The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Executive Committee is expected to discuss the possible postponement of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup during a series of meetings in Japan. The tournament, currently scheduled to be hosted by Saudi Arabia, could be moved back by a year to 2028.
The issue has emerged amid heightened security concerns in Saudi Arabia. Several major international sporting events have recently been postponed or cancelled following attacks on infrastructure, including Riyadh International Airport.
AFC President Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa has already confirmed that delaying the tournament until 2028 is one of the options under consideration.
“We can postpone the tournament for a year, to 2028, if necessary,” Sheikh Salman said. He added that the AFC was in no rush to make a final decision and could continue monitoring the situation until the end of November.
Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, continues to prepare for the tournament according to the original schedule. The Local Organising Committee has said that work on stadiums and other tournament-related projects remains on track and is being carried out in coordination with the AFC.
The Asian Cup is currently scheduled to take place from January 7 to February 5, 2027, in Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar, with 24 national teams taking part.
Three Central Asian teams have qualified for the tournament: Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
Uzbekistan were drawn in Group B alongside Bahrain, North Korea and Jordan. Kyrgyzstan will face Iran, Syria and China in Group C, while Tajikistan were placed in Group D with Australia, Iraq and Singapore.
A number of AFC events are scheduled to take place in Tokyo next week. A conference for presidents and general secretaries of the confederation’s member and regional associations will be held on October 21–22, followed by an Extraordinary AFC Congress on October 23.
No final decision on postponing the Asian Cup has yet been taken.
A move to 2028 would also fit into a broader discussion over the future of the AFC competition calendar. The confederation previously suspended the bidding processes for the 2031 and 2035 Asian Cups after proposals emerged to stage the continental championship in even-numbered years.