Gulf Cup history favors Iraq over Oman

Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq enters its Wednesday Gulf Cup opener against Oman with the historical advantage in the competition, winning five of the teams’ 11 previous official meetings, compared with two victories for Oman and four draws.

The rivalry began at Gulf Cup 4 in 1976, when Iraq beat Oman 4-0, before recording the biggest victory between the teams with a 7-0 win at the 1979 tournament in Baghdad. Iraq continued its early advantage with victories of 2-1 in 1984 and 3-2 in 1986 before the teams drew 1-1 at Gulf Cup 9 in 1988.

Iraq also beat Oman 4-0 at the 1982 Gulf Cup, but the result was later annulled after Iraq withdrew from the tournament and its record was scratched.

Oman became more competitive in later editions, beating Iraq 3-1 at Gulf Cup 17 in 2004 and recording a 4-0 victory on home soil in 2009.

The teams later drew 0-0 in 2010 and 1-1 in 2014 before meeting twice at Gulf Cup 25 in Basra in 2023. Their group-stage opener finished 0-0, but Iraq prevailed 3-2 after extra time in the final to claim its fourth Gulf Cup title.

Excluding the annulled 1982 match, Iraq leads the official Gulf Cup head-to-head record with five wins from 11 meetings, while Oman has two victories and four matches have ended level.

The rivalry resumes on September 23 at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium in Jeddah, with kickoff scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Baghdad time. Iraq and Oman are drawn in Group A alongside host Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, with the top two advancing to the semifinals. Iraq is seeking a fifth Gulf Cup title, while Oman is chasing its third.