hyeok
* Shervoni Mabatshoev
* Shahrom Samiev
* Danilson Araujo
* Khalid Al-Balochi
* Ahmed Fawzi
* Sanjar Zokirov
* Lê Minh Bình
* Trương Tiến Anh
1 goal
* Denis Genreau
* Fabian Monge
* Ebrahim Al-Khatal
* Ahmed Al-Sherooqi
* Sayed Mohamed Shubbar
* Mohamed Al-Thawadi
* Abdul Hariz Herman
* Hanif Adnan
* Bishwanath Ghosh
* Riyadul Hasan
* San Kimheng
* Tao Qianglong
* Chin Wen-yen
* Fong Shao-Chi
* Tu Shao-chieh
* Chu Wai Kwan
* Abhishek Halder
* Amarjit Singh Kiyam
* Edmund Lalrindika
* Muhammad Iqbal
* Rafli Mursalim
* Mohammad Bagheri
* Alireza Ghaderi
* Mohammad Khodabandelou
* Ibrahim Bayesh
* Ali Raad Kadhim
* Mohammed Dawood Yaseen
* Mizuki Ando
* Taichi Hara
* Takumu Kawamura
* Yuta Nakamura
* Hiroto Taniguchi
* Ibrahim Sadeh
* Omar Al-Zebdieh
* Gulzhigit Borubaev
* Dastan Karypbekov
* Erzhan Nurbekov
* Alimardon Shukurov
* Temirbolot Tapaev
* Iury Rogério Sousa
* Akhyar Rashid
* Akif Syahiran
* Shivan Pillay
* Zafuan Azeman
* Zhafir Yusoff
* Musannif Mohamed
* Rishwan Ismail
* Bat-Orgil Gerelt-Od
* Bilguun Damdindorj
* Ganbayar Ganbold
* Hein Htet Aung
* Kim Pom-hyok
* Paek Chung-song
* Yun Min
* Saud Al-Habsi
* Ahmed Jamil Al-Oraimi
* Thamir Al-Zaabi
* Mohammed Hammo
* Ahmed Irshaid
* Abdullah Murisi
* Hamed Al-Ghamdi
* Abdullah Al-Hamdan
* Mohammed Mali
* Abdulaziz Al-Shahrani
* Saifullah Akbar
* Jeon Se-jin
* Jeong Ho-jin
* Kim Chan
* Kim Hyun-woo
* Kim Jung-min
* Lee Jae-ik
* Oh Se-hun
* Shabeer Razooniya
* Nethma Malshan
* Mohamad Al-Hallak
* Ammar Ramadan
* Daler Yodgorov
* Ehson Panjshanbe
* Sheriddin Boboev
* Umarjon Sharipov
* Chokanan Saima-in
* Ekanit Panya
* Kritsada Nontharat
* Sakunchai Saengthopho
* Filomeno Junior Da Costa
* Ali Saleh
* Rashid Mubarak
* Majed Rashed
* Bobur Askarov
* Sukhrob Izzatov
* Abbosbek Jumakulov
* Akmal Mozgovoy
* Jasur Rakhimov
* Dilshod Saitov
* Dụng Quang Nho
* Nguyễn Hồng Sơn
* Nguyễn Lý Nam Cung
* Trần Bảo Toàn
* Saqr Al-Harbi
* Mohammed Al-Huthaifi
* Omar Al-Khader
* Fadi Mohammed Othman
1 own goal
* Mohamed Atikuzzaman (against Uzbekistan)
* Hariz Herman (against Indonesia)
* Tsendjav Dagvasuren (against Japan)
* Unur-Erdene Erdenechimeg (against Japan)
* Dilshod Saitov (against Tajikistan)