World Cup 2018: The history of Indian football team in FIFA World Cup Qualifiers

2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers

Bhaichung Bhutia was at his peak in the World Cup qualifiers but failed to guide so

FIFA again reserved 4.5 spots for the Asian nations but this time all of them were up for grabs. A total of 39 AFC affiliated teams competed for those spots with three rounds being held. Moreover, this was the first time that India progressed to the second round thanks to a first-round bye.

In the second round, only 32 teams had been left who were divided into 8 groups of four teams each. India was grouped in Group 3 alongside Japan, Singapore, and Oman.

India started the tournament on a positive note with a 1-0 win over Singapore. However, they performed poorly later with a 1-5 loss to Oman at home, 0-7 loss to Japan away from home, 0-4 loss to Japan at home, and a 0-2 loss to Singapore away from home. India would wrap the final game of the tournament with a 0-0 draw with Oman.

This was again a pathetic tournament for the Indian team as they finished third with just 4 points. The Japanese advanced to the second round and even went on to qualify for the FIFA World Cup.