2023 Asian Cup: 50 days to go

euronews (in English)

23/11/2023

Hosts Qatar will be looking to defend their 2019 crown

Transcript

00:00 Qatar's football legacy will be forever associated with the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

00:05 But just over a year since that iconic tournament,

00:08 the country is ready to take the centre stage once again

00:11 and host the Asian Cup in less than 50 days.

00:14 Hello there and welcome to Football Now from Doha.

00:22 Now, you may remember this place, the Ahmed Ben Ali Stadium,

00:26 which played host to seven matches during the recent 2022 FIFA World Cup here in Qatar.

00:31 The good news is that this brilliant arena will be back on the world stage once again

00:35 as the country gets set to host the Asian Cup in January.

00:39 It's a competition that holds a special place in the recent memory of this country as well.

00:43 Here's a little bit of background into the Asian Cup.

00:46 Organised by the AFC, the Asian Cup is the continent's elite football competition.

00:51 Held every four years, the first edition held in Hong Kong in 1956, containing just four teams.

00:58 But over the last 70 years of football development in Asia,

01:02 the tournament has expanded and now 24 nations will be competing for glory when kick-off arrives.

01:08 Notable previous winners include Japan, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Qatar,

01:14 who are also the hosts this time around after organising the FIFA World Cup just last year.

01:20 It's a chance for the country to reuse seven of the eight World Cup stadiums that made 2022 so successful,

01:27 with thousands of fans from all around the continent

01:30 expected to travel to the Middle East for another festival of football.

01:33 We are taking this AFC as another opportunity to see the crowd, the people.

01:39 We really miss you, we miss the World Cup.

01:41 We had an amazing memory.

01:43 So, in continuation of the World Cup, we are having the AFC matches again,

01:48 to have the full house matches again into this big stadium.

01:52 They will enjoy the crowd and other facilities of Qatar.

01:56 And the AFC matches will be during winter time,

01:59 in which you will have a pleasant atmosphere to get into the stadium.

02:02 Yeah, the Maroons will be hoping that they can use 2019 as inspiration this time around.

02:10 Carlos Cuarez's side are going up against some tough teams though,

02:13 so let's take a look at how the draw is shaping up.

02:15 24 sides split over six groups will take part in the tournament.

02:20 In Group A, the hosts will be joined by China, first-timers Tajikistan and Lebanon.

02:25 Australia are riding high after making it out of the World Cup group stages

02:29 for the first time in their history in 2022.

02:32 They'll come up against Uzbekistan, Syria and India in Group B.

02:36 Group C will feature Iran under new management after Carlos Cueros departed for the Qatar job.

02:42 They will fancy their chances to progress against the UAE, Hong Kong and Palestine.

02:48 Prescoring Japan will be the favourites to get out of Group D.

02:51 Their attacking talent earned them big wins over Germany, Turkey and Canada in recent months.

02:57 Former winners Iraq, Indonesia and Vietnam will join them.

03:02 Korea will want to bounce back from their World Cup exit against Brazil as quickly as possible.

03:07 They've got a new manager in Jürgen Klinsmann

03:09 and shouldn't have too many problems against Malaysia, Jordan and Bahrain in Group E.

03:14 And Saudi Arabia will begin their campaign in high spirits

03:17 given the investment that their country is making in football at the moment.

03:21 Italian manager Roberto Mancini will lead them into the tournament,

03:24 facing Thailand, Kyrgyzstan and Oman.

03:28 So as you'll have seen, a number of huge footballing nations are set to descend on Qatar in January,

03:32 giving you a taste into just how hotly anticipated this competition is.

03:36 But which country has a realistic chance of lifting the trophy and being crowned Asia's top team?

03:41 One team to keep an eye out at the Asian Cup could be the UAE.

03:44 Their successive semi-final finishes in the Asian Cups and now they have Paulo Bento,

03:49 who can probably be considered as maybe South Korea's most successful ever manager.

03:53 So they've got the recent pedigree, the UAE.

03:55 They've had a very chasing in a few years in regards to performances at the World Cups and things like that.

04:01 But they have the recent pedigree in the Asian Cups and with Paulo Bento,

04:04 one of the most experienced international managers currently in Asia at the moment.

04:08 So it'll be interesting to see how they get on.

04:09 They've also got quite a generous group,

04:11 so that could maybe see them pick up momentum as the tournament goes on.

04:15 Now this place was one of eight stadiums that played host to matches during last year's World Cup.

04:23 Qatar 2022 was deemed a huge success, so much so that many have called it the best World Cup of all time.

04:31 But to host an event like that isn't just about seeing great football on the pitch.

04:34 The logistics need to absolutely run like clockwork.

04:38 35,000 volunteers helped make that tournament what it was.

04:41 6,000 have got the opportunity to do so again at the Asian Cup this time around

04:45 and play a pivotal role in the success of yet another Qatar tournament.

04:49 To summarise, I think they're the spine of operations here.

04:54 Not only to deliver what they did, but the positive impact you see around volunteers always is incredible.

05:04 Whenever you walk into the volunteer centre or go to a place where there are volunteers,

05:09 they're always enjoying what they're doing, which gives a positive vibe within the organisation.

05:16 But they're the spine for sure for any tournament, not just this World Cup.

05:22 So a lot of people with different backgrounds doing something that they love and enjoy

05:28 with no return except to give back to the community and enjoy their time.

05:33 They're very, very important to any tournament from an operational perspective and also from a social perspective.

05:39 Yeah, the volunteers certainly are an inspiration, aren't they?

05:42 That brings us to the end of this week's show from the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Doha.

05:46 Do let us know your thoughts at home using the hashtag #FootballNowAsianCup

05:49 and we'll see you at the same time next week.

05:51 Bye for now.

05:52 [MUSIC]

05:55 (upbeat music)

05:58 (upbeat music)

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