Iran’s national futsal team, Team Melli, secured top spot in their group and advanced to the next round of the AFC Futsal Asian Cup 2026 after defeating Afghanistan 5–2 in their final group stage match in Indonesia. In the other Group D fixture, Saudi Arabia beat Malaysia 6–1.

Iran dominated much of the first half but only managed one goal before the break, scored by Behrouz Azimi, and entered halftime with a narrow lead.

Early in the second half, as Afghanistan pushed forward in search of an equalizer, they lost possession near Iran’s goal, leading to a swift counterattack finished by Hossein Tayyibi to make it 2–0.

With ten minutes remaining, Tayyibi was brought down inside the penalty area by the Afghan goalkeeper during another counterattack. After a video review, the referee awarded a penalty, which Tayyibi calmly converted to extend Iran’s lead to 3–0.

Shortly afterward, Afghanistan won a penalty of their own when a corner kick struck the hand of Iranian defender Derakhshani. Reza Hosseinpour’s initial spot-kick was saved by Iranian goalkeeper Bagher Mohammadi, but Hosseinpour scored on the rebound to pull one back for Afghanistan.

Moments later, the Afghan goalkeeper sent a spectacular long-range effort into the net, aided by a deflection off Derakhshani, wrong-footing Mohammadi and suddenly making it 3–2. Derakhshani endured a difficult outing, having also been involved in the handball that led to Afghanistan’s first goal.

Despite Afghanistan’s fierce comeback, spurred on by vocal support from their fans, Iran kept their composure and sealed the victory with two well-taken late goals. Massoud Yousef made it 4–2 with a calm finish through the goalkeeper’s legs, before Mehdi Karimi added a fifth with a superb strike that left the Afghan keeper stranded.

It was a commanding performance from Team Melli, who finished as group winners despite a spirited challenge from Afghanistan.