As China says goodbye to 2023 Asian Cup, should Korea step in?

Korea Football Association headquarters in Seoul / Korea Times file

By John Duerden

Could South Korea replace China as host of the 2023 Asian Cup? Staging the event was once the aim of the Korea Football Association (KFA) but the organization removed its name from the hat before Beijing was given the tournament which takes place every four years. On Saturday, however, China formally relinquished hosting duties.

It was all explained in a statement from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). "The AFC acknowledges the exceptional circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to the relinquishment by China PR of its hosting rights," the AFC said. "The AFC appreciates that China PR have made this very difficult but necessary decision in the collective interests of the AFC Asian Cup 2023, which has also provided the AFC the required time to assess the situation regarding the hosting of the AFC Asian Cup 2023. Further details about the next steps related to the hosting of the AFC Asian Cup 2023 will be announced in due course."

The move hardly comes as a surprise. China is battling to maintain its zero-COVID policy as we have seen with severe lockdowns of Shanghai and Beijing. That has led to the East Asian Championships, which were due to take place this summer, being switched to Japan. Earlier this month, the 2022 Asian Games, a big event that was scheduled to take place in Hangzhou in September, was postponed. The Asian Cup, the continent's biggest soccer event that features 24-teams, was always in danger. The AFC was pushing China for an answer over 12 months before it was all due to start, but then such a big competition takes plenty of organizing.

Now the question is where the tournament goes. South Korea could host it. The AFC usually holds one tournament in West Asia and then the next in East Asia. It would make sense then if the Asian Cup stays in the region. There are enough stadiums and facilities to do so in South Korea. It would take some work at short notice but perhaps Japan could share: 12 teams in each country would not be that difficult, though it would still take the agreement of the government at both national and regional levels. The problem is that the political and public will may not be there with the shadow of COVID-19 still hanging around. The KFA is going to discuss the situation but will have to move quickly if it is to happen.

It may be that the AFC hands the event to Qatar. The 2022 World Cup host is seen as a safe pair of hands, and has hosted a number of continental games during the pandemic. The country is bidding for the 2027 Asian Cup and would be happy to step in just a little earlier, though the 2023 tournament would have to be moved to the winter of 2024 as it is too hot to play in the Middle East in June and July. But if Korea has genuine ambitions of hosting or co-hosting a World Cup in the future, and such ambitions exist, then hosting the Asian Cup first, or at least offering to do so, would be a step in the right direction.

Site Map E-paper Subscribe Register LogIn
Site Map E-paper Subscribe Register LogIn