The Qatar Football Association (QFA) has officially announced its bid to host the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. Qatar is one of the five bids presented to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), before the deadline on June 30, 2020.

Reigning champions Qatar are aiming to host the championship for the third time since the event’s inception in 1956, having hosted in 1988 and 2011. The other four Member Associations who have bid to stage Asia’s premier football tournament are (in alphabetical order by country):

  • All India Football Federation
  • Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran
  • Saudi Arabian Football Federation and
  • Uzbekistan Football Association.

The AFC will now work with each Bidding Member Association on the delivery of the necessary bidding documentation in accordance with the bidding process and will announce the host for the 19th edition of the AFC Asian Cup in 2021.

It is expected that the QFA bid file will detail the love of football in the country and the lasting legacy it possesses when it comes hosting top football events. Qatar is ahead of schedule with its preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

On this occasion, QFA secretary-general Mansoor al-Ansari said: “We present Qatar’s bid to win the rights to host the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. Our bid confirms the great desire to follow major sporting events, which Qatar has been conducting with great successes for over two decades now.

Qatar’s next big assignment is the 2022 FIFA World Cup and we are preparing well for the event.” Al-Ansari said that Qatar will be ready to host the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, taking advantage of the modern sports facilities that it has in the country. He added that the world-class sporting infrastructure in Qatar is a sound legacy for future football generations in the Asian continent.

The QFA Secretary-General stressed that Qatar has a proven track record in hosting world and continental sports championships. He said Qatar is confident it will be able to host a spectacular edition of the 2027 Asian Cup, an event it has hosted twice – in 1988 and 2011.

He added Qatar is currently preparing to stage biggest the footballing event – the FIFA World Cup – in 2022. The high ranking QFA official said Qatar is ahead of schedule with its large-scale preparations to stage the FIFA World Cup, saying the event will bring the football fans together for ‘unforgettable experience’.

AFC President Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim al-Khalifah said, “On behalf of the Asian football family, I would like to thank all our Member Associations for stepping forward to express their desire and for sharing our ambitions to host a world-class stage for our players, teams, officials and fans and I wish all of them the very best in the bidding process.”

Iran too have hosted the tournament twice, and are the only nation in Asian football history to have won the coveted crown twice on home soil in 1968 and 1976. Three-time champions Saudi Arabia and India, who were recently awarded the hosting rights for the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, as well as Uzbekistan, this year’s host for the AFC U-19 Championship, are all vying to stage Asia’s football crown jewel for the first time.

Source : Gulf Times

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