Iraq FA Cup

Football tournament

Iraq FA Cup

Organising body| Iraq Football Association
Founded| 1948; 77 years ago (1948)
(institutions)
1975; 50 years ago (1975)
(clubs)
Region| Iraq
Number of teams| 42 (since 2023–24)
Qualifier for| AFC Champions League Two
Domestic cup(s)| Iraqi Super Cup
Current champions| Al-Shorta
(1st title)
Most successful club(s)| Al-Zawraa
(16 titles)
Television broadcasters| Al-Iraqiya TV
Al-Kass Sports
Al-Rabiaa Sports
2024–25 Iraq FA Cup

The Iraq Cup (Arabic: كأس العراق), commonly known as the Iraq FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic Iraqi football organised by the Iraq Football Association.[1] First held in the 1948–49 season for clubs and institutions, it returned in the 1975–76 season as a clubs-only competition.

The tournament usually begins with several rounds played between lower division clubs, twelve of which advance to the Round of 32, where the Iraq Stars League clubs are entered. This is followed by the Round of 16, the quarter-finals, the semi-finals and the final which is played as a single leg in Baghdad.

The winners of the competition are awarded a place in the next season's AFC Champions League Two group stage as well as qualifying for the Iraqi Super Cup where they play against the league champions at the start of the following season (or the league runners-up, if the cup winners have won the double).

Al-Shorta are the current holders, having beaten Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya 1–0 in the 2024 final.

## History

[edit]

### Foundation and development

[edit]

The Iraq Football Association was founded on 8 October 1948 and within its first week it had decided to hold a national knockout cup called the Iraq Football Association Cup for clubs and institute-representative teams.[2] The tournament kicked off on 21 January 1949 and culminated in Sharikat Naft Al-Basra winning the final on 7 April.[3] For the next 26 years, cup tournaments for clubs and institutions were played at a regional level (such as the Iraq FA Baghdad Cup which was played in the 1973–74 season) until the national knockout cup competition returned as a clubs-only competition in 1975 as the Iraq Cup.[4]

Al-Shaab Stadium was chosen by the Iraq FA to host the cup finals as it was able to accommodate the large number of spectators in the capital city.[5] The first club to win the double was Al-Zawraa, winning the 1975–76 Iraqi National League and the 1975–76 Iraq FA Cup. Overall, Al-Zawraa have eight doubles while Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya have three, Al-Rasheed have two, and Al-Talaba and Al-Shorta each have one.[1]

In the 1976–77 season, the tournament was not held due to scheduling difficulties, and in the 1984–85 season, it was cancelled at the semi-final stage to allow the Iraq national team to prepare for their 1986 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches, which was the same reason why the 1984–85 Iraqi National League was cancelled. The cup was also not held the following season, but returned for the 1986–87 campaign. It was also not held in the 2000–01 season due to scheduling difficulties.[1]

The 2003 edition of the Iraq FA Cup Final was hosted in Erbil at the Franso Hariri Stadium for security reasons. The tournament was not held from 2003–04 up until 2011–12 as the Iraq War caused travel problems for clubs and difficulties with scheduling. The cup finally returned in the 2012–13 season, but was eventually cancelled midway through due to scheduling difficulties with the 2012–13 Iraqi Elite League.[6]

It was not held again until the FA decided to hold it in the 2015–16 season.[7] This time, the cup was not cancelled, although a large number of Premier League teams withdrew from the competition. The 2016 Iraq FA Cup Final was the first Iraq FA Cup final held for 13 years, and was played between Baghdad rivals Al-Zawraa and Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya with the latter winning 2–0. In the first edition of the tournament, there were 25 teams; by the 2021–22 season, there was an all-time high of 168 teams in the tournament. Al-Minaa are the only team to have participated in every edition of the tournament since 1948–49.

