Lebanon and Bahrain played to a 1-1 draw in the opening match of the AFC Women’s Futsal Asian Cup 2025 qualifiers for Group A, held Saturday at Nonthaburi City Stadium in Thailand.
Lebanon opened the scoring through Mary Jo Wakim in the 13th minute, but Bahrain equalized in the 27th minute via Sheikha Alanoud Al Khalifa.
Dominant in the first half, Lebanon created several dangerous chances against Bahraini goalkeeper Zahra. In the 9th minute, Mary Jo Wakim advanced with the ball before being intercepted by a Bahraini defender. Zahra saved another Wakim attempt two minutes later, denying Lebanon the lead.
Wakim persisted and eventually netted Lebanon’s first goal in the 13th minute, dribbling past two defenders and unleashing a powerful shot into the top corner.
Early in the second half, the game’s turning point came when Mary Jo Wakim received a red card in the 23rd minute, significantly impacting Lebanon’s performance. Bahrain capitalized on their numerical advantage, with Alanoud Al Khalifa scoring a surprise equalizer against Lebanese goalkeeper Tanous in the 27th minute.
Despite the setback, the Lebanese players pushed hard to regain the lead in the final minutes, but Bahrain’s goalkeeper stood firm, ensuring her team walked away with a valuable point.
The second round of Group A matches will take place on Monday, with Palestine facing Thailand and Iraq playing Bahrain.
Lebanon will continue their qualification campaign on Wednesday, January 15, at 11:30 AM (Beirut time) against Palestine. They will then face Iraq on Friday, January 17, at the same time, before concluding their group stage matches against Thailand on Sunday, January 19, at 2:30 PM (Beirut time, 7:30 PM local time).
The top two teams from each group, along with the best third-placed team across all groups, will qualify for the final stage, where they will
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