December 14 – Having met with AFC President Shaikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa and AFC General Secretary Dato’ Windsor John on Sunday in Bahrain, the Saudi AFC Asian Cup 2027 bid team officially delivered their Bid Book to AFC headquarters in Kuala Lumpur today.
Saudi Arabia has made its bid for the 2027 Asian Cup hosting a core development objective of its national sports development plan.
The Saudis – under their campaign slogan ‘Forward for Asia’ – say their hosting in 2027 would provide a platform for “new and unique opportunities for the AFC’s 47 Member Associations to build the profile of football in their countries.”
SAFF General Secretary Ibrahim Alkassim added, “With our focus on providing a new experience, a new exchange and a new expansion for all of the AFC’s Member Associations, our bid to host the AFC Asian Cup is firmly rooted in opening up new horizons for Asian football. Football is an important part of life for our population of almost 34 million people, and we are determined to make sure that the opportunity of hosting the Asian Cup for the first time in our history will provide so many benefits, in Saudi Arabia and beyond.
In 2019 the Asian Cup was expanded to 24 teams and the a ground breaking championship in the UAE broke all Asian Cup records for fan engagement across the region. China is hosting in 2023 and is expected to take the AFC’s flagship competition to a new commercial and media profile level.
Speaking of the progress of the competition and its rapidly increased global profile, Salman said: “We could witness five Member Associations submitting bids to host the AFC Asian Cup 2027, which demonstrates the ever-growing status of this competition and how attractive it is both technically and commercially to potential hosts.”
At the same time as delivering their Bid Book the Saudis demonstrated a growing corporate support domestically with the announcement of a new sponsor for the bid in Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAUDIA).
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