### Cup runs and giant killings

[edit]

Lower division teams have knocked out top-flight sides on numerous occasions. In the cup's first season in 1948–49, Baghdad top-flight side Wizarat Al-Maarif lost 3–2 to second-tier team Al-Tayour Al-Zarqaa in the second round. In the 1977–78 edition of the cup, the second team of Al-Tayaran (Al-Tayaran B), who played in the second-tier, eliminated Al-Jaish, who finished in fourth place in the 1977–78 Iraqi National League, from the first round of the cup with a 1–0 win.[8] In the same edition, Al-Zawraa were defeated by second-tier team Al-Bahri in the quarter-finals, 2–1.[8] In the 1982–83 edition, second-tier club Al-Hudood knocked out Arab Club Champions Cup holders Al-Shorta 7–6 on penalties.[9]

In the 1989–90 edition, Al-Rasheed, who had won the Premier League in each of the past three seasons and the FA Cup in two of the past three seasons, were defeated by second-tier club Al-Tijara 3–2 on aggregate in the Round of 16.[10] In the 1992–93 edition, Al-Tijara pulled off another shock by defeating Al-Shorta in the first round, 2–1, and they also defeated another top-flight team in Al-Jaish in the Round of 16 with the same result.[11] The 2016–17 Iraq FA Cup saw two major upsets in the Round of 32 as Al-Naft lost 3–2 at home to second-tier club Al-Sinaa and Al-Shorta lost 3–1 at home to second-tier club Al-Jaish.

## Competition format

[edit]

### 2022–23 season

[edit]

#### Overview

[edit]

Beginning in November, the competition proceeded as a knockout tournament throughout, consisting of five rounds, a quarter-final, semi-final and then a final. Clubs in Level 1 entered the competition at a later stage than clubs in Levels 2, 3 and 4. There was no seeding, the fixtures in each round being determined by a random draw. The first three rounds were qualifiers, with the draws organised on a regional basis. The next five rounds were the "proper" rounds where all clubs were in one draw.

#### Schedule

[edit]

Entrants from the bottom three levels (2, 3 and 4) began the competition in the qualifying rounds. Clubs from the top level were then added in for the competition proper, as per the table below. The qualifying rounds were regionalised to reduce the travel costs for lower division sides.

Round  | New entrants at this round  | Month  | No. of matches

|
|
|

Qualifying Rounds
First round  | Level 2, 3 and 4 clubs  | November  | 30
Second round  | none  | 13
Third round  | 12
Competition Proper
Round of 32  | Level 1 clubs  | March  | 16
Round of 16  | none  | April – May  | 8
Quarter-finals  | TBD | 4
Semi-finals  | 2
Final  | 1

## Trophy

[edit]

### Current design from 2022

[edit]

The Iraq FA Cup trophy is designed in the shape of a tree with eighteen roots, branches and leaves encircling a ball.[12] The number eighteen refers to the eighteen governorates of Iraq. The image of Iraq as a tree is a metaphor suggesting that the nation may fall ill (just like a tree in autumn) but will inevitably bloom again. Unveiled on 6 April 2022, the trophy is the work of the famous sculptor Ahmed Albahrani who also designed the 2015 World Men's Handball Championship trophy.[13]

The trophy is kept by the Iraq Football Association and only a replica model is given permanently to the winning club.

## List of finals

[edit]

