AFC Asian Cup
Ahead of the highly-anticipated Draw which will see the teams divided into six groups, the-AFC.com takes a look at some fascinating facts and figures of the continent's premier men's national team football tournament.
A first for Saudi Arabia
This will be the first time that the AFC Asian Cup will be held in Saudi Arabia; who will become the 18th different nation to host the competition.
Amazing numbers
This will be Islamic Republic of Iran and Korea Republic’s 16th participation in the AFC Asian Cup, the most by any team. China PR are third on the list with Saudi Arabia 2027 being their 14th appearance.
Fascinating streaks
Including the upcoming edition, Iran have qualified for 16 straight tournaments since making their debut in the 1968 edition. China PR are next on the list with 14 straight appearances, also qualifying for every AFC Asian Cup since making their competition debut in 1976.
Familiar faces
Each of the 23 qualified teams and the remaining two sides that can still qualify (Lebanon and Yemen) for Saudi Arabia 2027 have participated in the competition before, making it just the third edition where all the participating teams have prior experience of playing in the AFC Asian Cup (also in 1992 and 2011).
Japan's record
No team has won the AFC Asian Cup title more often than Japan – 4 times; Saudi Arabia and Iran have each lifted the trophy three titles. Japan's last triumph was in 2011, Saudi Arabia in 1996 and Iran in 1976.
Unbeaten in the final
Iran (thrice) and Qatar (twice) are the two sides to have reached the final of multiple AFC Asian Cup editions without losing; Iraq are the only other side with a 100 percent win record, winning the competition the only time they reached the final (2007).
#AsianCup2023 | Final : Jordan 1 - 3 Qatar
Exclusive club
Qatar are the defending champions, having won the 2023 and the 2019 editions, and thus becoming the fifth side to log consecutive title wins after Korea Republic, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Japan. Only Iran have won three consecutive titles (1968, 1972 and 1976).
Power of the hosts
Eight of the 18 previous editions of AFC Asian Cup have been won by the host nation, with Qatar (in 2023) winning the most recent such championship; Iran are the only side to win the competition as the host nation multiple times (1968 and 1976). The host nation has at least reached the semi-finals in each of the last three editions, going on to win the competition in two of these three occasions (Qatar in 2023 and Australia in 2015). The last host team to not make it to the semi-finals of the AFC Asian Cup are Qatar (in 2011).
Spot-kick specialists
The AFC Asian Cup final has been decided by a penalty shootout only twice, with Saudi Arabia being crowned champions on both occasions (4-3 vs Korea Republic in 1988 and 4-2 vs United Arab Emirates in 1996).
On their own
Saudi Arabia have made it to the finals of the competition six times, the most often of any side, winning thrice and finishing as runner-up thrice. Only Japan (4) have won more titles than them, while only Korea Republic (4) have finished as a runners-up more often.
Ahead in numbers
Iran (74) and Korea Republic (73) are the only two teams to have played more than 70 games in AFC Asian Cup history; while Iran are the side to have won the most games excluding penalties (45), China PR (21) are the side to have lost most games excluding penalties.
Clean sheets
Qatar kept six clean sheets in 2019, the outright most by any team in a single edition of the competition; meanwhile, no team has kept more clean sheets in competition history than Iran (39).
Scoring record
No team has scored more goals in a single edition of the AFC Asian Cup than Japan – 21 in 2000. Iran are the only side to go an entire edition without conceding a single goal, doing so in 1976.
Power trio
Qatar’s Almoez Ali (11) is the only active player with 10+ goals in AFC Asian Cup history, with only Ali Daei scoring more goals in competition history (14). Korea Republic’s Lee Dong-gook (10) is the only other player with 10 or more goals in the AFC Asian Cup.
Afif makes his mark
Qatar’s Akram Afif was the top scorer in AFC Asian Cup 2023 with eight goals, with this also being the joint-second most goals scored by a player in a single edition alongside Iran's Daei (8 in 1996). Only Afif's teammate Ali (9 in 2019) has scored more goals in a single edition of this competition.
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