March 30 – The Asian Football Confederation has established an Elite Club Competition Task Force to examine ways it can improve its Champions League as the region returns to full play following the covid pandemic.
The AFC has already taken the major step of reorganising its calendar to mirror the European season which will include matching European transfer windows to facilitate the movement of the best players between the two continents. But it is looking to do more to upgrade its leading club competition.
Announcing the task force, AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, said that although the AFC has continually evolved its club competitions, there is a conviction within the organisation that more can be achieved.
“With increases in prize money, expansion of teams and the revamp of formats to increase intensity, few tournaments in world football have witnessed such exponential growth than the AFC’s Club Competitions in the last decade, and the recent strategic reforms are already some of the most groundbreaking in Asian football history,” said Salman.
“I have every confidence that these changes will lead to a new period of growth and while we have made some important enhancements, this is not enough. We are always looking to improve what we have, and we must make strategic and bold changes to elevate the status of our elite club competition,” he continued.
“Therefore we will set up the Elite Club Competition Task Force, which will be responsible for establishing the ways in which we can transform our Elite Club Football into a more attractive stage to improve technical performance, drive commercial value and excite investors to elevate our club competitions to the next level.”
The task force will be comprised of national association members. Australia, China, Japan and Korea will join from the East region, with Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE from the East and Uzbekistan from the central zone.
Task Force will report its proposals and recommendations to the AFC Competitions Committee and subsequently to the Executive Committee in the coming months, said the AFC.
Salman was speaking at the 9th AFC Executive Committee meeting held today, two days before the FIFA Congress in Doha, where he praised national associations for their commitment to fulfilling competition schedules despite the challenges caused by the new Omicron variant in recent months.
“We successfully completed every competition that we set out to deliver – thanks to the same strength and unity showcased by our MAs and Regional Associations (RAs) well-admired throughout this pandemic,” said Salman.
“At the same time, despite the pandemic and new variants raging on, we have confirmed the host MAs for all our competitions, which places the AFC in the best possible position to deliver another successful 2022.”
Salman concluded: “The AFC’s commitment to raise the standards of the Asian game for our MAs and RAs to usher new heights of success, to build a better and brighter future is stronger than ever and it is a future that holds great promise for the AFC and its members.”
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1745988147labto1745988147ofdlr1745988147owedi1745988147sni@n1745988147osloh1745988147cin.l1745988147uap1745988147
