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The 2027 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup has been postponed by approximately one year, giving rise to an unexpected problem. Its schedule now overlaps with another Asian Cup, the Under-23 (U-23) tournament.
On the 3rd (Korean time), AFC announced via its official website that it would change the hosting schedule for the 2027 Saudi Arabia Asian Cup.
The Asian Cup was originally scheduled to be held in Saudi Arabia from January 7, 2027, to February 5, 2027. However, due to this decision, it has been changed to take place from December 23, 2027, to January 21, 2028.
Recent changes in the geopolitical situation in the Middle East were the cause. AFC stated that it "had sufficient discussions with the local organizing committee in Saudi Arabia and the Saudi Football Federation," explaining that it "decided to postpone the tournament considering recent changes in the regional political situation, as well as resulting logistics issues and travel disruptions."
The new tournament schedule is expected to be finalized after approval by the International Football Federation (FIFA).
With the tournament significantly postponed, participating nations have faced multiple problems. One of these is that its schedule now overlaps with the U-23 Asian Cup.
The 2028 AFC U-23 Asian Cup is scheduled to be held in Japan from January 4 to 22, 2028. This tournament also serves as the Asian regional qualifier for the men's football event at the Los Angeles (LA) Olympics, which will be held in July of the same year. The top two teams will earn qualification for the Olympic finals.
According to the currently known schedule, the senior Asian Cup and the U-23 Asian Cup will overlap for a total of 18 days, from January 4 to 21, 2028.
This means that the tournament determining the strongest team in Asian football and a crucial tournament with Olympic finals qualification at stake could be held simultaneously.
The postponement of this Asian Cup has emerged as a major variable for Korean football as well. In particular, the contract issue regarding interim head coach Roberto Moreno has surfaced.
Coach Moreno's contract period runs until November 27. Initially, the Korea Football Association (KFA) considered evaluating Coach Moreno over a total of six matches up to the November A-matches before deciding whether to entrust him with the helm through the January 2027 Asian Cup.
However, with the tournament postponed by approximately 11 months, complications have arisen in the plan. With the next KFA presidential election also scheduled for December, the issue of appointing a permanent head coach has become even more complex.
It is not just Korea that is in a difficult position. China and Japan are also struggling with unexpected schedule conflicts.
The Chinese media outlet China Youth Daily reported that the Asian Cup postponement has placed the Chinese national football team in a difficult situation where it must handle multiple tournaments.
In particular, it focused on the schedule conflict between the senior Asian Cup and the U-23 Asian Cup. The outlet stated, "The 2028 U-23 Asian Cup held in Japan directly overlaps with the postponed senior Asian Cup," adding that "the two tournaments have overlapping hosting periods for a total of 18 days."
It further explained that "whether additional adjustments to the schedules of the two tournaments are needed depends on AFC's future decisions."
For China, the issue of player call-ups is the biggest concern. China Youth Daily pointed out that "players in the age range eligible for the Olympic team, such as Wang Yudong (Zhejiang FC) and Kwai Jyun (Shanghai Port), already play important roles in the senior national team."
It expressed concern, adding, "If the two Asian Cups are held during the same period, the senior national team and the Olympic team will face issues regarding player allocation."
Japan's situation is also complex. In particular, Japan faces not only player call-up issues but also overlapping problems regarding its national team manager.
The Japanese media outlet Soccer King reported that due to the Asian Cup postponement, the schedule unusually overlaps with the LA Olympics qualifiers, which could affect the concurrent management system of Manager Okawa Ko for the national teams.
Initially, it was planned that Hajime Moriyasu would lead the senior national team until the January 2027 Asian Cup before stepping down, and Manager Okawa Ko would take over the helm anew from March 2027.
In particular, Manager Okawa was designated to simultaneously lead both the senior national team and the age-group national teams preparing for the 2028 LA Olympics.
However, problems have arisen due to the Asian Cup postponement. This is because while the senior national team competes in the Asian Cup, the Olympic team must also participate in the U-23 Asian Cup.
It appears practically impossible for Manager Okawa to directly command matches for both national teams simultaneously. Soccer King explained, "Due to the Asian Cup postponement, the schedules of the two tournaments now overlap. Consequently, there is a possibility that the management systems for the managers and coaching staffs of both national teams will need to be adjusted."
Japan is also the host country for the U-23 Asian Cup. Since it must compete for Olympic finals qualification on home soil, the importance of the Olympic team is by no means small.
The player call-up issue is not significantly different from China's. Soccer King explained, "Currently, players in the age range eligible for the LA Olympics, such as Goto Keisuke (Freiburg) and Shioya Kento (Wolfsburg), are also named in the Japanese senior national team."
It further analyzed that "which tournament players who have already gained experience in the senior national team will participate in is a major point of interest."
Japan has past experience where Manager Moriyasu concurrently led both the senior national team and the Tokyo Olympics team. At that time, Manager Moriyasu prioritized his activities with the senior national team, while Coach Yokouchi Akitsugu served as acting manager for the age-group team. There is a possibility that the national teams will be managed in a similar manner this time as well.
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*This content was translated by AI.View Original
