French
DeutschAsian Football Confederation
.svg) Logo used since 2001 | |
 AFC headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | |
 | |
| Abbreviation | AFC |
|---|---|
| Formation | 7 May 1954 |
| Founded at | Manila, Philippines[1] |
| Type | Sports organisation |
| Headquarters | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
Region served | Asia[a] |
Membership | 47 member associations |
Official language | Arabic English[2] |
| Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa | |
Vice Presidents | See list
|
General Secretary | Windsor John[3][4] |
Parent organization | FIFA |
| Subsidiaries | |
| Website | the-afc.com |
| FIFA confederations |
|---|
 |
| AFC, CAF, CONCACAF |
| CONMEBOL, OFC, UEFA |
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is the governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal in most countries/territories in Asia[a]. The AFC was formed in 1954. It has 47 members. The Asian Ladies Football Confederation (ALFC) was the section of AFC that managed women's association football in Asia. The group was independently founded in April 1968 in a meeting involving Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore. In 1986, ALFC merged with AFC.[5]
NOTE - according to the Coaches Across Continents (CAC) annual report for 2021,[6] the AFC is a partner of CAC. CAC is a worldwide partnership of over 100 organsiations that seeks to create active citizens and achieve social impact through sport.
Executive Committee[edit]
| AFC President and FIFA Senior Vice President[7] |
|---|
| FIFA Council Members[7] |
|
| AFC Vice Presidents[7] |
| AFC Executive Committee Members[7] |
|
| AFC Female Executive Committee Members[7] |
|
| General Secretary |
Notes
Member associations[edit]
The AFC has 47 member associations split into 5 regions (West, Central, South, East, and South-east (ASEAN nations)). Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar), Republic of China, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam were the founding members.[8][9]
Some nations have proposed splitting the confederation, forming a separate South West Asian Federation.[10][11][12]
| Code | Name | National teams | Founded | FIFA affiliation | AFC affiliation | IOC member |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) (12) | ||||||
| AUS |  Australia[m 1] | 1961 | 1963 | 2006 | Yes[m 2] | |
| BRU |  Brunei | 1952 | 1972 | 1969 | Yes | |
| CAM |  Cambodia | 1933 | 1954 | 1954 | Yes | |
| IDN |  Indonesia | 1930 | 1952 | 1954 | Yes | |
| LAO |  Laos | 1951 | 1952 | 1968 | Yes | |
| MAS |  Malaysia | 1933 | 1954 | 1954 | Yes | |
| MYA |  Myanmar | 1947 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes | |
| PHI |  Philippines | 1907 | 1930 | 1954 | Yes | |
| SGP |  Singapore | 1892 | 1952 | 1954 | Yes | |
| THA |  Thailand | 1916 | 1925 | 1954 | Yes | |
| TLS |  East Timor | 2002 | 2005 | 2002 | Yes | |
| VIE |  Vietnam | 1960 | 1952 | 1954 | Yes | |
| Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) (6) | ||||||
| AFG |  Afghanistan | 1933 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes | |
| IRN |  Islamic Republic of Iran | 1920 | 1948 | 1958 | Yes | |
| KGZ |  Kyrgyz Republic | 1992 | 1994 | 1993 | Yes | |
| TJK |  Tajikistan | 1936 | 1994 | 1993 | Yes | |
| TKM |  Turkmenistan | 1992 | 1994 | 1993 | Yes | |
| UZB |  Uzbekistan | 1946 | 1994 | 1993 | Yes | |
| East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) (10) | ||||||
| CHN |  China | 1924 | 1931 | 1974 | Yes | |
| TPE |  Chinese Taipei[m 3] | 1936 | 1954 | 1954 | Yes | |
| PRK |  DPR Korea | 1945 | 1958 | 1974 | Yes | |
| GUM |  Guam | 1975 | 1996 | 1991 | Yes[m 2] | |
| HKG |  Hong Kong, China | 1914 | 1954 | 1954 | Yes | |
| JPN |  Japan | 1921 | 1921 | 1954 | Yes | |
| KOR |  Korea Republic | 1928 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes | |
| MAC |  Macau | 1939 | 1978 | 1978 | No[m 4] | |
| MNG |  Mongolia | 1959 | 1998 | 1993 | Yes | |
| NMI |  Northern Mariana Islands | 2005 | N/A | 2020 | No[m 5] | |
| South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) (7) | ||||||
| BAN |  Bangladesh | 1972 | 1976 | 1974 | Yes | |
| BHU |  Bhutan | 1983 | 2000 | 1993 | Yes | |
| IND |  India | 1937 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes | |
| MDV |  Maldives | 1982 | 1986 | 1984 | Yes | |
| NEP |  Nepal | 1951 | 1972 | 1954 | Yes | |
| PAK |  Pakistan | 1947 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes | |
| SRI |  Sri Lanka | 1939 | 1952 | 1954 | Yes | |
| West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) (12) | ||||||
| BHR |  Bahrain | 1957 | 1968 | 1969 | Yes | |
| IRQ |  Iraq | 1948 | 1950 | 1970 | Yes | |
| JOR |  Jordan | 1949 | 1956 | 1970 | Yes | |
| KUW |  Kuwait | 1952 | 1964 | 1964 | Yes | |
| LBN |  Lebanon | 1933 | 1936 | 1964 | Yes | |
| OMA |  Oman | 1978 | 1980 | 1980 | Yes | |
| PLE |  Palestine | 1998 | 1998 | 1998 | Yes | |
| QAT |  Qatar | 1960 | 1972 | 1974 | Yes | |
| KSA |  Saudi Arabia | 1956 | 1956 | 1972 | Yes | |
| SYR |  Syria | 1936 | 1937 | 1970 | Yes | |
| UAE |  United Arab Emirates | 1971 | 1974 | 1974 | Yes | |
| YEM |  Yemen | 1962 | 1980 | 1980 | Yes | |
Notes[edit]
- ^ Former member of the Oceania Football Confederation (1966–1972, 1978–2006), joined AFC.
