South Korea Women vs Qatar Women: match preview on 17 September 2026

South Korea Women to win. The gap in quality is clear from their recent results: three victories in five matches against two defeats, compared with Qatar's solitary loss and zero points. The hosts have shown they can close out matches, winning 3:0 and 3:1 in their last two encounters.

South Korea's recent run shows inconsistency but also capacity to recover. They opened the tournament with a 3:0 victory over Hong Kong at home on 16 September, then lost 0:3 away to Thailand on 27 August. Before that came a 3:1 home win against Hong Kong on 26 August, a 0:3 away defeat to Japan on 23 August, and a 3:1 away victory over Vietnam on 22 August. The pattern is two losses followed by two wins, with the most recent result a clean sheet at home.

Qatar have played only one match so far, losing 0:3 away to Vietnam on 16 September. That is all the data shows. No further results are recorded for them in this period. The defeat came on the road, and they failed to register a single point against their opponents.

The tournament table reflects the current standings after one match each. South Korea sit in first place with three points from one game, winning 100% of their matches. Qatar occupy fourth place with zero points from one match, having lost their opening fixture. The gap between them is three points, and the difference in sets won and lost is significant.

I see no grounds for expecting Qatar to overturn this advantage. South Korea have demonstrated they can win matches convincingly, including a 3:0 shutout in their most recent appearance. Qatar's single result shows they were outclassed away from home. The hosts have the momentum and the form to secure another victory.

This conclusion stops holding if Qatar show a marked improvement in their performance or if South Korea fail to take their chances. A draw would suit the visitors given how they might try to protect what little they have, and that is the main scenario that would change the outlook.