AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 dates announced

Article posted by Coliseum, April 7^th, 2023

Image: AFC

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the Local Organizing Committee for the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 have confirmed that the upcoming edition of the continent’s flagship international competition will be held from January 12^th to February 10^th, 2024.

‘ARAB NEWS’ stated that the tournament was initially scheduled to be played in China this year.

Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)-based the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is the governing body of association football, beach football and futsal in some countries/territories in Asia and Oceania. It has 47 member-countries most of which are located in Asia. Australia, formerly in Oceania Football Confederation (OFC), joined AFC in 2006.

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The 2023 AFC Asian Cup will be the 18^th edition of the AFC Asian Cup, the quadrennial international men’s football championship of Asia organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It will involve 24 national teams after expansion in 2019, with Qatar as the defending champions.

‘ARAB NEWS’ further stated that Asia’s top 24 nations will take part in the event, and as part of efforts to engage with more fans, the 18th edition of the tournament will have the opening game on a Friday and the final on a weekend.

At the same time, the AFC and LOC have also confirmed that the tournament will be staged across eight stadiums, six of which were venues for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™. These are the 44,325-capacity Al-Janoub Stadium in Al-Wakrah, the 68,895-capacity Al-Bayt Stadium in Al Khor, the 45,032-capacity Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Rawdat Al Jahhaniya, the 44,400-capacity Al-Thumama Stadium in Doha, the 44,667-capacity Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, the 45,857-capacity Khalifa International Stadium in Al Rayyan, the 15,000-capacity Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, and the 9,000-capacity Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha, Qatar.

Remarked Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al-Khalifa, AFC President, “We know that the Local Organizing Committee and the Qatar Football Association will stage a true spectacle never before experienced in Asian football history. Already, we have witnessed the Qatar Football Association (QFA) and the Qatari authorities organize the best-ever FIFA World Cup™ in the history of the modern game, and we have every faith that they will showcase their unrivaled hosting capabilities, state-of-the-art infrastructure and warm hospitality well admired throughout the world for the benefit of our teams, players and the passionate fans. We praise them for their dedication and commitment, and we are delighted to confirm the competition dates and venues, which represents an important milestone in our ambitions to provide the ultimate stage for our teams and players to shine.”

The AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 will be held across 30 days, two more than the 2019 edition in the UAE, as part of efforts to enhance the experience for fans as well as raise the stature and commercial value of the competition.

The official draw ceremony for the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2022 has also been confirmed, to be held at the 550-capacity Katara Opera House in Doha on May 11^th, 2023, with the official match schedule also expected to be unveiled shortly after the draw.

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