The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) on Saturday announced that China has relinquished its rights to host the 2023 Asian Cup final due to the COVID-19 situation in the country. Reuters report good.
China has withdrawn as 2023 Asian Cup The country’s sporting ambitions were dealt another blow by Beijing’s strict zero-Covid strategy because of the coronavirus, hosts football officials said on Saturday.
in officers China Strategies are being adopted to completely eradicate the virus, which include rapid lockdowns and mass testing, and millions of people in Shanghai have faced heavy restrictions for more than a month. AFP report good.
But the measures – now rare globally, as most countries have shifted to live with Covid – have made hosting sporting events a major challenge.
The Olympic-sized Asian Games, scheduled for September in Hangzhou, had already been postponed earlier this month, and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said on Saturday that China would not host the Asian Cup.
Chinese football officials informed the AFC that they would not be able to host the 24-team competition, which was to be held in 10 cities in June and July next year.
No new host nation was named. “The AFC acknowledges the extraordinary circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led (China) to relinquish its hosting rights,” the governing body said in a statement.
Those involved in organizing the tournament had made “this very difficult but necessary decision in the collective interest of the tournament”.
The Asian Cup is organized every four years. Qatar won the last edition in 2019. This will be the second time that China has staged the Asian Cup. They hosted it in 2004, when the hosts lost 3–1 to Japan in the final.
The loss of major sporting events is a blow to the ruling Communist Party, which lit up its global image with dazzling spectacles such as Beijing’s 2008 Summer and 2022 Winter Olympics.
(with inputs from agencies)