The 2023 AFC Asian Cup will be the 18th edition of the AFC Asian Cup, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Asia organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It will involve 24 national teams after expansion in 2019, with Qatar as the defending champions.[1][2]
On 17 October 2022, the AFC announced that the tournament will be held in Qatar.[3] Due to the high summer temperatures in the Arabian Gulf and Qatar's participation in the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup, the tournament was postponed to 12 January – 10 February 2024, while retaining the original name for sponsorship purposes.[4][5]
China was announced as the winning bid on 4 June 2019, just prior to the 69th FIFA Congress in Paris, France.[6] The tournament was originally scheduled to be held from 16 June to 16 July 2023.[7] On 14 May 2022, the AFC announced that China would not host the tournament due to the circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and China's Zero-COVID policy.[8] Due to China's relinquishment of its hosting rights,[9][10] the AFC conducted a second round of bidding, with a deadline for submissions scheduled on 17 October 2022.[11] Four nations submitted bids: Australia, Indonesia, Qatar, and South Korea.[12] However, Australia subsequently withdrew in September 2022[13] and Indonesia on 15 October.[14] On 17 October, the AFC announced that Qatar won the bid and would host the tournament.[3]
Five host cities were submitted in the 2023 bid, including seven stadiums prepared for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. On 5 April 2023, AFC announced eight stadiums across four host cities for the tournament.[15] On 21 August 2023, Lusail Stadium was added as a ninth venue.[16] All but one (Stadium 974) of the host stadiums from the 2022 FIFA World Cup were selected for the tournament, along with Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, which hosted matches during the 2011 edition, and Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, which had not hosted any tournament previously.
Lusail Stadium, Lusail will host the opening match on 12 January.[16]Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan and Al Thumama Stadium in Doha will host the semi-finals matches; and Lusail Stadium will host the final which will be held on 10 February.[16]
The first two rounds of qualification also served as the Asian qualification for the 2022 World Cup. Qatar, the host of World Cup participated only in the second round solely to qualification for the 2023 Asian Cup, which they were later selected as hosts for after China withdrew its hosting rights.
Teams were drawn consecutively into Group A to F. For the first time in AFC Asian Cup history, the teams from lowest pots were drawn first but not assigned to the positions of their groups following by number orders of group stage as happened in previous editions. Pot 1 teams were assigned to the first positions of their groups, while next the positions of all other teams were drawn separately from Pot 4 to 2 (for the purposes of determining the match schedules in each group).
Each team had to register a squad with a minimum of 18 players and a maximum of 23 players, at least three of whom must be goalkeepers.[19] In December 2023, the maximum was increased to 26 players.[20]
Officiating
On 14 September 2023, the AFC announced the list of 33 referees, 37 assistant referees, two stand-by referees and two stand-by assistant referees, including two female referees and three female assistant referees. Video Assistant Referee (VAR) will be used for the entire tournament following its implementation from the quarter-final stage onwards in the 2019 edition.[21] The Semi-Automated Offside Technology (SAOT) system, which utilises 12 specialised cameras and artificial intelligence (A.I.), will also be implemented at all 51 matches. This marks the first time that SAOT will be in place at an AFC competition and makes the AFC the first confederation to apply the system at the continental men's national team level.[22]
Teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings:[1]
Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
If more than two teams were tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams are still tied, all head-to-head criteria above are reapplied exclusively to this subset of teams;
Goal difference in all group matches;
Goals scored in all group matches;
Penalty shoot-out if only two teams are tied and they are playing each other in the last round of the group;
