South Korean players celebrate their 4-2 win over Saudi Arabia in the penalty shootout in the round of 16 at the Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup at Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, on Jan. 30, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Feb. 28 (Korea Bizwire) — The South Korean football governing body announced Friday it has submitted a bid to host the top Asian men’s football tournament in 2031.
The Korea Football Association (KFA) said it sent its “Expression of Interest” (EoI) to host the 2031 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup to the AFC on Thursday.
The deadline for submission is Friday. The KFA said Australia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Indonesia have also sent their EoIs, while Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan have submitted a joint bid.
The AFC will later demand further bid documents from all member associations with an interest in the tournament. Following an evaluation process, which will include a visit by AFC officials to each interested country, the host will be named in 2026.
The AFC Asian Cup was first held in 1956, and South Korea hosted the second edition in 1960. It was also the last time the country won the tournament.
South Korea lost out to Qatar in the bid for the 2023 Asian Cup, which ended up taking place in early 2024. The 2027 event will be in Saudi Arabia.
(Yonhap)
