This will be the best edition of the tournament, asserts CEO of the AFC Asian Cup

The Asian Cup is scheduled to be played in January 2024

India’s preparations for the Asian Cup have been ongoing, with tournaments like the SAFF Championship, proving the be important and necessary stepping stones towards attaining their goal of playing knockout football in the Asian Cup.

The Men In Blue will also play in the King's Cup in Thailand, where they will face Iraq in the semi-final on the 7th of September. Hosts Thailand (ranked 113th) will take on Lebanon (ranked 100th) in the other semi-final the same day.

The much-awaited Asian Cup, which is set to be played in January 2024, is a major test for the Indians, as they find themselves in a tough group which consists of some of Asia’s finest - Australia, Uzbekistan and Syria. 

According to the updated match schedule, both the opening and final matches will take place at the magnificent Lusail Stadium. The 88,000-seat stadium which famously hosted the final match of the FIFA World Cup 2022.

Six other Qatar 2022 stadiums - Al Bayt, Al Janoub, Al Thumama, Ahmad bin Ali, Education City and Khalifa International - will host matches during the tournament. The venues will be joined by Jassim bin Hamad and Abdulla bin Khalifa, homes to Qatar Stars League sides Al Sadd SC and Al Duhail SC respectively.

India will play against Australia and Uzbekistan at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, while their concluding group game against Syria will be played at the Al Bayt Stadium.

Thoughts on the competition

Jassim Al Jassim, CEO of the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 Local Organising Committee, shared his thoughts on the upcoming tournament and the turnout he expects for the prestigious competition. 

"The match schedule will see some exciting fixtures between Asia's biggest teams," Jassim told TOI. "Once again, our stadiums will come to life with passion and excitement, as spectators from all around the continent will make their way to Qatar for the Asian Cup. We are thrilled to be hosting this prestigious tournament for a third time and are confident that this will be the best edition of the tournament thus far."

Turnout of Indian supporters

Indian fans travelled to Qatar in numbers for the FIFA World Cup 2022 and became the second-highest group of visitors after Saudi Arabia, with an estimate of 60,000 fans having made a trip from Indian to Qatar.

Speaking to TOI, a fan based in Doha said, "India will find plenty of support in Qatar and it will be challenging to play at World Cup stadiums in front of an audience full of expectant Indians, both from Gulf countries and India. For the World Cup last year, Indian fans packed the stadiums in an unprecedented manner. Indians constituted the largest contingent of arrivals in Qatar during the World Cup after Arab nationals. For the Asian Cup, you can expect great support for India."