A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 كأس آسيا 2023 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Tournament details | |
| Host country | Qatar |
| Dates | 12 January – 10 February 2024 |
| Teams | 24 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | 9 (in 5 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Qatar (2nd title) |
| Runners-up |  Jordan |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 51 |
| Goals scored | 132 (2.59 per match) |
| Attendance | 1,507,790 (29,565 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Akram Afif (8 goals) |
| Best player(s) | Akram Afif[1] |
| Best goalkeeper | Meshaal Barsham[2] |
| Fair play award | Qatar |
The 2023 AFC Asian Cup was the 18th edition of the AFC Asian Cup, the quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It involved 24 national teams after its expansion in 2019, with hosts Qatar the defending champions.[3][4]
On 17 October 2022, the AFC announced that the tournament would be held in Qatar, replacing the original hosts China.[5] Due to the high summer temperatures 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 both existing sponsorship and logistical purposes.[6][7]
Hosts and defending champions Qatar successfully retained their title, defeating Jordan 3–1 in the final.[8]
Host selection
China was acclaimed as the host country on 4 June 2019, as sole finishing bidder, days just prior to the 69th FIFA Congress in Paris, France.[9] The tournament was originally scheduled to be held from 16 June to 16 July 2023.[10] On 14 May 2022, the AFC announced that China would not host the tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic and China's Zero-COVID policy.[11] Due to China's relinquishment of its hosting rights,[12][13] the AFC conducted a second round of bidding, with a deadline for submissions scheduled on 17 October 2022.[14] Four nations submitted bids: Australia, Indonesia, Qatar, and South Korea.[15] However, Australia subsequently withdrew in September 2022,[16] as did Indonesia on 15 October.[17] On 17 October, the AFC announced that Qatar had won the bid and would host the tournament.[5]
Venues
Five host cities were submitted in the 2023 bid, including seven stadiums previously prepared for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. On 5 April 2023, the AFC announced the eight stadiums across four host cities for the tournament.[18] On 21 August 2023, Lusail Stadium was added as a ninth venue.[19] 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 international tournament previously.
Lusail Stadium hosted the opening match on 12 January.[19] Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan and Al Thumama Stadium in Doha hosted the semi-final matches, with Lusail hosted the final held on 10 February.[19]
On 5 January 2024, the Main Media Centre for the coverage of the tournament was officially inaugurated in Msheireb Downtown Doha.[20]
| City | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Al Khor | Al Bayt Stadium | 68,895 |
| Lusail | Lusail Stadium | 88,966 |
| Al Rayyan | Ahmad bin Ali Stadium | 45,032 |
| Education City Stadium | 44,667 | |
| Jassim bin Hamad Stadium | 15,000 | |
| Khalifa International Stadium | 45,857 | |
| Doha | Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium | 10,000 |
| Al Thumama Stadium | 44,400 | |
| Al Wakrah | Al Janoub Stadium | 44,325 |
Teams
The first two rounds of qualification also served as the Asian qualification for the 2022 World Cup. Qatar, the host of the World Cup, participated only in the second round to qualify for the 2023 Asian Cup (which they were later selected as hosts for after China withdrew its hosting rights).
Qualified teams
Of the 24 teams appearing, 20 teams were returning after appearing in the 2019 edition.
Tajikistan were the only debutant in the competition, while Hong Kong marked their return for the first time in 56 years. Indonesia and Malaysia both qualified for the first time since hosting the 2007 AFC Asian Cup.
Four nations from the previous edition failed to qualify (North Korea, Turkmenistan, Yemen, and the Philippines). India was the only SAFF representative in this edition, while it was the first time that five teams from the AFF managed to reach the finals (Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam). Only two teams from WAFF failed to qualify for this tournament (Yemen and Kuwait). Iran meanwhile extended their qualification record; this was their fifteenth straight appearance in the tournament, having qualified for every edition since 1968.
| Team | Method of qualification |
Date of qualification |
Finals appearance |
Last appearance |
Previous best performance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 China |
Original hosts and second round Group A runners-up | 4 June 2019[a] | 13th | 2019 | Runners-up (1984, 2004) |
 Japan |
Second round Group F winners | 28 May 2021 | 10th | 2019 | Winners (1992, 2000, 2004, 2011) |
 Syria |
Second round Group A winners | 7 June 2021 | 7th | 2019 | Group stage (1980, 1984, 1988, 1996, 2011, 2019) |
| Qatar |
Second round Group E winners, later appointed hosts | 7 June 2021 | 11th | 2019 | Winners (2019) |
 South Korea |
Second round Group H winners | 9 June 2021 | 15th | 2019 | Winners (1956, 1960) |
 Australia |
Second round Group B winners | 11 June 2021 | 5th | 2019 | Winners (2015) |
 Iran |
Second round Group C winners | 15 June 2021 | 15th | 2019 | Winners (1968, 1972, 1976) |
 Saudi Arabia |
Second round Group D winners | 15 June 2021 | 11th | 2019 | Winners (1984, 1988, 1996) |
 United Arab Emirates |
Second round Group G winners | 15 June 2021 | 11th | 2019 | Runners-up (1996) |
 Iraq |
Second round Group C runners-up | 15 June 2021 | 10th | 2019 | Winners (2007) |
 Oman |
Second round Group E runners-up | 15 June 2021 | 5th | 2019 | Round of 16 (2019) |
 Vietnam |
Second round Group G runners-up | 15 June 2021 | 5th | 2019 | Fourth place (1956,[b] 1960[b]) |
 Lebanon |
Second round Group H runners-up | 15 June 2021 | 3rd | 2019 | Group stage (2000, 2019) |
 Palestine |
Third round Group B winners | 14 June 2022 | 3rd | 2019 | Group stage (2015, 2019) |
 Uzbekistan |
Third round Group C winners | 14 June 2022 | 8th | 2019 | Fourth place (2011) |
 Thailand |
Third round Group C runners-up | 14 June 2022 | 8th | 2019 | Third place (1972) |
 India |
Third round Group D winners | 14 June 2022 | 5th | 2019 | Runners-up (1964) |
 Hong Kong |
Third round Group D runners-up | 14 June 2022 | 4th | 1968 | Third place (1956) |
 Tajikistan |
Third round Group F winners | 14 June 2022 | 1st | Debut | None |
 Kyrgyzstan |
Third round Group F runners-up | 14 June 2022 | 2nd | 2019 | Round of 16 (2019) |
 Bahrain |
Third round Group E winners | 14 June 2022 | 7th | 2019 | Fourth place (2004) |
 Malaysia |
Third round Group E runners-up | 14 June 2022 | 4th | 2007 | Group stage (1976, 1980, 2007) |