2024 AFC Futsal Asian Cup qualification
Tournament details
Host countriesThailand (Group A)
Saudi Arabia (Group B)
Kyrgyzstan (Group C)
Mongolia (Group D)
Tajikistan (Group E)
Bahrain (Group F)
Uzbekistan (Group G)
Chinese Taipei (Group H)
Dates7–13 October 2023
Teams30 (from 1 confederation)
Tournament statistics
Matches played43
Goals scored303 (7.05 per match)
Top scorer(s)Iran Saeid Ahmadabbasi
(8 goals)
2022
2026

The 2024 AFC Futsal Asian Cup qualification was the qualification process organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to determine the participating teams for the 2024 AFC Futsal Asian Cup, the 17th edition of the international men's futsal championship of Asia.

A total of 16 teams qualified to play in the final tournament in Thailand. The host country Thailand qualified automatically, while the other 15 teams were decided by qualification, with the matches played between 7–13 October 2023 in centralised venues.

This tournament also served as the first stage of Asian qualification for the 2024 FIFA Futsal World Cup, where five teams from the Futsal Asian Cup qualify directly for the World Cup (plus hosts Uzbekistan).

Format changes

The AFC Executive Committee had approved several strategic recommendations put forward by the AFC Competitions Committee, one of which was the removal of zoning principles in the AFC's Futsal and Beach Soccer competitions.[1]

Teams

The 46 AFC member associations were eligible to enter the qualification after Sri Lanka was barred from participating in international competitions due to FIFA suspension before the draw.[2][3] The Northern Mariana Islands, whose association are not FIFA members, were not be eligible to qualify for the 2024 FIFA Futsal World Cup.

Only 30 teams including China, India and Macau who did not participate in the previous edition, entered the competition. Thailand automatically qualified for the final tournament as hosts, but decided to also participate in the qualifying competition. 17 teams including Turkmenistan who withdrew after the draw, Qatar and United Arab Emirates who did participate in the previous edition, did not enter to the qualification and were listed below. The following teams with asterisks are the teams never entered the qualification.

Draw

The draw was held on 22 June 2023 at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.[4]

31 teams including Turkmenistan who withdrew after the draw and Thailand who automatically qualified as hosts after the draw, were seeded into four pots based on the their performance at the qualification and the final tournament of the previous edition.[5] The eight hosts of the qualification including Indonesia who withdrew the hosts after the draw, were placed into the host pots.

Seeding

Teams who participated in the final tournament of the previous edition were ranked from the 1st to the 15th by their performance at that tournament and other teams who participated in the qualification of the previous edition were ranked from the 16th to 27th by their performance at that tournament. China, India and Macau who did not participate in the previous edition, were unranked.

