2023_AFC_U-20_Asian_Cup
2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup
International football competition
The 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup was the 41st edition of the AFC U-20 Asian Cup (including previous editions of the AFC Youth Championship and AFC U-19 Championship), the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-20 national teams of Asia. This edition is the first to be played as an under-20 tournament, as the AFC proposed to switch the tournament from under-19 to under-20 starting from 2023.[1] Moreover, the tournament was also rebranded from the "AFC U-19 Championship" to the "AFC U-20 Asian Cup".[2] On 25 January 2021, the AFC announced that Uzbekistan would retain hosting rights for the 2023 edition after the cancellation of the 2020 AFC U-19 Championship due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3]
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Uzbekistan |
| Dates | 1–18 March |
| Teams | 16 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | 4 (in 2 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Uzbekistan (1st title) |
| Runners-up |  Iraq |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 31 |
| Goals scored | 69 (2.23 per match) |
| Attendance | 203,176 (6,554 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Naoki Kumata(5 goals) |
| Best player(s) | Abbosbek Fayzullaev |
| Best goalkeeper | Otabek Boymurodov |
2025 → | |
A total of 16 teams are playing in the tournament. The top four teams of the tournament, Japan, Iraq, South Korea and Uzbekistan, qualified for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup as the AFC representatives besides Indonesia who automatically qualified as hosts. However, Indonesia was removed from hosting the tournament on 29 March 2023 and thus could not participate.[4] Subsequently, FIFA awarded Argentina the rights to organize the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup in place of the original hosts Indonesia.[5][6]
Saudi Arabia were the title holders, having won the title in 2018, but were eliminated from the group stage and thus failed to defend the title. Uzbekistan won the first-ever title after a 1–0 win over Iraq in the final.
Qualification matches were played between 10 and 18 September 2022.[7]
Qualified teams
A total of 16 teams including hosts Uzbekistan qualified for the final tournament.[8] Countries that initially qualified for the 2020 AFC U-19 Championship but missed out this edition included Bahrain, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia and Yemen. China and Jordan marked their return after initially failed to qualify in the previous edition. Kyrgyzstan qualified for the first time since 2006, Syria returned to the tournament since 2012 and Oman returned after the 2014 edition.
| Team | Qualified as | Appearance | Previous best performance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uzbekistan | Hosts | 8th | Runners-up (2008) |
 Saudi Arabia | Group A winners | 15th | Champions (1986, 1992, 2018) |
 Qatar | Group B winners | 15th | Champions (2014) |
| Japan | Group C winners | 38th | Champions (2016) |
 Jordan | Group D winners | 8th | Fourth place (2006) |
 South Korea | Group E winners | 39th | Champions (1959, 1960, 1963, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1990, 1996, 1998, 2002, 2004, 2012) |
 Indonesia | Group F winners | 18th | Champions (1961) |
 Oman | Group G winners | 3rd | Group stage (2000, 2014) |
 Australia | Group H winners | 8th | Runners-up (2010) |
 Tajikistan | Group I winners | 5th | Quarter-finals (2016, 2018) |
 Iran | Group J winners | 21st | Champions (1973, 1974, 1975, 1976) |
 Vietnam | Best runners-up | 20th[note 1] | Semi-finals (2016) |
 Kyrgyzstan | 2nd best runners-up | 2nd | Group stage (2006) |
 China | 3rd best runners-up | 19th | Champions (1985) |
| Iraq | 4th best runners-up | 18th | Champions (1975, 1977, 1978, 1988, 2000) |
 Syria | 5th best runners-up | 11th | Champions (1994) |
The matches are being played on four venues at two cities across Uzbekistan.
| Tashkent | Fergana | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Milliy Stadium | JAR Stadium | Lokomotiv Stadium | Istiqlol Stadium |
| Capacity: 34,000 | Capacity: 8,500 | Capacity: 8,000 | Capacity: 20,200 |
| Host cities in Uzbekistan | Stadiums in Tashkent | ||
AFC has uploaded pictures of the new AFC U20 Asian Cup 2023 on their social media pages on March 18, 2023.
