China gives up hosting rights for 2023 Asian Cup due to Covid-19, confirms AFC

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) on Saturday confirmed that China has given up on the hosting rights for the 2023 Asian Cup football tournament due to the Covid-19 situation in the country.

The Asian Cup, which will feature 24 national teams from the continent, was scheduled to be held from June 16 to July 16 across 10 cities in China. The AFC said it will announce a new host for the tournament in due course.

Notably, the Asian Cup news comes weeks after the Asian Games, which was set to be held in September in the Chinese city of Huangzhou, were postponed until 2023 due to the pandemic



situation.

"Following extensive discussions with the Chinese Football Association (CFA), the Asian Football Confederation has been officially informed by the CFA that it would not be able to host the AFC Asian Cup 2023," the confederation said in a statement.

"The AFC acknowledges the exceptional circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to the relinquishment by China PR of its hosting rights."

China continues to implement a zero-COVID policy and cities across the country have faced tight restrictions as a result of a recent outbreak of the Omicron variant.