Winning team won the Double

Season  | Winner  | Result  | Runner-up

|
|
|

Iraq FA Cup (Institutions)
1948–49 | Sharikat Naft Al-Basra | 2–1  | Al-Kuliya Al-Askariya Al-Malakiya
Iraq FA Cup (Clubs)
1975–76 | Al-Zawraa | 5–0  | Al-Baladiyat
1976–77  | Not held
1977–78 | Al-Tayaran[a] | 1–1 (a.e.t.)
(5–3 p) | Al-Shorta
1978–79 | Al-Zawraa | 3–1  | Al-Jaish
1979–80 | Al-Jaish | 1–1 (a.e.t.)
(4–2 p) | Al-Talaba
1980–81 | Al-Zawraa | 1–0  | Al-Talaba
1981–82 | Al-Zawraa | 2–1  | Al-Talaba
1982–83 | Al-Jaish | 2–1  | Al-Shabab
1983–84 | Al-Sinaa | 0–0 (a.e.t.)
(5–4 p) | Al-Shabab
1984–85 | Cancelled at semi-finals
1985–86  | Not held
1986–87 | Al-Rasheed | 1–1 (a.e.t.)
(4–3 p) | Al-Jaish
1987–88 | Al-Rasheed | 0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–3 p) | Al-Zawraa
1988–89 | Al-Zawraa | 3–0  | Al-Tayaran[a]
1989–90 | Al-Zawraa | 0–0 (a.e.t.)
(2–1 p) | Al-Shabab
1990–91 | Al-Zawraa | 1–1 (a.e.t.)
(4–3 p) | Al-Jaish
1991–92 | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya | 2–1  | Al-Tayaran[b]
1992–93 | Al-Zawraa | 2–1  | Al-Talaba
1993–94 | Al-Zawraa | 1–0  | Al-Talaba
1994–95 | Al-Zawraa | 3–0  | Al-Jaish
1995–96 | Al-Zawraa | 2–1  | Al-Shorta
1996–97 | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya | 1–1 (a.e.t.)
(7–6 p) | Al-Shorta
1997–98 | Al-Zawraa | 1–1 (a.e.t.)
(4–3 p) | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
1998–99 | Al-Zawraa | 1–0 (g.g.)  | Al-Talaba
1999–2000 | Al-Zawraa | 0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–3 p) | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
2000–01  | Not held
2001–02 | Al-Talaba | 1–0  | Al-Shorta
2002–03 | Al-Talaba | 1–0  | Al-Shorta
2003–12  | Not held
2012–13 | Cancelled at round of 32
2013–15  | Not held
2015–16 | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya | 2–0 | Al-Zawraa
2016–17 | Al-Zawraa | 1–0 | Naft Al-Wasat
2017–18  | Not held
2018–19 | Al-Zawraa | 1–0 | Al-Kahrabaa
2019–20 | Cancelled at round of 32
2020–21 | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya | 0–0
(4–2 p) | Al-Zawraa
2021–22 | Al-Karkh | 2–1 | Al-Kahrabaa
2022–23 | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya | 1–0 | Erbil
2023–24 | Al-Shorta | 1–0 | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
2024–25 | To be determined

Notes

1. ^ a b Now known as Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya.
2. ^ Now known as Al-Khutoot Al-Jawiya.

## Most successful teams

[edit]

### Clubs

[edit]

Club  | Winners  | Runners-up  | Years won  | Years runner-up

|
|
|
|

Al-Zawraa | 16 | 3 | 1976, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2017, 2019 | 1988, 2016, 2021
Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya | 6 | 4 | 1978, 1992, 1997, 2016, 2021, 2023 | 1989, 1998, 2000, 2024
Al-Talaba | 2 | 6 | 2002, 2003 | 1980, 1981, 1982, 1993, 1994, 1999
Al-Jaish | 2 | 4 | 1980, 1983 | 1979, 1987, 1991, 1995
Al-Rasheed | 2 | 0 | 1987, 1988 |
Al-Shorta | 1 | 5 | 2024 | 1978, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2003
Al-Sinaa | 1 | 0 | 1984 |
Al-Karkh | 1 | 0 | 2022 |
Al-Shabab | 0 | 3 |  | 1983, 1984, 1990
Al-Kahrabaa | 0 | 2 |  | 2019, 2022
Al-Baladiyat | 0 | 1 |  | 1976
Al-Khutoot Al-Jawiya | 0 | 1 |  | 1992
Naft Al-Wasat | 0 | 1 |  | 2017
Erbil | 0 | 1 |  | 2023

### Institutions

[edit]

Team  | Institution  | Winners  | Runners-up  | Years won  | Years runner-up

|
|
|
|
|

Sharikat Naft Al-Basra | Basra Petroleum Company | 1 | 0 | 1949 |
Al-Kuliya Al-Askariya Al-Malakiya | Royal Military College | 0 | 1 |  | 1949

## Records and statistics

[edit]

### Final

[edit]

* Most wins: 16, Al-Zawraa (1976, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2017, 2019)
* Most consecutive wins: 4, Al-Zawraa (1993, 1994, 1995, 1996)
* Most appearances in a final: 19, Al-Zawraa (1976, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2021)
* Most appearances without winning: 3, Al-Shabab (1983, 1984, 1990)
* Most appearances without losing: 2, Al-Rasheed (1987, 1988)
* Biggest final win: 5 goals, Al-Zawraa 5–0 Al-Baladiyat (1976)
* Most goals in a final: 5, Al-Zawraa 5–0 Al-Baladiyat (1976)
* Most final defeats: 6, Al-Talaba (1980, 1981, 1982, 1993, 1994, 1999)

### All rounds

[edit]

#### Team

[edit]

* Biggest win: Al-Jaish 14–0 Babil (12 September 1987)
* Most clubs competing for trophy in a season: 168 (2021–22)

