Asian Football Confederation

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is one of the six continental confederations within FIFA and is the governing body of association football in Asia and Australia. It has 47 member countries, mostly located on the Asian continent, but excludes the transcontinental countries with territory in both Europe and Asia – Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkey – which are instead members of UEFA. Three other states located geographically along the western fringe of Asia – Cyprus, Armenia and Israel – are also UEFA members. On the other hand, Australia, formerly in the OFC, joined the Asian Football Confederation in 2006. Guam, a territory of the United States, and the Northern Mariana Islands, one of the two Commonwealths of the United States are also AFC members that are geographically in Oceania. Hong Kong and Macau, although not independent countries (both are Special administrative regions of China), are also members of the AFC.

Asian Football Confederation
AbbreviationAFC
MottoOne Asia One Goal
Formation8 May 1954 (1954-05-08)
Founded atManila, Philippines
TypeSports organisation
HeadquartersBukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Region served
Asia (AFC)
Membership
47 member associations
Official language
English, Arabic[1]
President
Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa
Vice Presidents
General Secretary
Windsor John[2][3]
Parent organization
FIFA
Subsidiaries
5
  • AFF
  • CAFA
  • EAFF
  • SAFF
  • WAFF
Websitewww.the-afc.com

The AFC was officially formed on 8 May 1954 in Manila, Philippines, on the sidelines of the second Asian Games. The main headquarters is located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The current president is Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa of Bahrain.

History

The Asian Football Confederation was founded on 8 May 1954. Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar), Republic of China (Chinese Taipei), Hong Kong, Iran, India, Israel, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore and South Vietnam were founding members.[4][5]

The AFC Asian Cup is the second-oldest continental football competition in the world, with four teams taking part in the first edition in the then-British Hong Kong in 1956.[6]

The Asian Ladies Football Confederation (ALFC) is the section of the AFC who manage women's football in Asia. The group was independently founded in April 1968 in a meeting involving Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. In 1986 the ALFC merged with the AFC.[7] The Asian Ladies Football Confederation helped organize the AFC Women's Asian Cup, first held in 1975, as well as the AFC's AFC U-19 Women's Championship and the AFC U-17 Women's Championship.

AFC Executive Committee

AFC President and FIFA Senior Vice President[8]
  • Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa
FIFA Council Members[8]
  • Du Zhaocai
  • Praful Patel
  • Kohzo Tashima
  • Mariano Araneta
  • Saoud Al-Mohannadi
  • Mahfuza Akhter Kiron
AFC Vice Presidents[8]
  • Saoud Al-Mohannadi
  • Mehdi Taj
  • Faisal Saleh Hayat
  • Zaw Zaw
  • Ganbaatar Amgalanbaatar
AFC Executive Committee Members[8]
  • Abed-Alkhaliq Masoud Ahmed
  • Hachem Haider
  • Salem Said Salem Al Wahaibi
  • Hamid Mohammed Ali Al-Shaibani
  • Dasho Ugen Tsechup Dorji
  • Chris Nikou
  • Hamidin Mohd Amin
  • Tran Quoc Tuan
  • Fok Kai Shan Eric
  • Susan Shalabi Molano
  • Kanya Keomany
  • Han Un-gyong
General Secretary
  • Windsor John

Member associations

AFC regional federations
AFC headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The AFC has 47 member associations which split into five regions. Several nations proposed a South West Asian Federation but that will not interfere with AFC zones.[9][10][11]

CodeAssociationNational teamsFoundedFIFA
affiliation
AFC
affiliation
IOC
member
West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) (12)
BHR Bahrain(M, W)195719681969Yes
IRQ Iraq(M, W)194819501970Yes
JOR Jordan(M, W)194919561970Yes
KUW Kuwait(M, W)195219641964Yes
LBN Lebanon(M, W)193319361964Yes
OMA Oman(M, W)197819801980Yes
PLE Palestine(M, W)192819951995Yes
QAT Qatar(M, W)196019721974Yes
KSA Saudi Arabia(M, W)195619561972Yes
SYR Syria(M, W)193619371970Yes
UAE United Arab Emirates(M, W)197119741974Yes
YEM Yemen(M, W)196219801980Yes
Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) (6)
AFG Afghanistan(M, W)193319481954Yes
IRN Iran(M, W)192019481954Yes
KGZ Kyrgyzstan(M, W)199219941993Yes
TJK Tajikistan(M, W)193619941993Yes
TKM Turkmenistan(M, W)199219941993Yes
UZB Uzbekistan(M, W)194619941993Yes
South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) (7)
BAN Bangladesh(M, W)197219761974Yes
BHU Bhutan(M, W)198320001993Yes
IND India(M, W)193719481954Yes
MDV Maldives(M, W)198219861984Yes
NEP   Nepal(M, W)195119721954Yes
PAK Pakistan(M, W)194719481954Yes
SRI Sri Lanka(M, W)193919521954Yes
ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) (12)
AUS Australia[m 1][m 2](M, W)196119632006Yes[m 3]
BRU Brunei(M, W)195219721969Yes
CAM Cambodia(M, W)193319541954Yes
IDN Indonesia(M, W)193019521954Yes
LAO Laos(M, W)195119521968Yes
MAS Malaysia(M, W)193319541954Yes
MYA Myanmar(M, W)194719481954Yes
PHI Philippines(M, W)190719301954Yes
SIN Singapore(M, W)189219521954Yes
THA Thailand(M, W)191619251954Yes
TLS Timor-Leste(M, W)200220052002Yes
VIE Vietnam(M, W)196019521954Yes
East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) (10)
CHN China PR(M, W)192419311974Yes
TPE Chinese Taipei[m 4](M, W)193619541954Yes
GUM Guam[m 1](M, W)197519961991Yes[m 3]
HKG Hong Kong(M, W)191419541954Yes
JPN Japan(M, W)192119211954Yes
PRK North Korea(M, W)194519581974Yes
KOR South Korea(M, W)192819481954Yes
MAC Macau(M, W)193919781978No[m 5]
MNG Mongolia(M, W)195919981993Yes
NMI Northern Mariana Islands[m 1][m 6](M, W)2005N/A2009No[m 7]

