March 10 – The Gulf region has struck yet another blow for staging major tournaments with the news that The United Arab Emirates has been awarded hosting rights to the 2019 Asian Cup.
The Asian Football Confederation confirmed the award after the Emirates saw off competition from Iran which has been criticised for its ban on women spectators attending matches.
The decision was taken in Bahrain, during a meeting of the AFC executive committee chaired by AFC president Shaikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa.
The UAE has already hosted the World Youth Cup in 2013 and will hold the Asian Cup three years before Qatar stages the World Cup, the dates for which are expected to be announced by FIFA next week.
It has not been revealed how many AFC members voted for the UAE over Iran but in a statement the AFC said the decision was taken “following a transparent, detailed and highly competitive bidding process” and was ” based on the respective merits of the bids which covered a range of objective criteria including stadiums, transport, infrastructure, hotels, visas and various other sporting, logistical and administrative issues.”
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