#### Individual

[edit]

* Most goals by a player in a single tournament: 14, Hashim Ridha (1998–99)
* Most goals by a player in a single game: 5 – joint record:
* Saeed Nouri (for Al-Shorta v. Salahaddin, 1988–89)
* Sahib Abbas (for Al-Zawraa v. Al-Falluja, 1993–94)
* Mahmoud Karim (for Al-Zawraa v. Al-Qasim, 1997–98)
* Mohammed Khoshnaw (for Erbil v. Makhmur, 1998–99)
* Mahmoud Kadhim (for Erbil v. Makhmur, 1998–99)
* Fastest goal: 6 seconds, Saif Raheem (for Al-Sulaikh v. Al-Jinsiya, 11 November 2021)

## List of winning managers

[edit]

Season  | Nationality  | Winning manager  | Club

|
|
|

Iraq FA Cup (Institutions)
1948–49 |  Iraq | Tommy Thomas  | Sharikat Naft Al-Basra
Iraq FA Cup (Clubs)
1975–76 |  Iraq | Saadi Salih  | Al-Zawraa
1977–78 |  Iraq | Abdelilah Mohammed Hassan | Al-Tayaran
1978–79 |  Iraq | Anwar Jassam | Al-Zawraa
1979–80 |  Iraq | Muayad Mohammed Salih  | Al-Jaish
1980–81 |  Iraq | Anwar Jassam | Al-Zawraa
1981–82 |  Iraq | Anwar Jassam | Al-Zawraa
1982–83 |  Poland | Wojciech Przybylski | Al-Jaish
1983–84 |  Hungary | Géza Vincze  | Al-Sinaa
1986–87 |  Iraq | Nasrat Nassir  | Al-Rasheed
1987–88 |  Iraq | Jamal Salih | Al-Rasheed
1988–89 |  Iraq | Falah Hassan | Al-Zawraa
1989–90 |  Iraq | Falah Hassan | Al-Zawraa
1990–91 |  Iraq | Falah Hassan | Al-Zawraa
1991–92 |  Iraq | Adil Yousef  | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
1992–93 |  Iraq | Anwar Jassam | Al-Zawraa
1993–94 |  Iraq | Ammo Baba | Al-Zawraa
1994–95 |  Iraq | Hadi Mutanash  | Al-Zawraa
1995–96 |  Iraq | Adnan Hamad | Al-Zawraa
1996–97 |  Iraq | Ayoub Odisho | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
1997–98 |  Iraq | Anwar Jassam | Al-Zawraa
1998–99 |  Iraq | Amer Jameel | Al-Zawraa
1999–2000 |  Iraq | Adnan Hamad | Al-Zawraa
2001–02 |  Iraq | Thair Ahmed | Al-Talaba
2002–03 |  Iraq | Thair Ahmed | Al-Talaba
2015–16 |  Iraq | Ahmed Daham | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
2016–17 |  Iraq | Essam Hamad | Al-Zawraa
2018–19 |  Iraq | Hakeem Shaker | Al-Zawraa
2020–21 |  Iraq | Ayoub Odisho | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
2021–22 |  Iraq | Ahmed Abdul-Jabar | Al-Karkh
2022–23 |  Egypt | Moamen Soliman | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
2023–24 |  Egypt | Moamen Soliman | Al-Shorta

### Most successful managers

[edit]

No.  | Winning manager[14] | Club(s)  | No. titles

|
|
|

1  |  Anwar Jassam | Al-Zawraa | 5
2  |  Falah Hassan | Al-Zawraa | 3
3  |  Thair Ahmed | Al-Talaba | 2
Adnan Hamad | Al-Zawraa
Ayoub Odisho | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
Moamen Soliman | Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya, Al-Shorta