In February 2023, AFC announced a total of 13 referees (including one woman) and 15 assistant referees (including two women) appointed for the tournament.
Referees
Casey Reibelt
Ammar Mahfoodh
Chen Hsin-chuan
Tam Ping Wun
Zaid Thamer
Abdullah Jamali
Nazmi Nasaruddin
Qasim Al-Hatmi
Majed Al-Shamrani
Kim Woo-sung
Sadullo Gulmurodi
Yahya Al-Mulla
Akhrol Risqullaev
Assistant referees
- Faisal Al-Awi
- Chen Hsiao-en
- So Kai Man
Farhad Moravveji
Yosuke Takebe
Ramina Tsoi- Mohammad Bin Tan
- Nasser Al-Busaidi
Ali Muhammad
Heba Saadieh
Faisal Al-Shammari- Jang Jong-pil
- Vafo Karaev
- Ahmed Al-Rashdi
- Sanjar Shayusupov
The draw of the final tournament was held on 26 October 2022, 12:00 UZT (UTC+5), in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.[10] The 16 teams were drawn into four groups of four teams, with the teams seeded according to their performance in the 2018 AFC U-19 Championship final tournament and qualification, with the hosts Uzbekistan automatically seeded and assigned to Position A1 in the draw.[11]
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Players born on or after 1 January 2003 and on or before 31 December 2007 were eligible to compete in the tournament. Each team must register a squad of minimum 18 players and maximum 23 players, minimum three of whom must be goalkeepers.[12]
The top two teams of each group advanced to the quarter-finals.
- Tiebreakers
Teams were ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tie-breaking criteria were applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings:[12]
- Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
- Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
- Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
- If more than two teams are tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams are still tied, all head-to-head criteria above are reapplied exclusively to this subset of teams;
- Goal difference in all group matches;
- Goals scored in all group matches;
- Penalty shoot-out if only two teams were tied and they met in the last round of the group;
- Disciplinary points (yellow card = 1 point, red card as a result of two yellow cards = 3 points, direct red card = 3 points, yellow card followed by direct red card = 4 points);
- Drawing of lots.
All match times are in local time, UZT (UTC+5), as listed by AFC.[13]
| Matchday | Dates | Matches |
|---|---|---|
| Matchday 1 | 1–3 March 2023 | 1 v 4, 2 v 3 |
| Matchday 2 | 4–6 March 2023 | 4 v 2, 3 v 1 |
| Matchday 3 | 7–9 March 2023 | 1 v 2, 3 v 4 |
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Uzbekistan (H) |
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 | 7 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Iraq |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 4 | |
| 3 | Indonesia |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 4 | |
| 4 | Syria |
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 1 |
| Uzbekistan | 2–0 | Syria |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iran |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 | +2 | 6[lower-alpha 1] | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Australia |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 6[lower-alpha 1] | |
| 3 | Vietnam |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 6[lower-alpha 1] | |
| 4 | Qatar |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 12 | −10 | 0 |
| Vietnam | 2–1 | Qatar |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
| Vietnam | 1–3 | Iran |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
Group C
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Korea |
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | +6 | 7 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Jordan |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | |
| 3 | Tajikistan |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 4 | |
| 4 | Oman |
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 1 |
