Defending Asian Cup champion Iraq was drawn with World Cup qualifier North Korea and longtime foe Iran Friday for the group stage of next year's tournament. United Arab Emirates round out Group D, offering plenty of challenges for an Iraq team that has struggled on and off the pitch since winning the event in 2007. Former champion Saudi Arabia and Japan join Jordan and Syria in Group B while favorite Australia was drawn with Bahrain, South Korea and India in Group C. Group A features Qatar, Kuwait, China and Uzbekistan. The draw for the 15th Asian Cup was held in the Aspire Academy, the world's largest indoor sports training facility. The Jan. 7-29 Asian Cup will feature 16 teams and a total of 32 games, all in Doha, three years after the tournament was jointly hosted by Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam. The top two teams from each group will advance to the knockout stage. Along with an Iran-Iraq clash, the tournament could offer a possible match in the knockout stage between North and South Korea. Iraq enjoyed a memorable 2007 tournament, beating Australia and South Korea on the way to the crown. Since then, the team has struggled to beat some of the weakest teams in the Middle East, fired two coaches and endured a five-month ban from international football. The ban, which was imposed because of allegations of political interference in the running of the sport, was lifted last month. “Our ambition is to be the champions again,” Iraq captain Younis Mahmoud said. “Through winning the cup, we did what America and the government couldn't do which was to unite the country.” “It is not going to be easy to retain the Asian Cup title. As you know, there have been some matters in Iraqi football and we had to stop everything,” said Iraqi Football Association President Hussain Saeed. “It's more difficult to defend the title than win it,” said Saeed. “We are still trying to establish a government and we need someone in this new government to give us proper backing and funding,” he said. As champion, Iraq qualified for the 2011 tournament automatically. Finalist and three-time winner Saudi Arabia and South Korea, which beat Japan in a third-place playoff last time, were also awarded automatic qualification. Iran, another regional football power, enters the competition looking for its first triumph in 35 years. “For the Iranian coach, the goal has to be winning tournament,” said Seyed Afshin Gotbi, the Iran coach. “For the people of Iran, this is a very important tournament. After not qualifying for the World Cup, the morale of football fans in Iran is very low. This is very important tournament for the psyche of the people of Iran.” Australia, which surprisingly lost in the quarterfinals in the 2007 tournament, will be in a state of change following the departure of coach Pim Verbeek, who is quitting after the World Cup for a job in Morocco. Hans Berger, the technical director of the Football Federation of Australia, said the key for the team will be have all their European-based players available. “It's always more difficult because our first choice players are in Europe,” Berger said. “The first thing is to create a situation where we have the strongest possible team in January and see that our new coach is able to put a motivated team on the pitch.” Among the other favorites are South Korea and Japan, who also qualified for the World Cup. But both teams have struggled of late, with Japan having trouble scoring goals and South Korea's defense coming under fire. “I would like Japan to play as many matches as possible and we do aspire to play in the final, which is especially important since we are hoping to bring in new players in after the World Cup,” coach Takeshi Okada said. “If we win again, I will run for president,” Iraq captain Younis Mahmoud told reporters. “We have a tough group. Iran are a tough side as are North Korea, who will have the World Cup experience behind them.” Organizers said they expect full houses in the five stadiums and plan to offer “affordable packages” to attract thousands of overseas fans. Creating an attractive atmosphere is seen as vital to boosting Qatar's bold 2022 World Cup bid. “I am confident new benchmarks will be set here in Doha next year. And one of the main reasons will be because of the players, coaches, referees, officials and fans will be eager to prove the future is Asia,” said Asian Football Confederation president Mohammed Bin Hamman.
