Agony of Doha
Encyclopedia
The Agony of Doha is a term used by fans of the Japanese national football team
to refer to the qualification
match for their 1994 FIFA World Cup
match with Iraq
, held in Doha
, Qatar
on October 28, 1993.
A win against Iraq would have earned Japan
its first appearance at the World Cup finals
as one of the two representatives from the Asian Football Confederation
. Japan led Iraq 2-1 going into the final minute, but a late Iraqi goal ended the match in a draw. Instead, the World Cup finals spot went to arch-rival South Korea, which beat North Korea 3-0 in its final qualifying match. South Korea was even with Japan on points, but won the tie-breaker with the goal difference
advantage. Fans in South Korea
refer to the team's qualification as "the Miracle of Doha" (도하의 기적/도하의 奇跡 or Doha ui Gijeok.)
The failure to qualify and the dramatic way in which it happened caused great disappointment for Japanese fans. Football
had become wildly popular in Japan with the launch of the professional J. League
earlier that year and the team had never been this close to qualifying for the World Cup. Although Japan has since qualified for four consecutive World Cup finals, team members from this match are still known as and remains a rallying cry for fans.
. The six finalists played each other in Doha, Qatar in a round robin format of matches held between October 15 and October 28, 1993. After four rounds of matches and with one match remaining for each team, the standings looked as follows.
(Win = 2 points, draw = 1 point, loss = 0 point; tie broken by goal difference)
In the 4th round of matches, Japan defeated South Korea 1-0 taking first place in the standings going into the final match. Although just one point separated the 1st and 5th spots and only North Korea had been eliminated, Japan would have qualified for the finals with a win regardless of any other results. Japan still would have qualified with a draw as long as either South Korea or Saudi Arabia failed to win its last match and Iran did not defeat Saudi Arabia by more than four goals.
Japan took the lead first on a first half goal by Kazuyoshi Miura
, but Iraq equalized just prior to half time. Japan again took the lead with a goal from Masashi Nakayama
. The 2-1 score stood as the match approached the 90th minute.
The matches at the other venues had ended earlier, with South Korea beating North Korea 3-0 and Saudi Arabia beating Iran 4-3. This meant Japan would have to hold onto the score in order to qualify for the World Cup.
However, Japan gave the ball up to Iraq, and just after the match entered stoppage time, Jaffar Omran Salman, Iraqi player, got a goal in with a corner kick
, tying the score at 2-2. The referee blew the final whistle moments after this, eliminating both teams.
style="font-size: 90%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center">
Iraq:
|
GK
21
Ibrahim Salim Saad
DF
14
Salim Hussein
DF
4
Swadi Radhi
DF
2
Samir Kadhim Hassan
DF
3
Saad Abdul
MF
22
Bassam Raouf Hamed
MF
12
Mohammed Jassim
MF
7
Naem Saddam Minshed
FW
17
Laith Hussein
FW
9
Ala Kadhim
FW
8
Ahmad Radhi
(c)
Substitutes:
16
Jaffar Omran Salman
5
Abdul Jabar Hanoon
Manager:
Ammo Baba
Saudi Arabia took first place with its 4-3 victory over Iran. Japan and South Korea were even on points, but South Korea held the goal difference advantage after the 3-goal victory over North Korea, and won the tiebreaker.
Manager Marius Johan Ooft was fired weeks after the match, and the elimination from the tournament effectively ended World Cup aspirations for the majority of the team, most notably the midfield general Ruy Ramos
. Only two Japanese players who appeared in the match, Nakayama and Masami Ihara, would go on to appear in Japan's 1998 FIFA World Cup
squad.
However, the disheartening result would serve as an inspiration in future World Cup qualification campaigns, and to this day, Doha no higeki is invoked by the Japanese media and fans.
In 1997, Japan and Iran finished 2nd in their respective qualifying groups for the 1998 FIFA World Cup
, and met in the 3rd place match on November 16, 1997 in Johor Bahru
, Malaysia. The match would decide the 3rd and last automatic qualifier from Asia and the loser would face Australia in a two-legged playoff. Unlike the match four years ago, Japan fell behind in the second half, but scored a late equalizer and won 3-2 on a golden goal
in extra time, earning the nation its first trip to the World Cup. This match was tagged in reference to the Agony of Doha.
