2011 AFC Asian Cup explained

Tourney Name:AFC Asian Cup
Year:2011
Other Titles:Arabic: 2011 كأس آسيا
Size:200px
Country:Qatar
Dates:7–29 January
Num Teams:16
Confederations:1
Venues:5
Cities:2
Champion:JPN
Count:4
Second:AUS
Third:KOR
Third-Flagvar:1997
Fourth:UZB
Matches:32
Goals:90
Top Scorer: Koo Ja-cheol (5 goals)
Player: Keisuke Honda
Prevseason:2007
Nextseason:2015

The 2011 AFC Asian Cup was the 15th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Qatar from 7 to 29 January 2011.[1] [2] It was the second time that the tournament was hosted by Qatar, the previous occasion being the 1988 AFC Asian Cup. Japan won the cup after a 1–0 win against Australia, and earned the right to compete in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil as the representative from AFC.[3] [4]

A television viewing audience of 484 million in 80 countries across the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, North America and North Africa witnessed Japan defeat Australia 1–0 in the final.[5]

Host selection

Qatar, India and Iran all lodged interest in hosting the 2011 AFC Asian Cup,[6] while Australia also considered making a late bid.[7] Qatar officially submitted their bid on 19 June 2006,[8] while India withdrew their interest and Iran failed to submit proper documentation for their bid on time.[9]

Qatar was announced as host nation on 29 July 2007, during the 2007 AFC Asian Cup in Jakarta, Indonesia. Due to FIFA regulations stating that confederation events can be hosted either in January or July, and July being peak summer heat in the Middle East, 2011 Asian Cup took place in January of that year.

Qualification

See main article: 2011 AFC Asian Cup qualification. The teams finishing first, second and third in the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, and the host nation for the 2011 competition, received automatic byes to the finals. They were joined by the top two finishers in each of five qualifying groups. The AFC Challenge Cup acted as a further qualification competition for eligible countries within the emerging and developing category of member associations. The winners of the AFC Challenge Cup competitions in 2008 and 2010 qualified automatically to the 2011 AFC Asian Cup finals. These two winners were India and North Korea. It was India's first play for the Asian Cup since 1984, and North Korea's first since 1992.

The final day of qualification was 3 March 2010.

List of qualified teams

width=17%Country !width=17%Qualified as!width=17%Date qualification was secured !width=49%Previous appearances in tournament1, 2
(1980, 1984, 1988, 1992, 2000, 2004, 2007)
(1972, 1976, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2007)
(1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2007)
(1956, 1960, 1964, 1972, 1980, 1984, 1988, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2007)
(1964, 1984)
(1996, 2000, 2004, 2007)
(1980, 1984, 1988, 1996)
(1968, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2007)
(1976, 1980, 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2007)
(1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2007)
(1988, 2004, 2007)
(1980, 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2004, 2007)
(1980, 1992)
(2007)
(1972, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1988, 1996, 2000, 2004)
(2004)

Notes:

1 Bold indicates champion for that year

2 Italic indicates host

Draw

The draw for the AFC Asian Cup 2011 was held on 23 April 2010 in Doha, Qatar. Qatar were seeded among the top group.[10] [11]

Seeding

Seeding was announced on 22 April 2010. Qatar were automatically placed in Group A.[12] FIFA rankings of April 2010 are given in brackets.[13]

width=25%Pot 1 (Host and Seeds)width=25%Pot 2width=25%Pot 3width=25%Pot 4
(96)
(81)
(66)
(47)
(43)
(20)
(60)
(93)
(84)
(100)
(69)
(103)
(98)
(97)
(133)
(106)

Venues

See main article: List of football stadiums in Qatar.

Members of the AFC Organising Committee for AFC Asian Cup 2011 have agreed the use of five stadiums for the 2011 tournament.[14]

Since the tournament, Ahmed bin Ali Stadium was demolished. Khalifa International Stadium have been heavily modified. The Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Thani bin Jassim Stadium and Suheim bin Hamad Stadium are the only largely unmodified stadium used for this tournament.

CityStadiumCapacity
Al RayyanAhmed bin Ali Stadium21,282
Jassim bin Hamad Stadium12,946
Khalifa International Stadium40,000
Thani bin Jassim Stadium21,175
DohaSuheim bin Hamad Stadium13,000

Officials

12 referees and 24 assistants were selected for the tournament, along with three stand-by referees:[15]

RefereeAssistants
Ben Williams Ben Wilson Hakan Anaz
Yuichi Nishimura Toru Sagara Toshiyuki Nagi
Kim Dong-jin Jeong Hae-sang Jang Jun-mo
Subkhiddin Mohd Salleh Mu Yuxin Mohd Sabri bin Mat Daud
Abdullah Al Hilali Bakhadyr Kochkarov Hamed Al Mayahi
Abdulrahman Abdou Mohammad Darman Hassan Al Thawadi
Mohsen Torky Hassan Kamranifar Reza Sokhandan
Abdul Malik Abdul Bashir Jeffrey Goh Gek Pheng Haja Maidin
Nawaf Shukralla Khaled Al Alan Mohammed Jawdat Nehlawi
Ali Al Badwawi Saleh Al Marzouqi Yaser Marad
Ravshan Irmatov Abdukhamidullo Rasulov Rafael Ilyasov

Standby referees

Alireza Faghani
Valentin Kovalenko
Abdullah Balideh

Squads

See main article: 2011 AFC Asian Cup squads.