Disciplinary points (yellow card = 1 point, red card as a result of two yellow cards = 3 points, direct red card = 3 points, yellow card followed by direct red card = 4 points);
The official logo and TV opening of the tournament was launched during the final draw on 11 May 2023. The logo features a silhouette of the AFC Asian Cup trophy, with the trophy lines inspired from feathers of a falcon and petals of the lotus flower. The top of the logo is colored in Qatar's national color, maroon, while the logo's tail features an Arabic nuqta.[25]
The tournament's slogan, "Hayya Asia", translating to "Let's go Asia!", was revealed on 5 October 2023 in an event to mark 100 days until the tournament.[26]
Match ball
The official match ball, the VORTEXAC23, was made by Kelme and unveiled on 10 August 2023. The ball’s design incorporates Qatar’s maroon colours, echoing the nation’s identity, and mirrors the championship’s emblem at its centre. Technical assessments have rigorously tested the ball’s performance, ensuring its durability, quality, and readiness.[27]
On 20 December 2023, the official match ball of the Final, named VORTEXAC23+, was revealed. VORTEXAC23+’s gold colour takes inspiration from the desert sands of the host nation, Qatar, which combines elegantly with the nation’s traditional maroon colour. The contrast reflects the competitive spirit of the most exciting moments, as the dominance of the gold depicts the glory of reaching and competing for the coveted Asian Cup title.[28]
Mascots
On 2 December 2023, the tournament's official mascots were unveiled in Barahat Msheireb, Doha, through an anime-inspired animation produced by Katara Studios. The mascots are a family of five jerboas named Saboog, Tmbki, Freha, Zkriti and Traeneh, who were also the mascots of the 2011 edition when Qatar last hosted the tournament. The mascots were created by Qatari artist Ahmed Al Maadheed, with the animation directed by Fahad Al Kuwari and the song performed by Qatari artist Dana Al Meer and singer/composer Tarek Al Arabi Tourgane. Four of the five mascots are named after locations in Qatar, while Saboog is derived from the term used to refer to a jerboa in Qatar. The mascots were each created with different characteristics, akin to the different roles players undertake during a football match, and made to resemble a traditional household in Qatar.[29][30]
Ticket sales
The first batch of tickets for the tournament - with more than 150,000 tickets had been sold out in just a week, since sales began on 10 October 2023.[31] Another 90,000 tickets of the second batch have been sold within the first 24 hours since being released on 19 November 2023. Fans from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and India bought the majority of tickets offered. In addition to the opening match between Qatar and Lebanon, scheduled for 12 January 2024, the match between Saudi Arabia and Oman also led ticket sales.[32]
Prices for match tickets start from as low as QAR 25 (approximately USD6.8) to enable greater access for the millions of fans.[33]
On 20 November 2023, the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the tournament has announced that it will donate revenue from ticket sales to support emergency relief for Palestine, amidst the ongoing Israel–Hamas war.[34][35]
eSports tournament
On 8 December 2023, the AFC has announced that it will unveil the inaugural edition of AFC eAsian Cup, from 1 to 5 February 2024. This eSports tournament will be played on Konami's latest football video game - eFootball 2024. It marks the confederation’s first foray into the world of esports. Taking place in Doha, the event will feature 20 AFC Member Associations, who are competing in the upcoming Asian Cup.[36]
^China was awarded hosting rights on 4 June 2019. They later finished as second round Group A runners-up on 15 June 2021, which would earn them a qualification regardless of the hosting status. China later withdrew their hosting rights on 14 May 2022.
China
Japan
Syria
Qatar
South Korea
Australia
Iran
Saudi Arabia
United Arab Emirates
Iraq
Oman
Vietnam
Lebanon
Palestine
Uzbekistan
Thailand
India
Hong Kong
Tajikistan
Kyrgyzstan
Bahrain
Malaysia
Jordan
Indonesia
Shaun Evans
Fu Ming
Mohanad Qasim Sarray
Yusuke Araki
Adham Makhadmeh
Kim Hee-gon
Mohammed Al Hoaish
Ahmad Al-Ali
Nazmi Nasaruddin
Ahmed Al-Kaf
Abdulrahman Al-Jassim
Muhammad Taqi
Hanna Hattab
Sivakorn Pu-Udom
Omar Al-Ali
Akhrol Riskullaev
Alireza Ildorom
Sadullo Gulmurodi
34'
