India expresses formal interest to host the AFC Asian Cup 2031

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has officially joined the race to host the AFC Asian Cup 2031, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced on Friday.

A record seven member associations have officially shown interest in staging the AFC Asian Cup in 2031, all having submitted their candidatures before the March 31 deadline.

AFC President hails unprecedented response for #AsianCup2031 hosting! https://t.co/rghiwutVO9

India had previously bid for the 2027 version and had a two-horse race with Saudi Arabia. The AIFF, however, pulled out of the bid without much explanation, leaving the hosting rights to the Gulf country, which will also stage the 2034 FIFA World Cup.

India throws its hat in the ring!

India has officially submitted its expression of interest to host the AFC Asian Cup 2031, continental’s top competition.

A record number of bids received by AFC - Australia 🇦🇺 South Korea 🇰🇷 Kuwait 🇰🇼 India 🇮🇳 UAE 🇦🇪 Indonesia 🇮🇩 and the…

Record number of bidders for the AFC Asian Cup 2031

Expanded to 24 teams in 2019, the 2023 edition of the AFC Asian Cup took place in January of 2024 in Qatar, shattering records for attendance, viewing figures, broadcast, and social media usage. 

With the upcoming 2027 edition in Saudi Arabia poised to shatter all previous records once again, now the AFC member countries are all lining up for a piece of the action.

The bidding nations who have lodged their official candidatures include Australia, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, and a collective central Asian bid submitted by the Kyrgyz Football Union, Tajikistan Football Federation, and Uzbekistan FA.

Speaking at the AFC’s executive committee meeting ahead of the AFC’s annual congress in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday, AFC president Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa stated:

The record number of bids that we have received is further testament to the stature and appeal of the AFC Asian Cup and on behalf of the AFC Executive Committee, I would like to put on record our sincere appreciation to all our MAs for outlining their ambition to extend and expand on our proud legacy.

He further added:

The AFC Asian Cup is undoubtedly one of the greatest success stories and the last edition in Qatar firmly cemented Asia’s flagship as one of the best football competitions in the world,

Hosting the AFC Asian Cup™ has consistently provided tangible and intangible benefits, including infrastructure development, enhanced connectivity, organisational expertise, elevated football technical standards and solidifying the host nation’s status as a global sports hub,

The unprecedented level of interest we have witnessed reflects both the high ambitions of the AFC’s Member Associations and their increasing confidence in their own capacities and capabilities to host a tournament as significant as the AFC Asian Cup.

The AFC have officially stated that they will now work with the Bidding MAs in the provision of the required bidding documentation within the stipulated timelines and procedures, with a Bidding Workshop for the AFC Asian Cup 2031 to be conducted later this month.

Subsequently, the bids will be evaluated in totality by the AFC Administration before the host of the 24-team tournament is chosen by the AFC Congress in 2026.

Furthermore, the AFC Executive Committee also endorsed the resolutions of all the Standing Committees, the Organizing Committee for AFC Asian Cup, the AFC Finance Committee, the AFC Competitions Committee, and the AFC Professional Football Committee.

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