When Iraq beat Bolivia in Mexico to seal their place at the 2026 World Cup, the setting carried a particular resonance. It was in Mexico, 40 years earlier, that the Lions of Mesopotamia made their one and only appearance on football's greatest stage.

Karim Allawi was part of that 1986 squad, a player who watched his side lose all three group games against Paraguay, Belgium, and the hosts. Now 66, he will be in the stands — or in front of a screen — on 16 June when Iraq face Erling Haaland's Norway in Boston, hoping this generation can rewrite a story that has been four decades in the making.

A group of death

Iraq's draw has not been kind. Group opponents France, Norway, and Senegal represent a formidable challenge for a side that has spent most of the last 40 years simply trying to qualify.