| South Korea | 4–0 | Oman |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
| Jordan | 0–2 | South Korea |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
Group D
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japan |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | +5 | 9 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | China |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 4 | |
| 3 | Saudi Arabia |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 3 | |
| 4 | Kyrgyzstan |
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 1 |
| Saudi Arabia | 1–2 | Japan |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
| China | 1–1 | Kyrgyzstan |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
In the knockout stage, extra time and penalty shoot-out are used to decide the winner if necessary.[12]
Bracket
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 11 March – Tashkent (Milliy) | ||||||||||
| Uzbekistan (p) | 1 (5) | |||||||||
| 15 March – Tashkent (Milliy) | ||||||||||
| Australia | 1 (4) | |||||||||
| Uzbekistan (p) | 0 (3) | |||||||||
| 12 March – Tashkent (JAR) | ||||||||||
| South Korea | 0 (1) | |||||||||
| South Korea (a.e.t.) | 3 | |||||||||
| 18 March – Tashkent (Milliy) | ||||||||||
| China | 1 | |||||||||
| Uzbekistan | 1 | |||||||||
| 11 March – Tashkent (JAR) | ||||||||||
| Iraq | 0 | |||||||||
| Iran | 0 | |||||||||
| 15 March – Tashkent (JAR) | ||||||||||
| Iraq | 1 | |||||||||
| Iraq (p) | 2 (5) | |||||||||
| 12 March – Tashkent (Lokomotiv) | ||||||||||
| Japan | 2 (3) | |||||||||
| Japan | 2 | |||||||||
| Jordan | 0 | |||||||||
Quarter-finals
Winners qualified for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
| Uzbekistan | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Australia |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
| Penalties | ||
|
5–4 | |
![](./File:Стадион_"Джар".jpg){kind=link}
| South Korea | 3–1 (a.e.t.) | China |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
Semi-finals
| Iraq | 2–2 (a.e.t.) | Japan |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
| Penalties | ||
|
5–3 | |
| Uzbekistan | 0–0 (a.e.t.) | South Korea |
|---|---|---|
| Report | ||
| Penalties | ||
|
3–1 |
|
Final
| 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup |
|---|
 Uzbekistan First title |
The following awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament:
| Top Goalscorer[14] | Most Valuable Player[15] | Best Goalkeeper[16] |
|---|---|---|
| Naoki Kumata |
Abbosbek Fayzullaev |
Otabek Boymurodov |
There were 69 goals scored in 31 matches, for an average of 2.23 goals per match.
5 goals
3 goals
- Sung Jin-young
2 goals
- Bernardo Oliveira
- Gabriel Popovic
- Adrian Segecic
Mutellip Iminqari- Amin Hazbavi
- Hayder Abdulkareem
- Mohammed Jameel
- Ali Jasim
- Kuryu Matsuki
- Isa Sakamoto
- Kang Seong-jin
- Kim Yong-hak
Nguyễn Quốc Việt
1 goal
- Alex Badolato
- Raphael Borges Rodrigues
- Chris Donnell
- Archie Goodwin
- Aidan Simmons
- Jonny Yull
- Xu Bin
Hokky Caraka- Alireza Enayatzadeh
- Amirreza Eslamtalab
- Mohammadjavad Hosseinnezhad
- Saeid Saharkhizan
- Takatora Einaga
- Kodai Sano
Ali Azaizeh- Seif Addeen Darwish
- Biimyrza Zhenishbekov
- Ahmed Al-Rawi
- Moustafa Asar
- Yazeed Jawshan
- Abdullah Radif
- Bae Jun-ho
- Choi Seok-hyun
Zakaria Al Ramadan- Amadoni Kamolov
- Zafarmurod Abdurakhmatov
- Abbosbek Fayzullaev
- Polatkhoja Kholdorkhonov
- Umarali Rahmonaliyev
- Khuất Văn Khang
- Nguyễn Văn Trường
1 own goal
- Hayato Tanaka (against China)
- Mirlan Bekberdinov (against China)
- Hassan Al-Ghareeb (against Australia)
- Zakaria Al Ramadan (against Uzbekistan)
A player or team official is automatically suspended for the next match for the following offences:[12]
- Receiving a red card (red card suspensions may be extended for serious offences)
- Receiving two yellow cards in two matches; yellow cards expire after the completion of the quarter-finals (yellow card suspensions are not carried forward to any other future international matches)