On June 8, 2005, Japan beat North Korea 2-0 to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup
. Although this match was scheduled as a home match for North Korea, it was moved to Bangkok
, Thailand
as punishment for crowd violence in a previous match held in Pyongyang
, and was played in an empty stadium.
Japan qualified for the 2002 FIFA World Cup
automatically as co-hosts.
Japan national football team
The Japan national football team represents Japan in association football and is operated by the Japan Football Association, the governing body for association football in Japan...
to refer to the qualification
1994 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)
Listed below are the dates and results for the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the Asian zone . For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification....
match for their 1994 FIFA World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...
match with Iraq
Iraq national football team
The Iraqi national football team represents Iraq in international football and is controlled by the Iraq Football Association. They won the 2007 Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup tournament.-The Golden Generation:...
, held in Doha
Doha
Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar...
, Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
on October 28, 1993.
A win against Iraq would have earned Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
its first appearance at the World Cup finals
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
as one of the two representatives from the Asian Football Confederation
Asian Football Confederation
The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football in Asia. It has 46 member countries, mostly located on the Asian continent. However, due to the disputed boundary of Europe and Asia, nations such as Russia and Turkey which are located mostly in geographic Asia are...
. Japan led Iraq 2-1 going into the final minute, but a late Iraqi goal ended the match in a draw. Instead, the World Cup finals spot went to arch-rival South Korea, which beat North Korea 3-0 in its final qualifying match. South Korea was even with Japan on points, but won the tie-breaker with the goal difference
Goal difference
In sports such as ice hockey and association football, goal difference is often the first tiebreaker used to rank teams which finish a league competition with an equal number of points....
advantage. Fans in South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
refer to the team's qualification as "the Miracle of Doha" (도하의 기적/도하의 奇跡 or Doha ui Gijeok.)
The failure to qualify and the dramatic way in which it happened caused great disappointment for Japanese fans. Football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
had become wildly popular in Japan with the launch of the professional J. League
J. League
The or is the top division of and is the top professional association football league in Japan. It is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football and the only league given top class 'A' ranking by the AFC. Currently, J. League Division 1 is the first level of the Japanese...
earlier that year and the team had never been this close to qualifying for the World Cup. Although Japan has since qualified for four consecutive World Cup finals, team members from this match are still known as and remains a rallying cry for fans.
Leading up to the match
Six nations (Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, and North Korea) competed in the final round of Asian zone qualifying for two places in the 1994 World Cup finals in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The six finalists played each other in Doha, Qatar in a round robin format of matches held between October 15 and October 28, 1993. After four rounds of matches and with one match remaining for each team, the standings looked as follows.
| Team | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 3 | |
| 5 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 1 | |
| 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 2 | |
| 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | |
| 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 7 | ||
| 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 9 | ||
(Win = 2 points, draw = 1 point, loss = 0 point; tie broken by goal difference)
In the 4th round of matches, Japan defeated South Korea 1-0 taking first place in the standings going into the final match. Although just one point separated the 1st and 5th spots and only North Korea had been eliminated, Japan would have qualified for the finals with a win regardless of any other results. Japan still would have qualified with a draw as long as either South Korea or Saudi Arabia failed to win its last match and Iran did not defeat Saudi Arabia by more than four goals.
Final match
The match was held on October 28, 1993 simultaneously with the other 5th round matches, South Korea versus North Korea and Saudi Arabia versus Iran, held in other venues in Doha.Japan took the lead first on a first half goal by Kazuyoshi Miura
Kazuyoshi Miura
----Kazuyoshi Miura , often known simply as Kazu, is a Japanese football striker. He has played for the Japanese national team and was the first Japanese recipient of the Asian Player of the Year award in 1993, an award presented annually by the Asian Football Confederation. He is currently with...
, but Iraq equalized just prior to half time. Japan again took the lead with a goal from Masashi Nakayama
Masashi Nakayama
is a professional footballer currently playing for Consadole Sapporo of the J. League Division 2, the second-tier professional football league in Japan. Born in Shizuoka, Gon Nakayama attended Fujieda Higashi High School and Tsukuba University before he joined Jubilo Iwata of the Japan Football...
. The 2-1 score stood as the match approached the 90th minute.
The matches at the other venues had ended earlier, with South Korea beating North Korea 3-0 and Saudi Arabia beating Iran 4-3. This meant Japan would have to hold onto the score in order to qualify for the World Cup.