Final rankings
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Final results
1  Japan 6 5 0 1 17 7 +10 15 Champions
2  Iran 6 5 0 1 39 5 +34 15 Runners-up
3  Uzbekistan 6 5 0 1 29 7 +22 15 Third place
4  Thailand 6 3 1 2 16 20 −4 10 Fourth place
5  Tajikistan 4 2 0 2 16 14 +2 6 Eliminated in
quarter-finals[a]
6  Indonesia 4 2 0 2 13 11 +2 6
7  Kuwait 4 1 2 1 11 9 +2 5
8  Vietnam 4 2 0 2 9 12 −3 6
9  Saudi Arabia 3 2 0 1 7 4 +3 6 Eliminated in
group stage[b]
10  Iraq 3 1 1 1 9 5 +4 4
11  Bahrain 3 0 1 2 8 14 −6 1
12  Chinese Taipei 3 0 1 2 3 15 −12 1
13  Turkmenistan 3 0 1 2 9 20 −11 1
14  Lebanon 3 0 1 2 3 17 −14 1
15  South Korea 3 0 0 3 1 15 −14 0
16  Oman 3 0 0 3 3 18 −15 0
Source: AFC
Qualification rankings
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification results
1  Japan 4 4 0 0 42 3 +39 12 Qualify for
final tournament[c]
2  Iran 3 3 0 0 28 1 +27 9
3  Uzbekistan 3 3 0 0 15 4 +11 9
4  Thailand 6 4 2 0 40 7 +33 14
5  Iraq 2 1 1 0 3 1 +2 4
6  Lebanon 3 2 1 0 11 7 +4 7
7  Indonesia 6 4 2 0 38 8 +30 14
8  Vietnam 5 2 2 1 15 7 +8 8
9  Bahrain 2 1 1 0 2 1 +1 4
10  Saudi Arabia 3 1 2 0 10 9 +1 5
11  Turkmenistan 3 2 0 1 10 4 +6 6
12  Tajikistan 3 1 1 1 17 10 +7 4
13  South Korea 4 2 1 1 11 12 −1 7
14  Oman 4 1 2 1 9 8 +1 5
15  Chinese Taipei 4 2 0 2 13 14 −1 6
16  Myanmar 5 2 2 1 19 12 +7 8 Eliminated in
qualification[c]
17  Afghanistan 3 1 1 1 13 10 +3 4
18  United Arab Emirates 3 0 0 3 3 8 −5 0
19  Kyrgyzstan 3 1 0 2 9 12 −3 3
20  Malaysia 4 2 0 2 20 15 +5 6
21  Australia 3 1 0 2 9 15 −6 3
22  Palestine 3 0 1 2 8 12 −4 1
23  Hong Kong 4 0 2 2 6 17 −11 2
24  East Timor 3 0 0 3 8 24 −16 0
25    Nepal 3 0 0 3 3 24 −21 0
26  Cambodia 4 0 1 3 10 36 −26 1
27  Maldives 3 0 0 3 1 31 −30 0
28  Mongolia 4 0 1 3 2 28 −26 1
29  Brunei 4 0 1 3 2 37 −35 1
Source: AFC
  1. ^ Teams are ranked in descending order as follows: goal difference in the quarter-finals, goals scored in the quarter-finals and the procedure used same as the teams eliminated in the group stage.[6]
  2. ^ Teams are ranked in descending order as follows: position in the group stage, points, goal difference, goals scored and disciplinary points in all group matches and drawing of lots.[6]
  3. ^ a b Teams are ranked in descending order as follows: position in the group stage, points in same number of group matches among the teams with same group position, goal difference in same number of group matches among the teams with same group position, goals scored in same number of group matches among the teams with same group position, disciplinary points in same number of group matches among the teams with same group position and drawing of lots. [6]

Pots

The 31 teams including Turkmenistan who withdrew after the draw and Thailand who automatically qualified as hosts after the draw, were drawn into six groups of four teams and two groups of three teams.

Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4
Host teams
  1.  Mongolia (H)
Remaining teams
Notes
  • Teams in bold qualified for the final tournament.
  • (H): Qualification group hosts
  • (Q): Final tournament hosts, automatically qualified regardless of qualification results
  • (W): Withdrew after draw

Groups

Tiebreakers

Teams are 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 tiebreaking criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings:[7]

  1. Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  2. Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  3. Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
  4. If more than two teams were 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;
  5. Goal difference in all group matches;
  6. Goals scored in all group matches;
  7. Penalty shoot-out if only two teams are tied and they are playing each other in the last round of the group;
  8. 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);
  9. Drawing of lots.

Group A

Thailand already qualified to the final tournament as host country, so their matches were not taken into account when calculating the group ranking. Then, Turkmenistan withdrew after the draw. Since only two teams were competing, a total of two games were played between China and Hong Kong.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  China 2 2 0 0 11 2 +9 6 Qualify for the final tournament
2  Hong Kong 2 0 0 2 2 11 −9 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
China 1–5 Thailand
Report

