South Korea's Asian Cup bid sets up renewed battle between east and west
March 1 (Reuters) - South Korea's decision to enter the race for the 2031 Asian Cup hosting rights looks set to reignite a bidding battle between the eastern powerhouse and influential Gulf states as the nation seeks to organise the tournament for the first time since 1960.
The Koreans announced their bid on Friday, confirming remarks by Korea Football Association president Chung Myung-gyu prior to his re-election that the country would seek once again to reclaim rights that have eluded them for decades.
The deadline for expressions of interest passed on Friday night and Chung's administration, which recently faced down a scandal over the appointment of national team coaches, faces a five-way fight for hosting rights.
South Korea's last bid came was a failed attempt to run the 2023 finals as a replacement host when China withdrew and it lost out to Qatar, who ended up staging the event in early 2024.
With the United Arab Emirates hosting the 2019 edition and Saudi Arabia set to organise the next tournament in 2027, the prospect of four consecutive finals in the Middle East looms.
The UAE emerged as an early frontrunner for the 2031 rights after announcing their intention to bid again, while their regional rivals Kuwait have put themselves forward to host for the first time since 1980.
Australia, who organised and won the tournament in 2015, have expressed their desire to host, as have former co-hosts Indonesia while Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan have launched a combined Central Asian bid.
None of those three bids are seen as having the political clout to be serious contenders, leaving the prospect of a face off between the Koreans and one or more Gulf state to again underline where the power resides within Asian football.
East Asian nations, for all their on-field success, have not hosted the tournament since it was played in China in 2004 with Japan, the four-times Asian Cup winners and multiple World Cup participants, only hosting once, in 1992.
South Korea won the first two Asian Cup titles - in Hong Kong in 1956 and on home soil four years later - but have neither won nor hosted the event since, a remarkable omission for a country that has qualified for the World Cup 11 times.
The timeline for the decision-making process has yet to be made public but, with Saudi Arabia awarded the rights for 2027 tournament at the AFC's congress in Bahrain in 2023, it is likely the decision will be taken in two years' time.
That gives Chung and his team until 2027 to finally convince AFC member associations to end South Korea's 61-year hosting exile.
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