FIFA World Cup Qualifiers points table: In their third FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualification Round 2 encounter, the India men's football team faced off against Afghanistan on Friday, March 22, 2024. India vs Afghanistan FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualification match, held at the Damac Stadium in Abha, Saudi Arabia, concluded in a goalless draw.
Following this result, India secured the second position in Group A of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualification points table, amassing four points from three matches. Qatar maintains the top spot in Group A, remaining unbeaten with three wins out of three matches. India is followed by Kuwait in third place. Meanwhile, Afghanistan occupies the bottom spot in the group standings with just one win from three games.
FIFA World Cup qualifiers' second round is set to conclude on June 11, 2024. Following this stage, the top two nations will advance to the third round of the qualifiers.
If India fails to advance to at least the third round of FIFA World Cup qualifiers, particularly following their disappointing performance in the AFC Asian Cup in January earlier this year, it would undoubtedly cast doubts on Stimac's future as the head coach of the India men's football team. Notably, India have never made it to the third round of FIFA WC qualifiers.
FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Updated Points Table After India vs Afghanistan football match
| Teams | Points | Matches | Wins | Loss | Draw |
| Qatar | 9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| India | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Kuwait | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Afghanistan | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
"We were much closer to win this game with the chances we created. But obviously the same old problem was following us. We tried all the players we had in our frontline but nothing worked," India men's football team head coach Igor Stimac said during the post-match press conference, MyKhel reported.
"There are few areas we need to improve because we complicated simple things in offensive plans. I am not happy about that. The defenders did well and did not give away anything. But we need to be better in passing, creating chances and attacking the box when the crosses are coming from the flanks," said the coach.