Compared to regional neighbours, Qatar has a decent record in Olympic football, with two prior Summer Olympics qualifications and a gold medal in the
2006 Asian Games. In 1992, the Qatar U-23 squad dominated its
Olympic qualifying campaign on the expense of Japan, China and Saudi Arabia. In the
finals, the Qataris were given a tough draw next to host nation
Spain,
Colombia and
Egypt. Qatar kicked off their matches at
Barcelona with a crucial 1–0 win over fellow Arab nation Egypt, before registering a 1–1 draw with Colombia to secure a place in the knockout stage, turning the last group match against Spain into a formality. A loss to
Poland in the knockout stage fell a little bit short of rising expectations, but reaching it led to the country's best Olympic result. When hosting the
2006 Asian Games, Qatar U-23 found itself with a double objective; to show that it was capable of hosting a major event of that caliber, and demonstrate that its football team was worthy of standing alongside Asia's elite. Tallying five wins throughout the
tournament, Qatar's momentum escalated from one match to another, reaching its peak in the 2–0 final against Iraq. == Tournament records ==