The 2027 AFC Asian Cup, the continent’s top quadrennial soccer competition, has been postponed as a result of ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
Initially due to be staged in Saudi Arabia from January 7 through February 5, 2027, the event will now take place from December 23, 2027, to January 21, 2028.
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Asian soccer’s AFC governing body, via its Asian Cup local organizing committee, said that “exceptional circumstances” in the Middle East made hosting the event in Saudi Arabia at present untenable, citing “substantial logistical complexities and travel disruptions.”
Back in October, the body said it was “monitoring the situation” in the country but added that it was in “no hurry to make a decision”, with body president Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa stating that they could “wait until the end of November.”
Now it seems that decision has been expedited.
This decision was made after Yemen's Houthi movement launched deadly attacks on Saudi Arabia earlier this month, which included a missile strike on Riyadh's international airport that killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 300, while the continued conflict in nearby Iran is likely also to have impacted the decision.
Going forward, the AFC says that it will continue to liaise with the local organizing committee, the Saudi Arabian Football Federation, participating teams, commercial sponsors, and broadcasters, to ensure the rescheduled event will take place.
The previous Asian Cup was delayed by a year after China withdrew as hosts because of COVID-19 restrictions, with Qatar stepping in to stage the tournament in early 2024.
In 2027’s case Saudi Arabia will be staging the continental tournament for the first time and is a key test ahead of its hosting of the 2034 FIFA World Cup, meaning a relocation, as opposed to a rescheduling, was highly unlikely.
The 24-team tournament is due to take place across eight venues in three cities – Riyadh, Jeddah, and Al-Khobar.
Houthi attacks have heavily disrupted sport in the kingdom, with the annual Dakar Rally racing event also confirming this week that its 2027 edition (to take place in January) would be relocated from Saudi to Portugal and Morocco.
The third edition of Six Kings Slam, a big-money exhibition event featuring the top six ATP men’s tennis players, was due to be held in Riyadh from October 21 to 24 but has been pushed back to December 27–30.
Furthermore, golf's Asian Tour indefinitely postponed its season-ending Saudi International in Riyadh, which was due to take place this month.
Motor racing’s elite Formula 1 had already cancelled the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix earlier in the year due to the Iran war, and other future sporting events could be affected by the regional conflict, including races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
The MotoGP motorcycle racing series is already facing significant pushback from teams, constructors, and riders against the prospect of racing in Qatar later this month.