The following suspensions were served during the tournament:
| Player/Official | Offence(s) | Suspension(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Charbel Shamoon |
 in Group A vs Indonesia (matchday 1; 1 March) |
Group A vs Uzbekistan (matchday 2; 4 March) |
| Baker Kalbouneh |
in Group C vs Tajikistan (matchday 1; 2 March) |
Group C vs South Korea (matchday 2; 5 March) |
| Erfan Ghorbani |
 in Group B vs Qatar (matchday 1; 1 March) in Group B vs Australia (matchday 2; 4 March) |
Group B vs Vietnam (matchday 3; 7 March) |
| Shakhzodbek Rahmatullayev |
in Group A vs Iraq (matchday 2; 4 March) |
Group A vs Indonesia (matchday 3; 7 March) |
| Younis Mohammed |
in Group B vs Iran (matchday 1; 1 March) in Group B vs Vietnam (matchday 2; 4 March) |
Group B vs Australia (matchday 3; 7 March) |
| Yousef Hassan Hussein |
in Group C vs Tajikistan (matchday 1; 2 March) in Group C vs South Korea (matchday 2; 5 March) |
Group C vs Oman (matchday 3; 8 March) |
| Turki Bait Rabia |
in Group C vs South Korea (matchday 1; 2 March) in Group C vs Tajikistan (matchday 2; 5 March) |
Group C vs Jordan (matchday 3; 8 March) |
| Chen Zhexuan |
in Group D vs Japan (matchday 1; 3 March) in Group D vs Kyrgyzstan (matchday 3; 9 March) |
Quarter-finals vs South Korea (quarter-finals; 12 March) |
| Behram Abduweli |
in Group D vs Saudi Arabia (matchday 2; 6 March) in Group D vs Kyrgyzstan (matchday 3; 9 March) |
Quarter-finals vs South Korea (quarter-finals; 12 March) |
| Kosuke Matsumura |
in Group D vs Kyrgyzstan (matchday 2; 6 March) in Group D vs Saudi Arabia (matchday 3; 9 March) |
Quarter-finals vs Jordan (quarter-finals; 12 March) |
The following four teams from AFC qualified for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Argentina.
| Team | Qualified on | Previous appearances in FIFA U-20 World Cup1 |
|---|---|---|
| Iraq | 11 March 2023 | 4 (1977, 1989, 2001, 2013) |
| Uzbekistan | 11 March 2023 | 4 (2003, 2009, 2013, 2015) |
| South Korea | 12 March 2023 | 15 (1979, 1981, 1983, 1991, 1993, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2017, 2019) |
| Japan | 12 March 2023 | 10 (1979, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2017, 2019) |
- 1 Bold indicates champions for that year. Italic indicates hosts for that year.
- Between 1959 and 1974 Vietnam competed at AFC tournaments as South Vietnam. A separate North Vietnam state did not join FIFA and they mostly played against other communist and communist-sympathising countries.[9] The team's total appearances included eleven appearances as the South Vietnam national under-20 football team.
- "AFC Competitions Committee recommends changes to youth competitions". AFC. 26 November 2018.
- "AFC rebrands age group championships to AFC Asian Cups". AFC. 2 October 2020.
- "Latest update on AFC Competitions in 2021". AFC. 25 January 2021.
- "FIFA removes Indonesia as host of FIFA U-20 World Cup 2023". FIFA. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
- "FIFA confirms Argentina as host of U20 World Cup". Buenos Aires Times. 17 April 2023.
- "AFC Competitions Calendar 2022". AFC. 24 February 2021.
- "Cast confirmed for Uzbekistan 2023". Asian Football Confederation. 19 October 2022.
- S. W. Pope; John Nauright (17 December 2009). Routledge Companion to Sports History. Routledge. pp. 595–. ISBN 978-1-135-97813-6.
- "Uzbekistan 2023 contenders to discover opponents". AFC. 26 October 2022. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- "AFCU20 Draw unveils thrilling groups". AFC. 26 October 2022. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- "Regulations AFC U-20 Asian Cup 2023" (PDF). AFC.
- "MATCH SCHEDULE" (PDF). Asian Football Confederation. 26 October 2022.
- "Japan's Kumata wins Yili Top Scorer award". AFC. 18 March 2023.
- "Fayzullaev named Most Valuable Player". AFC. 18 March 2023.
- "Boymurodov lands Best Goalkeeper honour". AFC. 18 March 2023.