The format is as follows:[2] Teams are ranked according to the following criteria (Regulations for the 2020 Olympic Football Tournaments, Article 19.2 and 19.3):[7] Play-off ties are played on a home-and-away two-legged basis.

If the aggregate score is tied after the second leg, the away goals rule is applied, and if still level, extra time is played.

The away goals rule is again applied after extra time, and if still level, the penalty shoot-out is used to determine the winner (Regulations for the 2020 Olympic Football Tournaments, Article 19.6).

The draw for the second round of the qualifiers was held on 13 February 2019, 16:00 MYT (UTC+8), at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

[16] The draw for the third round of the qualifiers was held on 18 October 2019, 16:00 MYT (UTC+8), at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The Korea Football Association had urged that it must be played in South Korean territory even if the match is played behind closed doors, while the Chinese Football Association had urged that it must be switched to a neutral venue such as Australia due to the re-entry ban to Chinese nationals by the Australian Federal government.

[49][50] On 3 March 2021, FIFA and AFC confirmed the venues and time for the play-off matches between South Korea and China.