Notes

  1. Oceania country or territory, but AFC member.
  2. Former member of the Oceania Football Confederation (1966–1972, 1978–2006), joined AFC.
  3. Oceania country or territory is a member of the Oceania National Olympic Committees rather than the Olympic Council of Asia.
  4. Former member of the Oceania Football Confederation (1976–1982), joined AFC.
  5. Macau's Olympic Committee is an OCA member, but not an IOC member.
  6. Associate AFC member, not a FIFA member.
  7. Part of the United States Olympic Committee.

Former members

  • Israel Football Association, 1954–1974. Expelled from AFC competitions in 1974, as a result of a proposal by Kuwait which was adopted by a vote of 17 to 13 with 6 abstentions.[12] Became full UEFA members in 1994.
  • New Zealand Football, 1964.[13] Founding member of OFC in 1966
  • Football Federation of Kazakhstan, 1993–2002. Joined UEFA in 2002

Competitions

Current title holders

Competitions Champions Title Runners-up Next edition
Men's National Teams
AFC Asian Cup Qatar 1st  Japan 2023
AFC Solidarity Cup    Nepal 1st  Macau 2020
Asian Games Men's Football Tournament  South Korea 5  Japan 2022
AFC U-23 Championship  South Korea 1st  Saudi Arabia 2022
AFC U-19 Championship  Saudi Arabia 3rd  South Korea 2020
AFC U-16 Championship  Japan 3rd  Tajikistan 2020
AFC U-14 Championship  South Korea 1st  North Korea 2022
AFC Futsal Championship  Iran 12th  Japan 2020
AFC U-20 Futsal Championship  Japan 1st  Afghanistan 2021
AFC Beach Soccer Championship  Japan 3rd  United Arab Emirates 2021
Women's National Teams
AFC Women's Asian Cup  Japan 2nd  Australia 2022
Asian Games Women's Football Tournament  Japan 2nd  China PR 2022
AFC Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament  Australia 1st  China PR 2020
AFC U-19 Women's Championship  Japan 6th  North Korea 2022
AFC U-16 Women's Championship  Japan 4th  North Korea 2022
AFC Women's Futsal Championship  Iran 2nd  Japan 2020
Men's Clubs
AFC Champions League Al-Hilal 3rd Urawa Red Diamonds 2020
AFC Cup Al-Ahed 1st 25 April 2020
AFC Futsal Club Championship Nagoya Oceans 4th Mes Sungun 2020
Women's Clubs
AFC Women's Club Championship Tokyo Verdy Beleza 1st Jiangsu Suning 2020

AFC competitions

National teams:
  • AFC Asian Cup
  • AFC Solidarity Cup
  • AFC U-23 Championship
  • AFC U-19 Championship
  • AFC U-16 Championship
  • AFC U-14 Championship
  • AFC Women's Asian Cup
  • AFC U-19 Women's Championship
  • AFC U-16 Women's Championship
  • AFC Futsal Championship
  • AFC U-20 Futsal Championship
  • AFC Women's Futsal Championship
  • AFC Beach Soccer Championship

International

The AFC runs the AFC Asian Cup and AFC Women's Asian Cup, which determine the Champions of Asia, as well as the AFC Solidarity Cup. All three competitions are held every four years. The AFC also organises the AFC Futsal Championship, AFC Beach Soccer Championship, various age-level international youth football tournaments and the Asian qualifying tournament for the FIFA World Cup, FIFA Women's World Cup and for football at the Summer Olympics.