Each country's final squad of 23 players was submitted by 28 December 2010.[16]

Group stage

All times are Arabian Standard Time (AST) – UTC+3

Tie-breaking criteria

The teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, 0 points for a loss) and tie breakers are in following order:[16]

  1. Greater number of points obtained in the group matches between the teams concerned;
  2. Goal difference resulting from the group matches between the teams concerned;
  3. Greater number of goals scored in the group matches between the teams concerned;
  4. Goal difference in all the group matches;
  5. Greater number of goals scored in all the group matches;
  6. Kicks from the penalty mark if only two teams are involved and they are both on the field of play;
  7. Fewer score calculated according to the number of yellow and red cards received in the group matches; (1 point for each yellow card, 3 points for each red card as a consequence of two yellow cards, 3 points for each direct red card, 4 points for each yellow card followed by a direct red card)
  8. Drawing of lots.

Group A

See main article: 2011 AFC Asian Cup Group A.

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Group B

See main article: 2011 AFC Asian Cup Group B.

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Group C

See main article: 2011 AFC Asian Cup Group C.

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Group D

See main article: 2011 AFC Asian Cup Group D.

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Knockout stage

See main article: 2011 AFC Asian Cup knockout stage.

All times are Arabian Standard Time (AST) – UTC+3

Quarter-finals

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Semi-finals

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Final

See main article: 2011 AFC Asian Cup Final.

Statistics

Goalscorers

With five goals, Koo Ja-cheol was the top scorer in the tournament. In total, 90 goals were scored by 60 different players, with three of them credited as own goals.

5 goals:

4 goals:

3 goals:

2 goals:

1 goal:

1 own goal:

2 own goals:

Awards

The AFC selected the MVP, top goalscorer, fair play award and four quality players of the tournament.[17] They didn't officially announce the all-star team of this tournament.

Most Valuable Player

Top Goalscorer

Fair Play Award

Quality Players

Final standings

|-| colspan="11"| Eliminated in the quarter-finals|-

|-| colspan="11"| Eliminated in group stage|-|}Source: AFC Technical Report

Marketing

Official match ball

The Nike Total 90 Tracer was the official match ball of the tournament.[18]

Official mascot

Official mascot were Saboog, Tmbki, Freha, Zkriti and Tranaa. They are a family of Jerboas, a rodent found in the deserts of Qatar. The characters are named after different locations in the north, south, east and west of Qatar.

Official song

Yalla Asia
Type:single
Artist:Jay Sean featuring Karl Wolf and Radhika Vekaria
Released:9 January 2011
Length:3:21
Producer:Max Herman

For marketing of the event, the organisers opted for the slogan "Yalla Asia" with a song sung by international artists Jay Sean and Karl Wolf, featuring Radhika Vekaria.Yalla Asia was composed and written by Radhika Vekaria, Max Herman and Zoulikha El Fassi. Max Herman produced the record for Zoul Projects 2011. The music video features Football Free Stylers Abbas Farid and Soufiane Touzani.

The music video was released on January 9, 2011.

Sponsorship

Official Sponsors

Official Supporters

Controversies

The 2011 Asian Cup was not without controversies as concerns were risen about the extremely low crowds at most games not featuring hosts Qatar. The average attendance was just 12,006, much lower than the previous AFC Asian Cup tournaments. North Korea and the United Arab Emirates both had the lowest attendance numbers with approximately 3,000 and 6,000 attendances respectively.[19] The final match between Japan and Australia saw as many as 3,000 to 10,000 fans with valid tickets denied entry to the stadium[20] which then allegedly sparked small skirmishes among fans, "It was just incredibly badly handled. There were kids and families, not causing any problem, being confronted by riot police and being told they weren't getting in", according to Andy Richardson, Al Jazeera's sports correspondent.[21] The AFC stated that the gates were closed early for security concerns and organisers did not anticipate an influx of Japanese and Australian fans. The organising committee has offered to refund all tickets not redeemed at the match.[22]