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c Hashim, Refel; Mubarak, Hassanin; Qayed, Mohammed. "Iraq – List of Cup Winners". RSSSF.
2. ^ "Football leagues set up in Iraq's main centres". The Iraq Times. 16 October 1948.
3. ^ "The Cup goes to Basrah". The Iraq Times. 8 April 1949.
4. ^ Al-Munshi', Dhiyaa. Encyclopedia of the Iraqi Football (in Arabic). Baghdad.
5. ^ "All the Story". Iraqi Football Archive (in Arabic).
6. ^ "Masoud: The draw of the Iraq FA Cup will commence today with 22 teams participating from the Iraqi Premier League" (in Arabic). Iraq Football Photos Gallery. September 22, 2012.[permanent dead link‍]
7. ^ "The draw of the first round of the Iraq FA Cup is over with the participation of 19 teams" (in Arabic). Hamrin News. Al-Mada Press. September 1, 2015. Archived from the original on September 28, 2015. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
8. ^ a b Hashim, Refel. "Iraq 1977/78". RSSSF.
9. ^ Al-Radhi, Haider (11 December 2012). "حصريا لمكع -القسم الثاني من ارشيف بطولة الكاس الكروية مع باقة من صور الارشيف" (in Arabic). Kooora Forums.
10. ^ Hashim, Refel. "Iraq 1989/90". RSSSF.
11. ^ Hashim, Refel. "Iraq 1992/93". RSSSF.
12. ^ "كأسُ العراق .. تأريخٌ ساطعٌ مليءٌ بالإبداع" (in Arabic). ifa.iq. 6 April 2022. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
13. ^ "الكشف عن التصميم الجديد لكأس العراق" (in Arabic). kooora.com. 6 April 2022. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
14. ^ List of Iraq FA Cup winning managers

## External links

[edit]

* Iraq Football Association

* v
* t
* e

Iraq FA Cup

Seasons|

* 1948–49
* 1949–1975
* 1975–76
* 1976–77
* 1977–78
* 1978–79
* 1979–80
* 1980–81
* 1981–82
* 1982–83
* 1983–84
* 1984–85
* 1985–86
* 1986–87
* 1987–88
* 1988–89
* 1989–90
* 1990–91
* 1991–92
* 1992–93
* 1993–94
* 1994–95
* 1995–96
* 1996–97
* 1997–98
* 1998–99
* 1999–2000
* 2000–01
* 2001–02
* 2002–03
* 2003–2012
* 2012–13
* 2013–2015
* 2015–16
* 2016–17
* 2017–18
* 2018–19
* 2019–20
* 2020–21
* 2021–22
* 2022–23
* 2023–24
* 2024–25

Finals|

* 2016
* 2017
* 2019
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024

* v
* t
* e

Football in Iraq

* Iraq Football Association
* Iraqi Pro League Association

National teams|

| Men|

* National team
* Olympic (U-23)
* U20
* U17
* Futsal
* Beach

|

Women|

* National team
* U17
* Futsal

League competitions|

| Level 1|

* Iraq Stars League

|

Levels 2–5|

* Iraqi Premier Division League
* Iraqi First Division League
* Iraqi Second Division League
* Iraqi Third Division League

Women|

Iraqi Women's Football League

Defunct (men)|

* Iraqi National First Division
* Iraq Central FA Premier League
* Iraq FA Basra Premier League
* Iraq FA Kirkuk Premier League

Cup competitions|

| FA cups|

* Iraq FA Cup
* Iraqi Super Cup

|

Defunct (men)|

* Umm al-Ma'arik Championship
* Iraq FA Baghdad Cup
* Independent Baghdad Tournament
* Iraq Central FA Perseverance Cup

Lists|

* Champions
* Clubs
* Honours won
* Clubs in Asian competitions
* Stadiums by capacity

* Men's clubs
* Men's players
* Expatriate players
* Managers
* Referees
* Venues
* Asian Cup record
* World Cup record
* Records and statistics
* Results

* v
* t
* e

AFC members national football cups

* Australia
* Bahrain
* Bangladesh
* Brunei
* Cambodia
* China
* Chinese Taipei
* Guam
* Hong Kong (Senior Shield)
* India
* Indonesia
* Iran
* Iraq
* Japan
* Jordan
* Korea DPR
* Korea Republic
* Kuwait
* Kyrgyzstan
* Laos
* Lebanon
* Macau
* Malaysia
* Maldives
* Mongolia
* Myanmar
* Nepal†
* Northern Mariana Islands
* Oman
* Pakistan
* Palestine
* Philippines
* Qatar
* Saudi Arabia
* Singapore
* Sri Lanka†
* Syria
* Tajikistan
* Thailand
* Timor Leste†
* Turkmenistan
* United Arab Emirates
* Uzbekistan
* Vietnam
* Yemen†

† Currently not played
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