Football: India Among Seven Countries Eyeing 2031 AFC Asian Cup Hosting Rights
India Confirm Interest To Host 2031 Asian Cup
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) formally announced their interest in hosting the 2031 Asian Cup by submitting an ‘Expression of Interest’ (EoI) to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) last month.
This is now the second time that the nation has submitted a bid to the AFC to host the tournament on their shores, having also done so in 2022 for the 2027 edition, which they eventually withdrew after learning that Saudi Arabia were the front-runners.
While India have improved their infrastructure, equipping them sufficiently to host such a prestigious competition, a major football tournament has not been staged in the country since the Under-17 FIFA World Cup back in 2017.
Although India are currently participating in the ongoing AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers for the 2027 tournament, if they are granted hosting rights for the 2021 edition, they will receive direct entry to the competition, foregoing the qualifying campaign.
Their best-ever performance since the Asian Cup came into existence was finishing as runners-up in 1964. Since then, they have qualified for the main draw on four occasions (1984, 2011, 2019 and 2023), but never made it beyond the group stage.
Bharat have made major strides to put the country on the map by expressing interest in hosting several global events, including the Commonwealth Games in 2030 and the Olympic Games in 2036. They also successfully staged the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup, which they won.
India are drawn into Group A for the 2027 qualifiers, and you can check out the latest AFC Asian Cup Qualification odds right here!
India To Face Tough Competition To Secure Hosting Rights
During the AFC’s Executive Committee meeting, which was held in Kuala Lumpur earlier this year, the president of the AFC, Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, confirmed that the 2031 edition of the Asian Cup received a record-breaking field of contenders to host the premier event.
A total of six other bids were received, including from Australia, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and South Korea, while Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan tabled a joint bid for hosting rights.
Australia are widely believed to be among the favourites to be selected, having hosted and won the tournament in 2015. They are also set to stage the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup following withdrawals from Jordan, Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia.
From here, the AFC will begin engaging with the seven nations in the running with a workshop scheduled later in April, leading up to their final decision, which will be announced by the AFC Congress in 2026.
Don’t forget, you can enjoy all the minute-by-minute action from the tournament using our Asian Cup livescore tool here on SportyTrader!
