Asian Cup postponement confirmed by the AFC
The Asian Cup postponement announced on Tuesday shifts the 24-team tournament from January 7 – February 5 to December 23, 2027 – January 21, 2028. Saudi Arabia was due to host. The Asian Football Confederation confirmed the change in a statement.
The trigger is security. Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement has attacked targets inside Saudi Arabia. A strike on Riyadh's international airport last month killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 300; the Houthis claimed responsibility. On Monday the group said it had launched drones towards Dammam airport.
What the organising committee said
The AFC organising committee cited "exceptional circumstances arising from developments in the region, including substantial logistical complexities and travel disruptions". It said the revised dates go to FIFA for approval.
"Exceptional circumstances have been created for the organisation and delivery of the competition as originally scheduled, making the postponement necessary in the interest of all participating teams, officials, spectators and other stakeholders."
Saudi organisers: preparations continue
Yasser Al-Misehal, head of the local organising committee, said Saudi Arabia had been fully prepared to host as originally scheduled. He told the Saudi state news agency that work continues toward the new window.
"We will continue our work with the same momentum leading up to the tournament's new dates in December 2027."
Saudi Arabia has won the Asian Cup three times and has never hosted it. The government has funded sport heavily through its Public Investment Fund, and the tournament was positioned as an early rehearsal for the 2034 World Cup.
Coaching contracts now sit on the clock
Several national-team coaches hold deals that expire in February, when the tournament had been due to finish. Australia's Tony Popovic, Japan's Hajime Moriyasu and Iraq's Graham Arnold are among them. Each federation must now decide whether to extend before the December 2027 start.
The Asian Cup has traditionally been staged in odd-numbered years and was set to move to an even-year cycle from the 2032 edition. The new dates straddle both.
Football Australia backs the decision
Football Australia said it supported the rescheduling. Chairman Anter Isaac said the safety of players, staff and fans comes first, and acknowledged the commitment of the Saudi Arabian Football Federation and the local organising committee.
Football Australia added that planned friendlies this month against Qatar in Doha and Jordan in Amman will go ahead.
Other events in the kingdom
- Golf's Asian Tour postponed the Saudi International indefinitely.
- Cycling's Urban World Championships were cancelled.
- The Six Kings Slam exhibition tennis tournament in Riyadh moved from October to December.
- FIFA postponed the FIFAe Finals 2026 video game competition in Jeddah to an unspecified date.
- Boxing continued: Saul "Canelo" Alvarez beat Christian Mbilli in a world title bout in Riyadh on Saturday.
What to watch
FIFA's approval of the new dates is the next formal step. After that, the open question is the coaching market: contracts that ran to February now cover a tournament that begins ten months later.
The original report was published by gmanetwork.com.
