Host Iraq won the Arabian Gulf Cup for the first time since 1988 with a 3-2 victory over Oman in the final, a chance that was marred through a fatal stampede outside Basra’s foreign stadium.
A last-minute overtime goal from Manaf Younis on Thursday was enough to help Iraq win the tournament for the fourth time.
Earlier, Iraq had opened the scoring thanks to midfielder Ibrahim Bayesh in the 24th minute. Salaah al-Yahyaei equalized in stoppage time with a penalty kick and sent the game into extra time.
Amjad Atwan put Iraq back in the lead in the 116th minute. However, on the turn of the match, Oman’s Omar al-Malki scored in the 119th minute to level the score again.
With seconds to go, Iraqi centre-back Younis scored the goal.
There were celebrations across the country, with car horns and fireworks. In the capital, Baghdad, many cheerful people gathered in Tahrir Square waving their country’s flag.
“We needed to feel this joy,” said Mansour Zamil, a supporter in Basra, according to the AFP news agency.
Long banned from hosting soccer matches abroad, war-torn Iraq relied on the Gulf Cup for its image.
On Thursday, as fans tried to enter the stadium hours before kickoff, lightning killed four other people and injured dozens, a fitness official said.
Thousands of ticketless enthusiasts had piled up outside the stadium since dawn hoping to watch the game.
An AFP photographer said the turnstiles were still closed when the stampede broke out. Sirens sounded as ambulances arrived to take the injured to hospital.
It was a blow to the organisers of the first foreign football tournament held in Iraq since 1979, as the biggest prize of hosting the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup seemed within reach.
For security reasons, Iraq has hosted two World Cup qualifiers since the 2003 US invasion, unlike Jordan in the northern city of Erbil in 2011 and Hong Kong in Basra 8 years later.
All competitive matches involving the national team were played in neighbouring countries such as Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
Baghdad last hosted a competitive foreign match against Bahrain in September 2001. On March 24 last year, a qualifying match for the 2022 World Cup against the United Arab Emirates was to be organized. to Saudi Arabia.