2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)
Listed below are the dates and results for the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for Asia.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 24 November 2000 - 15 November 2001 |
| Teams | 39 (from 1 confederation) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 155 |
| Goals scored | 568 (3.66 per match) |
| Attendance | 2,873,044 (18,536 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Hani Al-Dhabit Said Bayazid Talal Al-Meshal (11 goals) |
| AFC Asian Qualifiers |
|---|
The Asian Football Confederation was allocated four and half qualifying berths for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, South Korea and Japan, the co-hosts, qualified automatically, leaving two and half spots open for competition between 40 teams. Myanmar withdrew from the tournament after being placed in Group 2 but before any matches had been played, therefore reducing the group to 3 teams.
Afghanistan, Bhutan and North Korea chose not to participate.
Asia's two remaining automatic qualifying berths were taken by Saudi Arabia and China.
Iran defeated United Arab Emirates for the chance to become the possible third Asian qualifier, but lost to Ireland in the intercontinental play-off.
There were 588 goals scored in 155 matches (including 2 international play-offs), for an average of 3.79 goals per match.