Jeddah: With India withdrawing from selection to host the 2027 Asian Cup, the tournament has been confirmed to be held in Saudi Arabia. Currently, India and Saudi Arabia have applied to host the tournament. But when the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) confirmed the Indian Football Federation’s withdrawal from the request, the ball was in the Saudis’ court. Two years ago, the AFC looked into applications from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iran, India and Uzbekistan to host the Asian Cup, and only India and Saudi Arabia were accepted. As India withdrew from the request, final approval to host the Asian Cup football tournament could be given to Saudi Arabia during the AFC regional meeting to be held in Bahrain on February 1.
India, which had been pursuing the request until the last moment, now has no clear reason for withdrawing from the request. Last October, FIFA canceled the U-17 Women’s World Cup matches that were due to take place in India. The FIFA Council’s action was due to outside interference in the governance of the All India Football Federation. FIFA has also imposed a condition that the Indian football team cannot play international matches until the ban is lifted. It should become clear in the coming days whether India withdrew from the Asian Cup for these reasons.
The 2023 Asian Cup was supposed to be hosted by China, but China withdrew due to Covid. Subsequently, next year’s Asian Cup will be held in Qatar, which will host the World Cup. But there is a possibility that the tournament, which was supposed to be held next year, will be moved to January 2024. The Asian Cup football tournament, which began in 1956, has been held twice in Qatar. Despite being champions of the tournament three times, Saudi Arabia has yet to host an Asian Cup football tournament.