In addition to the AFC run international tournaments, each AFC regional federation organises its own tournament for national teams: EAFF East Asian Cup, SAFF Championship, AFF Championship, CAFA Championship and WAFF Championship .

Club

The top-ranked AFC competition is the AFC Champions League, which started in the 2002–03 season (an amalgamation of the Asian Champions Cup and the Asian Cup Winners Cup) and gathers the top 1–4 teams of each country (the number of teams depend on that country's ranking and can be upgraded or downgraded); this competition only gathered teams from top country.

A second, lower-ranked competition is the AFC Cup. This competition was launched by AFC in 2004. A third competition, the AFC President's Cup, which had started in 2005, was absorbed into the AFC Cup in 2015.[14]

The AFC also runs an annual Asian futsal club competition, the AFC Futsal Club Championship.

Sponsors and supporters

The following are the sponsors of AFC (named "AFC Partners")[15]

Rankings

Club Competitions Ranking

The AFC Club Competitions Ranking ranks its member associations by results in the AFC competitions. Rankings are calculated by the AFC.[19] Listed here are the top 30 countries.

AFC Country Points
1  China PR 100.000
2  Qatar 97.644
3  Japan 93.321
4  Saudi Arabia 88.449
5  South Korea 85.979
6  Iran 81.724
7  United Arab Emirates 61.870
8  Thailand 51.189
9  Iraq 48.992
10  Uzbekistan 45.562
11  Australia 40.896
12  Jordan 33.852
13  Philippines 32.130
14  North Korea 30.100
15  India 29.576
16  Vietnam 28.571
17  Tajikistan 28.361
18  Malaysia 26.96
19  Singapore 26.607
20  Turkmenistan 26.532
21  Lebanon 24.746
22  Syria 22.505
23  Hong Kong 19.945
24  Bahrain 17.749
25  Bangladesh 14.683
26  Maldives 13.632
27  Myanmar 12.756
28  Indonesia 12.550
29  Oman 8.531
30  Palestine 7.297

Clubs

Rankings are calculated by the IFFHS.[20] Listed here are the top ten clubs.

Rank IFFHS Club Points
1 62 Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors 153
2 68 Kashima Antlers 149.5
3 77 Al-Duhail 142
4 95 Ulsan Hyundai 133.5
5 98 Al Ain 131
6 105 Suwon Samsung Bluewings 126
7 118 Persepolis 116.5
8 127 Buriram United 114.5
9 130 Al Sadd 113.5
10 135 Al-Ahli 112.5

Men's futsal

Here is the men's futsal rank per December 2019[21]

AFC FIFA Country Points +/-
1 6  Iran 1603
2 15  Japan 1378
3 19  Thailand 1323
4 24  Uzbekistan 1221 2
5 32  Australia 1177
6 41  Lebanon 1103
7 42  Kuwait 1079
8 44  Kyrgyzstan 1064
9 45  Vietnam 1046
10 47  Indonesia 1000
11 53  Iraq 970 3
12 62  Malaysia 899
13 66  Jordan 877 1
14 68  Turkmenistan 872
15 70  Tajikistan 863
16 72  South Korea 857
17 73  China 848
18 74  Saudi Arabia 840
19 80  Qatar 807 1
20 82  Bahrain 804 6
21 83  Chinese Taipei 803 2
22 85  Myanmar 793 1
23 91  Oman 767
23 91  United Arab Emirates 767
25 94  Afghanistan 738
26 101  Palestine 655
27 102  Hong Kong 622
28 103  Mongolia 609
29 104  Cambodia 588
30 105  East Timor 581 1
31 108  Macau 535 1
32 110  Brunei 528 1
 Laos** 596
 Philippines** 540
 Syria** 651
 Singapore** 614
   Nepal* 588
 Yemen* 578
 Bhutan* 543
 Guam** 486
 Maldives** 457

a number between brackets is the rank of the previous week.

  • = Provisional ranking (played at least 10 matches)
    • = Inactive for more than 24 months

Beach soccer national teams

Rankings are calculated by Beach Soccer Worldwide (BSWW).[22]

AFC rank World rank Country Points
1 5  Iran 2489
2 6  Japan 2316
3 14  United Arab Emirates 1457
4 20  Oman 896
5 38  Lebanon 394
6 51  Palestine 236
7 53  China 229
8 54  Bahrain 220
9 60  Thailand 182
10 69  Afghanistan 143
11 70  Malaysia 141
12 74  Iraq 114
13 76  Qatar 106
14 86  Syria 76
15 88  Kuwait 62
16 88  Kyrgyzstan 62
17 94  Vietnam 51
18 95  Saudi Arabia 40
19 101  Uzbekistan 22
20 103  Laos 12
21 115  Australia 0
22 117  Yemen 0
23 118  Philippines 0
24 119  Indonesia 0
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