- ^ a b Oceania country or territory is a member of the Oceania National Olympic Committees rather than the Olympic Council of Asia.
- ^ Former member of the Oceania Football Confederation (1976–1982), joined AFC.
- ^ Macau's Olympic Committee is an OCA member and not an IOC member.
- ^ Part of the United States Olympic Committee.
Former members[edit]
| Association | Year | Note |
|---|---|---|
 Israel | 1954–1974 | Expelled from AFC competitions in 1974, as a result of a proposal by Kuwait (as other Muslim and Arab countries refused to play against Israel), that was adopted by a vote of 17 to 13 with 6 abstentions.[13][14] Later became a full UEFA member in 1994. |
 New Zealand | 1964[15] | Founding member of OFC in 1966. |
 South Yemen | 1972–1990[16] | Joined North Yemen as Yemen. |
 Kazakhstan | 1993–2002 | Joined UEFA in 2002.[17][18] |
Competitions[edit]
AFC competitions[edit]
AFC runs the AFC Asian Cup and the AFC Women's Asian Cup, which are held every 4 years. AFC organises the AFC Futsal Asian Cup, AFC Women's Futsal Asian Cup, AFC Beach Soccer Asian Cup, various age-level international association football, youth futsal tournaments and the Asian qualifying tournament for the FIFA World Cup and for football at the Summer Olympics.
The top-ranked AFC tournament for association football clubs is the AFC Champions League which started in the 2002–03 season (an amalgamation of the Asian Club Championship and the Asian Cup Winners' Cup) and gathers the top 1–4 teams of each country (the number of teams depend on that country's ranking and can be upgraded or downgraded); this tournament only gathered teams from top country. And AFC Women's Club Championship for women's association football club competition.[21]
A second, lower-ranked tournament is the AFC Cup which was launched by AFC in 2004. A third tournament, the AFC President's Cup which had started in 2005 was absorbed into the AFC Cup in 2015.[22]
AFC runs an annual Asian futsal club tournament, the AFC Futsal Club Championship for futsal club competition.[23]
Current title holders[edit]
 | This section needs to be updated. (January 2024) |
Esports[edit]
| Competition | Current | Winner (Player/Gamer ID) | Details | Runner-up (Player/Gamer ID) | Next | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AFC eAsian Cup | 2023 | Indonesia | Final | Japan | TBD |
Defunct tournaments[edit]
| Competition | Last held | Champions | Title | Runners-up | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National teams | |||||||
| Afro-Asian Cup of Nations | 2007 | Japan | 2nd |  Egypt | |||
| AFC-OFC Challenge Cup | 2003 | Iran | 1st | New Zealand | |||
| AFC Solidarity Cup | 2016 | Nepal | 1st | Macau | |||
| AFC Challenge Cup | 2014 | Palestine | 1st | Philippines | |||
| AFC U-14 Championship | 2014 | Iraq | 1st | North Korea | |||
| Club teams | |||||||
| Afro-Asian Club Championship | 1998 | Raja Casablanca  | 1st | Pohang Steelers | |||
| Asian Cup Winners' Cup | 2001–02 | Al-Hilal | 2nd | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | |||
| President's Cup | 2014 | HTTU Asgabat | 1st | Rimyongsu | |||
| Asian Super Cup | 2002 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 2nd | Al-Hilal | |||
Titles by nation[edit]
Rankings[edit]
FIFA World Rankings[edit]
| AFC* | FIFA | +/- | National Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 |  | Japan | 1621.88 |
