The World Championship, which will be hosted by three countries - the USA, Canada, and Mexico in 2026, is expected to have historical significance for Uzbek football.
The World Championship for adults is the only tournament that Uzbekistan's footballers have not conquered. Last year, after our compatriots participated in the Paris Olympics, the only tournament we could not reach was the World Cup.
Currently, the Uzbekistan national team has created a better opportunity than ever to qualify for the World Championship. In the third round of the Asian qualifiers, our players are in second place in their group. We are three points behind the leader Iran, and on March 25, we will compete against the Persians.
If our boys accumulate four points in the remaining three matches of this stage, it will open the way for us to North America. For now, everything is in the hands of our team led by Timur Kapadze.
The possibility of the Uzbekistan national team qualifying for the World Championship for the first time is being discussed abroad as well.
In particular, the famous Russian specialist Valeriy Nepomnyashchiy, who managed the national team and "Pakhtakor" in his time, emphasized that he believes our players will successfully pass the qualifying stage.
- In recent years, the Uzbekistan youth national team has been recording serious results on the international stage. Last year, they also participated in the Olympic Games.
There is great attention to youth football in the country; they have grown and this has started to yield results for the main team as well.
Some players from Uzbekistan, including Eldor Shomurodov and Abduqodir Husanov, are playing in Europe.
On one hand, Uzbekistan's qualification for the World Championship will amaze everyone; on the other hand, it should indeed be like this.
This will be the result of well-conducted work, and I also support this genuine achievement, - said 81-year-old Valeriy Nepomnyashchiy.
It should be noted that the Russian coach worked as the head coach of "Pakhtakor" and the Uzbekistan national team from 2006 to 2007. Additionally, he gained fame in football history for successfully managing the Cameroon national team at the 1990 World Cup.
Valeriy Nepomnyashchiy began his long coaching career in 1996 as a player-coach of the then "Spartak" team in Samarkand. During his coaching career, which lasted until 2018, he worked with several clubs in Russia, Turkmenistan, Turkey, China, Japan, and South Korea.
