All you need to know about the AFC Asian Cup 2023

Teams, venues, tournament format, favourites and everything else you need to know about the AFC Asian Cup 2023 in Qatar.

One year on from a historic FIFA World Cup 2022, Qatar is set to defend its crown as the Asian football champion when it hosts the continent’s best teams at the AFC Asian Cup 2023.

The 24-team tournament gets under way on January 12 at the iconic Lusail Stadium, where Lionel Messi’s Argentina lifted their third World Cup crown in front of nearly 89,000 fans.

Here’s what you need to know about the continental tournament:

China was chosen as the host for the tournament, which was originally scheduled to be played in 10 cities in mostly newly built stadiums in June and July of 2023. However, the country relinquished its hosting rights following the COVID-19 pandemic and due to its zero-COVID policy.

In October 2022, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced Qatar as the new host country, on the back of its preparedness to host the World Cup. The Middle Eastern nation has previously staged the Asian Cup in 1988 and 2011.

The tournament kicks off on Friday, January 11 at 7pm (16:00 GMT) at the Lusail Stadium, where hosts Qatar will take on regional rivals Lebanon in the first match of group A.

Having gone through a yearlong qualification phase, 23 teams made the cut, while China was barred from the process on the basis of its original hosting rights. Four of the 24 teams from the last edition failed to qualify for the 2023 tournament.

Tajikistan were the surprise package of the qualification phase and have earned a spot in the final 24 as the only debutants. Meanwhile, Hong Kong make a return after an absence of over five decades and the increasingly confident South Asian giant India will make its second consecutive appearance.

Group A: Qatar, China, Tajikistan, Lebanon
Group B: Australia, Uzbekistan, Syria, India
Group C: Iran, UAE, Palestine, Hong Kong
Group D: Japan, Indonesia, Iraq, Vietnam
Group E: South Korea, Malaysia, Jordan, Bahrain
Group F: Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Kyrgyzstan, Oman

The top two teams in each group and the four best-ranked third-placed teams will advance to the round of 16.

Who are the hosts?

The bottom teams and the two worst-ranked third-placed teams in each group will be eliminated from the tournament.

Hot on the heels of hosting the world’s biggest sporting event, Qatar will have another chance to make use of its FIFA World Cup venues. One the nine tournament venues, seven played host to the World Cup, including Lusail Stadium, Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium, Al Bayt Stadium, Al Janoub Stadium, Education City Stadium, Khalifa International Stadium and Al Thumama Stadium.

A strong presence of teams from the Asia Pacific means Australia, Japan and South Korea will be amongst the top contenders to lift the crown.

However, the Middle East boasts its own favourites in regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia and defending champions Qatar.