Based on the special FIFA Ranking released for Asian teams on June 18, top seeds Japan and Iran were placed in Pot 1 of the draw, with Pot 2 comprising Australia and Korea Republic while Pot 3 had Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Pot 4 contained Iraq and China PR, followed by Oman and Syria in Pot 5 and debutant Vietnam and Lebanon in Pot 6.
The AFC Asian Qualifiers – Road to Qatar is scheduled to be played on the following 10 match days: September 2 and 7, October 7 and 12, and November 11 and 16, 2021, as well as January 27 and February 1, 2022, before reaching its climax on March 24 and 29, 2022.
Group A: Iran, Korea Republic, United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon
Group B: Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, China PR, Oman, Vietnam