The 1988 Arab Cup was the fifth edition of the Arab Cup hosted by Amman, Jordan. The defending champion Iraq won the title for the 4th time.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Jordan |
| Dates | 8–21 July |
| Teams | 10 (from 2 confederations) |
| Venue(s) | 1 (in 1 host city) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Iraq (4th title) |
| Runners-up |  Syria |
| Third place |  Egypt |
| Fourth place |  Jordan |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 24 |
| Goals scored | 35 (1.46 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Ahmed Radhi (4 goals) |
| Best player(s) | Tawfiq Al-Saheb |
Qualification
Jordan qualified automatically as hosts and Iraq as holders.
Zone 1 (Gulf Area)
Zone 2 (Red Sea)
Egypt & Saudi Arabia qualified.
Zone 3 (North Africa)
The tournament was held in Algiers, Algeria. Libya and Morocco withdrew.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 | 3 |
| Tunisia | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 3 |
| Mauritania | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | –4 | 0 |
| Tunisia | 2–1 | Mauritania |
|---|---|---|
| Maâloul 37' (p) Mahjoubi 84' | Sikki 16' |
| Algeria | 3–0 | Mauritania |
|---|---|---|
| Boukar 44' Djahmoune 52' Dahmani 85' |
Attendance: 3,000
Zone 4 (East Region)
Syria qualified.
Qualified teams
The 8 qualified teams are:
| Participants | |
|---|---|
| Zone | Team |
| Hosts | Jordan |
| Holders | Iraq |
| Zone 1 (Gulf Area) | Bahrain |
| Kuwait Ol. | |
| Zone 2 (Red Sea) | Egypt |
| Saudi Arabia Ol. | |
| Zone 3 (North Africa) | Algeria UT |
| Tunisia | |
| Zone 4 (East Region) | Syria |
Final tournament
Venues
| Amman | |
|---|---|
| Amman International Stadium | |
| Capacity: 25,000 | |
Squads
Group stage
Algeria and Saudi Arabia did not send their senior national teams to the competition. Instead, Algeria sent a University XI, probably an Under-23 squad, while Saudi Arabia's A team was in Australia during the tournament.
Group A
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Egypt | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 6 |
| Iraq | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 5 |
| Lebanon | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 4 |
| Tunisia | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 3 |
| Saudi Arabia Ol. | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 2 |
| Egypt | 0–0 | Saudi Arabia Ol. |
|---|---|---|
Attendance: 17,000
| Saudi Arabia Ol. | 1–1 | Tunisia |
|---|---|---|
| Farhan 80' | Maaloul 90' (pen.) |
Attendance: 8,000
| Lebanon | 1–0 | Saudi Arabia Ol. |
|---|---|---|
| Hammoud 81' |
Attendance: 18,000
| Iraq | 2–0 | Saudi Arabia Ol. |
|---|---|---|
| Radhi 13', 35' |
Attendance: 22,000
Group B
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jordan | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 5 |
| Syria | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 5 |
| Algeria UT | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| Kuwait Ol. | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 3 |
| Bahrain | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 3 |
| Syria | 1–1 | Algeria UT |
|---|---|---|
| Jakalan 31' | Hadj Adlane 62' |
Attendance: 15,000
| Jordan | 0–1 | Kuwait Ol. |
|---|---|---|
| Al Breiki |
Attendance: 21,000
| Algeria UT | 0–0 | Bahrain |
|---|---|---|
Attendance: 21,000
| Algeria UT | 1–0 | Kuwait Ol. |
|---|---|---|
| Hadj Adlane 24' |
| Syria | 1–0 | Kuwait Ol. |
|---|---|---|
| Kardaghli 81' |
Attendance: 20,000
| Jordan | 2–1 | Algeria UT |
|---|---|---|
| Yadaje 61' Abdel Muneim 75' | El-Groud 74' |
Attendance: 27,000
| Kuwait Ol. | 1–1 | Bahrain |
|---|---|---|
Attendance: 20,000
Knock-out stage
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| 19 July 1988 – Amman | ||||||
| Syria (pen.) | 0 (4) | |||||
| 21 July 1988 – Amman | ||||||
| Egypt | 0 (3) | |||||
| Iraq (pen.) | 1 (4) | |||||
| 19 July 1988 – Amman | ||||||
| Syria | 1 (3) | |||||
| Iraq | 3 | |||||
| Jordan | 0 | |||||
| Third place | ||||||
| 21 July 1988 – Amman | ||||||
| Egypt | 2 | |||||
| Jordan | 0 | |||||
Semi-finals
Third place play-off
Final
Top scorers
- 4 Goals
- 2 Goals
- Tarek Hadj Adlane
- Hossam Hassan
- Nart Yadaje
- Mahmoud Hamoud
- Mohammad Jakalan