Malaysia at the AFC Asian Cup

The Malaysian team had qualified for at least three AFC Asian Cups in their history, in 1976, 1980 and 2007. However, Malaysia's best record in both tournament is just the group stage, winning only one game throughout three competitions.

Competitive results

AFC Asian Cup Finals record										Qualifications record
Host/Year	Round	Position	GP	W	D*	L	GS	GA		Round	GP	W	D	L	GS	GA
1956	See Malaya national football team ^1									See Malaya national football team ^1
1960
1964	Did not qualify									Group Stage	3	1	0	2	9	10
1968	Did not qualify									Group Stage	4	1	1	2	4	5
1972	Did not qualify									Group Stage	2	2	0	0	4	2
1976	Group Stage	5th of 6	2	0	1	1	1	3		Group Stage ^Q	4	3	1	0	6	1
1980	Group Stage	6th of 10	4	1	2	1	5	5		Group Stage ^Q	4	1	2	1	5	3
1984	Did not qualify									Group Stage	4	2	1	1	10	3
1988	Did not qualify									Group Stage	4	1	1	2	4	6
1992	Did not qualify									Group Stage	3	0	2	1	2	6
1996	Did not qualify									Group Stage	2	1	1	0	5	2
2000	Did not qualify									Group Stage	6	2	1	3	12	13
2004	Did not qualify									Group Stage	6	1	2	3	9	12
2007	Group Stage	16th of 16	3	0	0	3	1	12		Qualified as co-host
2011	Did not qualify									Group Stage	4	0	0	4	2	12
2015	Did not qualify									Group Stage	6	2	1	3	5	7
2019	Did not qualify								Third Round	5	0	1	4	4	13
Total	Appearance: 3	Best: 5th	9	1	3	5	7	20		-	54	17	14	23	79	87

Iran 1976

Group A

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Kuwait	2	2	0	0	3	0	+3	4
China PR	2	0	1	1	1	2	−1	1
Malaysia	2	0	1	1	1	3	−2	1

3 June 1976

Kuwait	2–0	Malaysia
Al-Anberi  10' Al-Dakhil  42'

Bagh Shomal Stadium, Tabriz

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5 June 1976

China PR	1–1	Malaysia
Wang Jilian  58'		Mokhtar  50'

Bagh Shomal Stadium, Tabriz

Kuwait 1980

Group B

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
South Korea	4	3	1	0	10	2	+8	7
Kuwait	4	2	1	1	8	5	+3	5
Malaysia	4	1	2	1	5	5	0	4
Qatar	4	1	1	2	3	8	−5	3
United Arab Emirates	4	0	1	3	3	9	−6	1

16 September 1980

18:30

South Korea	1–1	Malaysia
Choi Soon-ho  69'		Zulkifli  90'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 5,000

Referee: Sudarso Hardjowasito (Indonesia)

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18 September 1980

Kuwait	3–1	Malaysia
Kameel  20' Yaqoub  53' (pen.), 77' (pen.)		Zulkifli  44'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Attendance: 20,000

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20 September 1980

Malaysia	2–0	United Arab Emirates
Abdah  32' Tukamin  89'

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

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23 September 1980

Malaysia	1–1	Qatar
Tukamin

Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City

Malaysia's performance at 1980 Asian Cup is still considered today as the finest performance ever of Malaysia, and since then, Malaysia did not qualify for the Asian Cup until 2007.

Indonesia/Malaysia/Thailand/Vietnam 2007

Group C

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Iran	3	2	1	0	6	3	+3	7
Uzbekistan	3	2	0	1	9	2	+7	6
China PR	3	1	1	1	7	6	+1	4
Malaysia	3	0	0	3	1	12	−11	0

10 July 2007

20:30 UTC+8

Malaysia	1–5	China PR
Indra Putra  74'	Report	Han Peng  15', 55' Shao Jiayi  36' Wang Dong  51', 90+3'

Bukit Jalil Stadium, Kuala Lumpur

Attendance: 21,155

Referee: Muhsen Basma (Syria)

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14 July 2007

18:15 UTC+8

Uzbekistan	5–0	Malaysia
Shatskikh  10', 89' Kapadze  30' Bakayev  45+2' (pen.) Ibrahimov  85'	Report

Bukit Jalil Stadium, Kuala Lumpur

Attendance: 7,137

Referee: Abdulrahman Abdou (Qatar)

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18 July 2007

20:30 UTC+8

Malaysia	0–2	Iran
	Report	Nekounam  29' (pen.) Teymourian  77'

Bukit Jalil Stadium, Kuala Lumpur

Attendance: 4,520[1]

Referee: Muhsen Basma (Syria)

Malaysia's performance in 2007 Asian Cup is still remembered as the worst performance ever for a host nation in the Asian Cup. After the tournament, criticisms run high and emotional with the defeat of the Malay Tigers and even foreign press.[2]

References

1. "Asian Cup 2007 Results [Malaysia 0–2 Iran]". SportStats.com. 18 July 2007. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
2. "Malaysian malaise in Group C". Agence France-Presse. ABC News. 13 July 2007. Retrieved 6 June 2018.