| 2 | 20 | | Iran | 1613.96 |
| 3 | 23 |  1 | South Korea | 1563.99 |
| 4 | 24 | 1 | Australia | 1563.93 |
| 5 | 34 |  3 | Qatar | 1507.94 |
| 6 | 53 | | Saudi Arabia | 1443.53 |
| 7 | 58 | 1 | Iraq | 1420.47 |
| 8 | 64 | 2 | Uzbekistan | 1386.58 |
| 9 | 67 | 2 | United Arab Emirates | 1366.45 |
| 10 | 71 | 1 | Jordan | 1350.21 |
| 11 | 77 | 3 | Oman | 1323.23 |
| 12 | 80 | 2 | Bahrain | 1307.53 |
| 13 | 88 | | China | 1275.22 |
| 14 | 89 | | Syria | 1266.52 |
| 15 | 93 | 4 | Palestine | 1238.66 |
| 16 | 99 | | Tajikistan | 1216.76 |
| 17 | 100 | 4 | Kyrgyzstan | 1213.6 |
| 18 | 101 | | Thailand | 1208.93 |
| 19 | 115 | 10 | Vietnam | 1164.54 |
| 20 | 118 | 4 | North Korea | 1160.57 |
| 21 | 120 | 5 | Lebanon | 1158.96 |
| 22 | 121 | 4 | India | 1145.94 |
| 23 | 134 | 8 | Indonesia | 1102.7 |
| 24 | 138 | 6 | Malaysia | 1094.54 |
| 25 | 139 | 2 | Kuwait | 1085.46 |
| 26 | 141 | 2 | Philippines | 1075.14 |
| 27 | 143 | 2 | Turkmenistan | 1072.52 |
| 28 | 151 | 7 |  Afghanistan | 1036.92 |
| 29 | 155 | 1 | Singapore | 1019.06 |
| 30 | 156 | 5 | Yemen | 1017.05 |
| 31 | 157 | 3 | Hong Kong | 1012.83 |
| 32 | 159 | 6 | Chinese Taipei | 1007.3 |
| 33 | 161 | | Maldives | 1003.48 |
| 34 | 163 | 1 | Myanmar | 999.46 |
| 35 | 178 | 3 | Nepal | 937.84 |
| 36 | 179 | | Cambodia | 925.4 |
| 37 | 184 | 1 | Bangladesh | 905.3 |
| 38 | 185 | 1 | Bhutan | 904.1 |
| 39 | 186 | 1 | Macau | 896.62 |
| 40 | 190 | 1 | Laos | 889.62 |
| 41 | 191 | 1 | Mongolia | 884.04 |
| 42 | 194 | | Brunei | 872.65 |
| 43 | 195 | | Pakistan | 849.94 |
| 44 | 198 | 2 | East Timor | 843.4 |
| 45 | 204 | | Sri Lanka | 829.41 |
| 46 | 205 | | Guam | 821.91 |
| *Local rankings based on FIFA ranking points | ||||
| AFC* | FIFA | +/- | National Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | 1 | Japan | 1982.52 |
| 2 | 11 | 2 | North Korea | 1943.66 |
| 3 | 12 | | Australia | 1888.93 |
| 4 | 19 | | China | 1803.4 |
| 5 | 20 | | South Korea | 1796.68 |
| 6 | 37 | | Vietnam | 1611.3 |
| 7 | 39 | 1 | Philippines | 1558.3 |
| 8 | 40 | 2 | Chinese Taipei | 1545.1 |
| 9 | 47 | 1 | Thailand | 1518.37 |
| 10 | 48 | 1 | Uzbekistan | 1516.95 |
| 11 | 54 | | Myanmar | 1481.44 |
| 12 | 61 | 2 | Iran | 1412.45 |
| 13 | 66 | 1 | India | 1389.02 |
| 14 | 74 | | Jordan | 1331.17 |
| 15 | 79 | | Hong Kong | 1275.27 |
| 16 | 86 | 1 | Bahrain | 1254.12 |
| 17 | 91 | 2 | Laos | 1217.34 |
| 18 | 96 | | Malaysia | 1213.21 |
| 19 | 100 | 5 |  Nepal | 1208.42 |
| 20 | 101 | 8 | Guam | 1206.27 |
| 21 | 109 | 1 | Indonesia | 1179.93 |
| 22 | 114 | | United Arab Emirates | 1158.26 |
| 23 | 115 | 1 | Cambodia | 1144.56 |
| 24 | 128 | | Mongolia | 1103.77 |
| 25 | 130 | | Kyrgyzstan | 1099.57 |
| 26 | 132 | 2 | Lebanon | 1090.59 |
| 27 | 136 | | Palestine | 1080.47 |
| 28 | 137 | | Singapore | 1080.39 |
| 29 | 139 | | Turkmenistan | 1075.41 |
| 30 | 140 | | Bangladesh | 1068.52 |
| 31 | 154 | | Tajikistan | 991.2 |
| 32 | 157 | | Sri Lanka | 955.21 |
| 33 | 158 | | Pakistan | 949.54 |
| 34 | 159 | | East Timor | 946.01 |
| 35 | 161 | 1 | Maldives | 938.55 |
| 36 | 162 | 2 | Syria | 931.42 |
| 37 | 172 |  | Iraq | 862.8 |
| 38 | 173 | 1 | Bhutan | 853.48 |
| 39 | 174 | 1 | Macau | 850.91 |
| 40 | 175 | | Saudi Arabia | 848.57 |
| *Local rankings based on FIFA ranking points | ||||
Historical leaders[edit]
- Men's
- Women's
