Qatar will be home to continent’s premier football teams when it will host the Asian Cup 2023 early next year. It will be another major event in the sport which the country will host after staging the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 dubbed the best-ever edition in tournament’s history.
While more details are yet to come, the QFA has recently announced that the Local Organising Committee for the tournament to take place early next year will be headed by QFA President Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Thani.
Jassim Rashid Al Buainain, who was recently named as QFA Vice-President, was appointed as the Vice-Chairman while Jassim Abdulaziz Al Jassim was appointed as the CEO of the tournament.
This is the third time that Qatar will be hosting the Asian Cup, having staged it in 1988 and 2011. Fans can expect Qatar to stage another football blockbuster after it hosted a unique FIFA World Cup, receiving praise from across the globe.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino once again hailed Qatar’s remarkable organisation of the World Cup. “Let me thank Qatar once again! Shukran Qatar for hosting and welcoming the world and for uniting the world in what was an incredible event which we will never forget,” the FIFA President said at the Best FIFA Football Awards 2023 ceremony in Paris recently.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa reposed confidence in Qatar, saying the Asian Cup 2023 will be a huge success just like the Qatar 2022. He said picking Qatar as host country was an easy choice for the AFC after the country hosted an incredible World Cup, the success of which is unparalleled.
One of the unique aspects of Qatar 2022 was its compact nature with all stadiums located within an hour’s journey time of central Doha. The teams, officials and fans will enjoy the same luxury during the Asian Cup 2023.
The home team that will start as defending champions after winning the Asian Cup in 2019 in the UAE will add colours to the tournament as Al Annabi have a good history in the continent’s showpiece event. Qatar will be under former Portugal and Real Madrid boss Carlos Queiroz, who was recently appointed as the national coach.
Fans expect a significant improvement in the national team under the seasoned coach, who led Iran at the 2022 World Cup and has also managed South Africa, Colombia and Egypt. Like the FIFA World Cup, Qatar will certainly ensure best experience for all the stakeholders, having rich experience of hosting top-notch events and state-of-the-art facilities.