After staging the 2006 Asian Games,[23] this Asian Cup was being closely watched as an indicator to see how Qatar copes with hosting a major international football tournament[24] in preparation for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Qatar confirmed as cup host. 29 July 2007. Fox Sports. 29 July 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20070919065012/http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,22154315-5011321,00.html. 19 September 2007. live. dmy-all.
  2. News: Qatar to host AFC Asian Cup in 2011. https://archive.today/20070610034806/http://www.the-afc.com/eng/articles/viewArticle.jsp_8368.html. dead. 10 June 2007. Asian Football Confederation. 29 July 2007. 29 July 2007.
  3. Web site: Japan down Aussies to make history. 29 January 2011. FIFA.com. 2 February 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110201121553/http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/news/newsid=1373570.html. 1 February 2011. dead. dmy-all.
  4. Web site: Australia 0 – 1 Japan. 29 January 2011. ESPN Soccernet. 2 February 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110131075210/http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=312270&cc=5739. 31 January 2011. dead. dmy-all.
  5. News: Asian Cup final 'rematch' kick-off time set . https://archive.today/20120911172735/http://www.the-afc.com/en/tournaments/men-a-youth/fifa-world-cup/38889-asian-cup-final-rematch-kick-off-time-confirmed . dead. 11 September 2012 . 23 April 2012 . . 5 May 2012 .
  6. News: Nations make Asian Cup bid. Fox Sports. 14 February 2007. 20 February 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20070929114936/http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,21227709-5011321,00.html. 29 September 2007. live. dmy-all.
  7. News: Chances to host 2011 Asian Cup fading. 13 February 2007. The Sydney Morning Herald. 13 February 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20090210195935/http://www.smh.com.au/news/Sport/Chances-to-host-2011-Asian-Cup-fading/2007/02/13/1171128971592.html. 10 February 2009. live. dmy-all.
  8. http://www.afcasiancup.com/en/news/index.asp?aid=47730&cid=1371&amth=6&ayr=2007 Qatar formally submits Asian Cup 2011 bid
  9. http://www.afcasiancup.com/en/news/index.asp?aid=47758&cid=1231&amth=6&ayr=2007 India withdraw 2011 AFC Asian Cup interest
  10. Web site: Unity the theme at AFC Executive Committee meeting . AFC . 25 November 2009 . 25 November 2009 . dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20140512175834/http://www.the-afc.com/en/inside-afc/676-afc-news/26140-unity-the-theme-at-afc-executive-committee-meeting- . 12 May 2014 .
  11. Web site: AFC Asian Cup 2011 Finals draw on April 23 . https://archive.today/20120913132424/http://www.the-afc.com/en/tournaments/men-a-youth/afc-asian-cup/27204-afc-asian-cup-2011-finals-draw-on-april-23 . dead. 13 September 2012 . AFC . 23 February 2010 . 23 February 2010 .
  12. Web site: AFC Asian Cup 2011 final draw mechanics . The-AFC.com . Asian Football Confederation . 22 April 2010 . dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20140510200016/http://www.the-afc.com/en/afc-asian-cup-news/28326-afc-asian-cup-qatar-2011-finals-draw-mechanics . 10 May 2014 .
  13. Web site: April 2010 FIFA World Rankings. 2021-02-17.
  14. News: AFC Organising Committee for AFC Asian Cup 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181017203143/http://www.the-afc.com/en/inside-afc/676-afc-news/24773-afc-organising-committee-for-afc-asian-cup-2011 . dead . 17 October 2018 . 14 July 2009 . AFC . 14 July 2009.
  15. Web site: 2011 AFC Asian Cup referees . https://web.archive.org/web/20181019122041/http://www.the-afc.com/en/event-information/afc-asian-cup-match-officials . dead . 2018-10-19 . Asian Football Confederation .
  16. Web site: AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011 Competition Regulations . AFC . dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20111122085110/http://images.the-afc.com/Documents/2010/regs/AFC_Asian_Cup_Qatar_2011_Regulations.pdf . 22 November 2011 . dmy .
  17. Web site: AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011 Technical Report . The-AFC.com . AFC . 10 December 2019.
  18. News: The Tracer's excitement for AC 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181019163932/http://www.the-afc.com/en/inside-afc/676-afc-news/31770-the-tracers-excitement-for-ac-2011 . dead . 19 October 2018 . The-AFC.com . Asian Football Confederation . 13 December 2010 . 14 December 2010 .
  19. Web site: AFC Asian Cup Statistics – ESPN FC. go.com. 3 February 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20121024065457/http://soccernet.espn.go.com/stats/attendance/_/league/afc.cup/afc-asian-cup?cc=3888. 24 October 2012. dead. dmy-all.
  20. Web site: Asian Cup ticket-holders denied entry to finale. ESPN.com. 1 February 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110203001858/http://espn.go.com/sports/soccer/news/_/id/6073683/asian-cup-ticket-holders-denied-entry-finale. 3 February 2011. live. dmy-all.
  21. News: Five things we've learned from Qatar's Asian Cup . CNN . 3 February 2011 . 3 February 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110209020649/http://edition.cnn.com/2011/SPORT/football/01/27/qatar.2022.asian.cup/ . 9 February 2011 . live. dmy-all .
  22. News: Refund offer for Asian Cup final lockout . ABC News . 3 February 2011 . 13 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180505045110/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-02-03/refund-offer-for-asian-cup-final-lockout/1929038 . 5 May 2018 . live.
  23. Web site: AFP: Qatar puts Middle East football on map. Google News. 18 March 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20101206081245/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hHX5UMKcoyDd2oBmQoAN5Y68fWiQ?docId=CNG.94591e60ea7188c66e691af71595f0f4.791. 6 December 2010. dead. dmy-all.
  24. Web site: Qatar: From obscure desert kingdom to World Cup host. cnn.com. 23 January 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110121230228/http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/football/12/02/world.cup.qatar.opinion/index.html. 21 January 2011. live. dmy-all.