The host of the 2022 World Cup, Qatar, has secured the final spot in the Asian Cup quarter-finals with a 1-0 win over the 2007 champions, Iraq.
While Iraq might be out, they can now turn their attention to qualifying for the 2022 World Cup. That campaign begins later this year.
The country, however, faces major obstacles. A lack of funding and facilities are making it hard for Iraq’s stars of the future to achieve their dreams.
Years of fighting against the US-led invasion during the regime of Saddam Hussein and the recent battles against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) destroyed a lot of Iraq’s public spaces, including sports grounds.
Al Jazeera’s Rob Matheson reports from Baghdad.
