Iraq
FIFA #39
The Lions of Mesopotamia, making their mark in Asian football after years of upheaval that would have ended lesser programs. That they're here at all is a genuinely extraordinary story.
๐ In the US
Based in the Detroit area, which has one of the largest Iraqi-American and Arab-American communities in the United States โ Dearborn alone is sometimes called the most Arab city outside the Middle East. The Lions of Mesopotamia will find a support crowd here that understands what this appearance means.
Style
Disciplined and compact, sitting in a defensive block and relying on organization and set pieces to stay in games.
Rivals
Iran. The Iran-Iraq war left legacies that football cannot fully paper over โ their Asian qualifying meetings carry a tension that no amount of diplomatic niceties can disguise.
Home Base
Iraq's relationship with football is one of survival and persistence โ the national team won the 2007 AFC Asian Cup during a period of profound civil conflict, producing one of sport's most genuinely emotional title celebrations. Baghdad is football-mad in a way that transcends circumstance.
Human Rights
Freedom House
Political rights and civil liberties score (higher = more free)
Reporters Without Borders
Press Freedom Index ranking (lower = more free, out of 180 countries)
UN Human Development Index
Human Development Index score (higher = more developed, 0โ1 scale)
Transparency International
Perceived public sector corruption โ higher is cleaner
ILGA World
Legal status of same-sex relationships