In the esports eFootball group stage at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, Qatar was handed a loss after failing to appear for its match against South Korea. While the official tournament results state Qatar's non-appearance and South Korea's victory, claims that incorrect on-site guidance was the cause have not been officially confirmed.
According to the official tournament match result system, Match 1 of eFootball Group A, scheduled for September 22 at Aichi Sky Expo, was recorded as "DNS" for Qatar and "W" for South Korea. The result is displayed with an "Official" status, with the results table defining DNS as "Did Not Start," indicating that the team failed to start the match. However, the page does not provide the circumstances surrounding the non-appearance or the specific grounds for the ruling.
Allegations of a guidance error stemmed from foreign media reports describing the situation on-site. Taiwan's UDN reported on the 23rd, citing a post on Chinese media platform Weibo, that the Qatari side claimed they were late for player check-in procedures due to staff misdirecting them to the wrong waiting room. This claim was conveyed through a post by an on-site official and is distinct from an official announcement by the organizing committee acknowledging a guidance mistake.
That there were disruptions to the eFootball match schedule on the same day is confirmed by official notices. In a notice issued at 9:34 AM on the 22nd, the tournament's Technical Delegate (TD) stated that the India–Uzbekistan match was delayed due to technical issues. At noon, another notice announced that five group stage matches scheduled for 11:30 AM were moved to 1:00 PM, warning that subsequent matches could also be delayed. However, neither notice explained the reason for the non-appearance in the South Korea–Qatar match.
At present, what is confirmed by official records is Qatar's non-appearance and South Korea's victory. Determining whether there was an error in on-site guidance and whether that error led to the non-appearance will require further explanation from the organizing committee regarding the details and ruling.