However, Japan gave the ball up to Iraq, and just after the match entered stoppage time, Jaffar Omran Salman, Iraqi player, got a goal in with a corner kick
Corner kick
A corner kick is a method of restarting play in a game of association football. It was first devised in Sheffield under the Sheffield Rules 1867...
, tying the score at 2-2. The referee blew the final whistle moments after this, eliminating both teams.
Match details
| style="font-size: 90%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> | Japan: | |||
| GK | 1 | Shigetatsu Matsunaga Shigetatsu Matsunaga is a retired Japanese football goalkeeper and a goalkeeping coach.-Career:He was educated at and played for Hamana High School and Aichi Gakuin University. After graduating from the university, he joined JSL side Nissan Motor F.C..... |
||
| LB | 3 | Toshinobu Katsuya Toshinobu Katsuya is a former Japanese football player. He was a defender.-Career:He was educated at and played for Shimabara Commerce High School and Osaka University of Commerce. After graduating in 1984, he joined Japan Soccer League side Honda Motor F.C. but moved to fellow JSL side Nissan Motor F.C. in 1991... |
||
| RB | 4 | Takumi Horiike Takumi Horiike is a former Japanese football player. He was a defender.-Club:He was educated at and played for Shimizu Higashi High School. He won the national high school championship with his teammates including Katsumi Oenoki and Kenta Hasegawa... |
||
| CB | 5 | Tetsuji Hashiratani Tetsuji Hashiratani is a retired Japanese football player. He was a defender and a defensive midfielder.-Playing career:He was educated at and played for Kyoto Commercial High School and Kokushikan University. He joined Japan Soccer League side Nissan Motor in 1987. He moved to Verdy Kawasaki in 1992 when professional... (c) |
||
| CB | 7 | Masami Ihara | ||
| MF | 10 | Ruy Ramos Ruy Ramos , formerly Ruy Gonçalves Ramos Sobrinho , is a Brazilian-born football player, who became a naturalized Japanese citizen in 1989. He was one of the first foreign players in Japanese professional soccer, joining Yomiuri in 1977 at the age of 20... |
||
| MF | 15 | Mitsunori Yoshida Mitsunori Yoshida is a retired Japanese football player. He was a midfielder.-Career:After graduating from Kariya Industrial High School, he joined Japan Soccer League side Yamaha F.C. in 1980. He never moved to any other club and retired as an Iwata player after the 1995 season... |
||
| MF | 17 | Hajime Moriyasu Hajime Moriyasu is a retired Japanese football player. He was a defensive midfielder. He is now a coach at Albirex Niigata.-Club:Moriyasu was educated at and played for Nagasaki Nihon Daigaku Gakuen High School. After finishing his school, he joined Japan Soccer League side Mazda in 1987. New manager Hans Ooft... |
||
| FW | 11 | Kazuyoshi Miura Kazuyoshi Miura ----Kazuyoshi Miura , often known simply as Kazu, is a Japanese football striker. He has played for the Japanese national team and was the first Japanese recipient of the Asian Player of the Year award in 1993, an award presented annually by the Asian Football Confederation. He is currently with... |
||
| FW | 12 | Kenta Hasegawa Kenta Hasegawa is a former Japanese international football player. He was a right-footed forward. He managed J. League Division 1 side Shimizu S-Pulse for 6 seasons between 2005 and 2010.-Club:... |
||
| FW | 16 | Masashi Nakayama Masashi Nakayama is a professional footballer currently playing for Consadole Sapporo of the J. League Division 2, the second-tier professional football league in Japan. Born in Shizuoka, Gon Nakayama attended Fujieda Higashi High School and Tsukuba University before he joined Jubilo Iwata of the Japan Football... |
||
| Substitutes: | ||||
| 8 | Masahiro Fukuda Masahiro Fukuda is a former Japanese football player. He was a forward but sometimes played in the midfield.-Club:After studying at and playing for Sagami Institute of Technology High School and Chuo University, he joined Mitsubishi Motors in 1989 and started to play for their football club that played in the... |
|||
| 9 | Nobuhiro Takeda Nobuhiro Takeda is a former Japanese football player. He was a forward and known as a superb opportunistic goal-scorer, making most of his quick thinking and canny positioning. He currently works at Nippon Television and belongs to an entertainment agency Horipro as a sportscaster -Club:He was educated at and... |
|||
| Manager: | ||||
 Hans OoftHans Ooft Marius Johan Ooft is a Dutch football manager who is the first foreigner to coach Japan national football team. Under Ooft, Japan won AFC Asian Cup for the first time in 1992.-Honors:*AFC Asian Cup Champions - 1992*J. League Cup Champions - 2003... |
||||
Ibrahim Salim Saad
Ibrahim Salim Saad is an Iraqi international football goalkeeper.- Club career :In the 1990s he was playing in Lebanon, before returning to Iraq where he played first in Salahaddin FC and, after one season, moved to Al-Talaba...
