AFC scraps Asian Cup 2031 and 2035 hosting bids as calendar reset accelerates

The Asian Football Confederation has discontinued the bidding processes to host the men’s Asian Cup finals in 2031 and 2035, pausing a race that had attracted interest from several major Asian markets.The confederation said the decision follows engagement around revisions to the FIFA international match calendar that could see the Asian Cup moved to even-numbered years, a shift that would require a broader reset of timelines for future editions.An AFC statement said the potential changes carry “far-reaching implications” for planning and scheduling, and that it will review its competition calendar accordingly.The halt creates immediate uncertainty for bidders and stakeholders that had begun positioning around venue readiness, government guarantees, commercial lead times and delivery models, particularly in markets where hosting is linked to wider tourism, infrastructure and sports-investment strategies.For the 2031 finals, the bids received included Australia, India, Indonesia, Kuwait and South Korea, as well as a joint Central Asian bid involving Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.For 2035, the list of interested hosts included Australia, Kuwait and South Korea, alongside Japan.The move underlines how FIFA’s long-range calendar plans are shaping confederation event strategy, with knock-on effects for rights holders and sponsors that typically require multi-year certainty on dates, inventory windows and activation cycles.The Asian Cup was played in even-numbered years for much of its history before shifting to odd-numbered years from 2007, a change designed to ease scheduling congestion with other major tournaments.The next men’s Asian Cup is scheduled for January 2027 in Saudi Arabia, following the most recent tournament in Qatar in January 2024.