Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: Spanish legend Xavi Hernandez has said Qatar's AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 triumph should not come as a surprise as it is the result of a systematic development programme.
Qatar, having never advanced beyond the quarter-finals in their previous appearances in the Continental showpiece, were a revelation in UAE 2019 as Felix Sanchez's team recorded seven wins to emerge champions on February 1.
Four of the seven wins were recorded against former AFC Asian Cup winners - Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Korea Republic and Japan - and Xavi said it was just reward for the efforts the Qatar Football Association (QFA) had put in preparing the team.
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Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Abu Dhabi: Almoez Ali had no sooner etched his name in the history books of the AFC Asian Cup than he was already looking forward to the next challenge that awaits him and his Qatari teammates on the road towards the country’s hosting of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Ali’s nine-goal haul makes him the most successful striker at a single AFC Asian Cup Finals ever with his total surpassing the great Ali Daei’s record, which was achieved the last time the tournament was played in the United Arab Emirates in 1996.
That tally saw him finish as the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 topscorer as well as claim the Most Valuable Player award, but despite an impressive personal haul, Ali is already setting his sights further forward.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Abu Dhabi: Felix Sanchez has warned the rest of the Continent that his newly crowned AFC Asian Cup winners can become even better after Qatar saw off Japan to claim their maiden continental crown on Friday.
Qatar emerged with the title for the first time after seven straight wins in the United Arab Emirates saw them score 19 times and concede just once to claim the newly-minted AFC Asian Cup trophy as the country continues along the road towards the hosting of the FIFA World Cup in 2022.
Almoez Ali emerged as the tournament’s Most Valuable Player while Akram Afif and others impressed over the last four weeks and, with the Qataris boasting one of the youngest squads at the tournament, Sanchez believes there is more to come from his talented line-up.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Abu Dhabi: Japan head coach Hajime Moriyasu has admitted that Qatar were worthy winners after seeing his Japan side succumb to a 3-1 defeat in Friday’s AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 final.
Spectacular first-half strikes from Almoez Ali and Abdelaziz Hatim, coupled with a late penalty from Akram Afif helped Qatar seal their first-ever AFC Asian Cup title and deny the Samurai Blue a record-extending fifth Continental crown.
Takumi Minamino’s 69th minute goal had briefly hinted at a Japan revival, but notwithstanding the East Asians’ second-half rally, Moriyasu believes Qatar were full value for their success.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Abu Dhabi: After 51 games and a record 130 goals, the AFC Asian Cup has been run and won for another four years, with Qatar making history by winning the title for the first time.
With the ink still drying on another memorable chapter in the competition's proud history, the-AFC.com looks back at some of the notable numbers and statistical highlights of the 17th edition of Asia's biggest football tournament.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Abu Dhabi: The AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 was a huge success with fans playing a major role in the Continent's premier football tournament.
Fans from the 24 participating nations added colour and exuberance to the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 in the eight stadiums across four host cities - Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Abu Dhabi: The AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 engaged with more fans than ever before as more than 836.6 million fans interacted through the tournament’s digital platforms, shattering the record set in the 2015 edition in Australia and nearly doubling the 434 million TV viewership for that tournament.
The astonishing impact of the biggest-ever AFC Asian Cup was felt across all social platforms with the AFC Asian Cup Facebook page reaching 169.4 million impressions, a staggering increase by more than fifteen times from the 11 million reach four years ago.
Adding to this, fans also made their voices heard on Twitter, which received over 106.5 million impressions compared to three million in the last edition.
The biggest rise, however, was felt on the tournament’s official Instagram account, which garnered an astonishing reach of nearly 132.4 million compared to the one million engaged in Australia, as another 52.8 million impressions were garnered on Instagram stories.