Ahmad Radhi
Ahmad Radhi Amaiesh Al-Salihi is a former Iraqi football player and a current politician. Widely regarded as Iraq's best player of all-time, Radhi scored the only Iraqi goal in the 1986 FIFA World Cup against Belgium...
(c)
Ammo BabaAmmo Baba
Emmanuel Baba Dawud better known as Ammo Baba , was a former Iraqi and ethnic Assyrian international football player and coach of the Iraq national football team...
Aftermath
After the final round of matches, the standings looked as follows:| Team | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 2 | |
| 6 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 4 | 5 | |
| 6 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 3 | |
| 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 9 | 0 | |
| 4 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 11 | ||
| 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 12 | ||
Saudi Arabia took first place with its 4-3 victory over Iran. Japan and South Korea were even on points, but South Korea held the goal difference advantage after the 3-goal victory over North Korea, and won the tiebreaker.
Manager Marius Johan Ooft was fired weeks after the match, and the elimination from the tournament effectively ended World Cup aspirations for the majority of the team, most notably the midfield general Ruy Ramos
Ruy Ramos
, formerly Ruy Gonçalves Ramos Sobrinho , is a Brazilian-born football player, who became a naturalized Japanese citizen in 1989. He was one of the first foreign players in Japanese professional soccer, joining Yomiuri in 1977 at the age of 20...
. Only two Japanese players who appeared in the match, Nakayama and Masami Ihara, would go on to appear in Japan's 1998 FIFA World Cup
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 16th FIFA World Cup, was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. France was chosen as host nation by FIFA on 2 July 1992. The tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the final...
squad.
However, the disheartening result would serve as an inspiration in future World Cup qualification campaigns, and to this day, Doha no higeki is invoked by the Japanese media and fans.
Japan in neutral site qualifiers
Beginning with qualifiers for the 1998 World Cup, AFC has used home-and-away round robin format for its final qualifying round, instead of the single-venue format used in 1993. However, in each of the subsequent World Cup qualifying campaigns, Japan has determined its World Cup fate in neutral site matches.In 1997, Japan and Iran finished 2nd in their respective qualifying groups for the 1998 FIFA World Cup
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 16th FIFA World Cup, was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. France was chosen as host nation by FIFA on 2 July 1992. The tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the final...
, and met in the 3rd place match on November 16, 1997 in Johor Bahru
Johor Bahru
Johor Bahru is the capital city of Johor in southern Malaysia. Johor Bahru is the southernmost city of the Eurasian mainland...
, Malaysia. The match would decide the 3rd and last automatic qualifier from Asia and the loser would face Australia in a two-legged playoff. Unlike the match four years ago, Japan fell behind in the second half, but scored a late equalizer and won 3-2 on a golden goal
Golden goal
The golden goal is a method used in association football, field hockey, ice hockey and korfball to decide the winner of games in elimination matches which end in a draw after the end of regulation time. It is a type of sudden death. Golden goal rules allow the team that scores the first goal during...
in extra time, earning the nation its first trip to the World Cup. This match was tagged in reference to the Agony of Doha.
On June 8, 2005, Japan beat North Korea 2-0 to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
. Although this match was scheduled as a home match for North Korea, it was moved to Bangkok
Bangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
as punishment for crowd violence in a previous match held in Pyongyang
Pyongyang
Pyongyang is the capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea, and the largest city in the country. Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River and, according to preliminary results from the 2008 population census, has a population of 3,255,388. The city was...
, and was played in an empty stadium.
Japan qualified for the 2002 FIFA World Cup
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...
automatically as co-hosts.
External links
- Agony of Doha on FIFAFIFAThe Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
.com - The Rising Sun Soccer News: Japanese National Team History: The Oft Era