One person dead and 60 others injured after stampede at soccer final

The hosts Iraq they have won the Arabian Gulf Cup for the first time since 1988 with a 3-2 win over Oman in the final, an occasion marred by a deadly stampede Outside the International Stadium Basra.

A last-minute extra-time goal from Manaf Younis on Thursday was enough to help Iraq lift the tournament for the fourth time.

one person died

Earlier, Iraq opened the scoring through midfielder Ibrahim Bayesh in the 24th minute. Salaah al-Yahyaei equalized in stoppage time via a penalty and sent the game into extra time.

Amjad Atwan put the lead back to Iraq in the 116th minute. However, in another turn of the game, Oman’s Omar al-Malki scored in the 119th minute to level the score again. With seconds remaining, Iraqi centre-back Younis scored the game-winner.

There were celebrations all over the country, with car horns and fireworks. In the capital, Baghdad, hundreds of joyful people gathered in Tahrir Square waving their country’s flag.

On Thursday, as fans tried to enter the stadium hours before kick-off, a crush killed four people and injured dozens, a health official said. Thousands of fans without tickets had gathered outside the stadium since dawn in the hope of watching the game.

It came as a blow to the organizers of the first international soccer tournament hosted in Iraq since 1979, as the jackpot of hosting the 2026 World Cup qualifiers seemed within reach.

Due to security concerns, Iraq has hosted only two World Cup qualifiers since the US-led invasion in 2003, against Jordan in the northern city of Erbil in 2011 and Hong Kong in Basra eight years later.

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