Hong Kong 0–6 China
Report

Thailand 6–0 Hong Kong
Report

China 5–2 Hong Kong
Report

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Afghanistan 3 2 1 0 28 11 +17 7 Qualify for the final tournament
2  Saudi Arabia (H) 3 2 0 1 14 5 +9 6
3  Indonesia 3 1 1 1 21 10 +11 4
4  Macau 3 0 0 3 2 39 −37 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Indonesia 12–0 Macau
Report
Green Hall, Dammam
Saudi Arabia 2–3 Afghanistan
Report
Green Hall, Dammam

Macau 0–9 Saudi Arabia
Report
Green Hall, Dammam
Afghanistan 7–7 Indonesia
Report
Green Hall, Dammam

Indonesia 2–3 Saudi Arabia
Report
Green Hall, Dammam
Afghanistan 18–2 Macau
Report
Green Hall, Dammam

Group C

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Iran 3 3 0 0 34 4 +30 9 Qualify for the final tournament
2  Kyrgyzstan (H) 3 2 0 1 15 17 −2 6
3  Lebanon 3 1 0 2 10 12 −2 3
4  Maldives 3 0 0 3 6 32 −26 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Iran 18–2 Maldives
Report
Bishkek Arena, Bishkek
Lebanon 4–5 Kyrgyzstan
Report
Bishkek Arena, Bishkek

Maldives 1–6 Lebanon
Report
Bishkek Arena, Bishkek
Kyrgyzstan 2–10 Iran
Report
Bishkek Arena, Bishkek

Iran 6–0 Lebanon
Report
Bishkek Arena, Bishkek
Kyrgyzstan 8–3 Maldives
Report
Bishkek Arena, Bishkek

Group D

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Vietnam 3 3 0 0 16 3 +13 9 Qualify for the final tournament
2  South Korea 3 2 0 1 13 7 +6 6
3    Nepal 3 0 1 2 2 11 −9 1
4  Mongolia (H) 3 0 1 2 3 13 −10 1
Updated to match(es) played on 11 October 2023. Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
South Korea 5–1   Nepal
Report


Nepal   1–1 Mongolia
Sumit Shrestha 11' Report

Group E

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Tajikistan (H) 3 3 0 0 15 4 +11 9 Qualify for the final tournament
2  Myanmar 3 2 0 1 7 6 +1 6
3  Palestine 3 1 0 2 8 13 −5 3
4  India 3 0 0 3 10 17 −7 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Myanmar 2–1 Palestine
Report
Dushanbe Indoor Hall, Dushanbe
Tajikistan 6–3 India
Report
Dushanbe Indoor Hall, Dushanbe

India 2–5 Myanmar
Report
Dushanbe Indoor Hall, Dushanbe
Palestine 1–6 Tajikistan
Report
Dushanbe Indoor Hall, Dushanbe

Tajikistan 3–0 Myanmar
Report
Dushanbe Indoor Hall, Dushanbe
Palestine 6–5 India
Report
Dushanbe Indoor Hall, Dushanbe

Group F

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Kuwait 3 3 0 0 17 6 +11 9 Qualify for the final tournament
2  Bahrain (H) 3 2 0 1 10 6 +4 6
3  East Timor 3 1 0 2 9 9 0 3
4  Brunei 3 0 0 3 3 18 −15 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Kuwait 4–2 Brunei
Report
Khalifa Sports City Hall, Isa Town
Bahrain 1–0 East Timor
Report
Khalifa Sports City Hall, Isa Town

East Timor 1–8 Kuwait
Report
Khalifa Sports City Hall, Isa Town
Brunei 1–6 Bahrain
Report
Khalifa Sports City Hall, Isa Town

Kuwait 5–3 Bahrain
Report
Khalifa Sports City Hall, Isa Town
East Timor 8–0 Brunei
Report
Khalifa Sports City Hall, Isa Town

Group G

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Uzbekistan (H) 3 3 0 0 13 5 +8 9 Qualify for the final tournament
2  Iraq 3 2 0 1 10 4 +6 6
3  Malaysia 3 1 0 2 9 8 +1 3
4  Cambodia 3 0 0 3 3 18 −15 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Iraq 2–1 Malaysia
Report
Samo Sports Complex, Fergana
Uzbekistan 6–1 Cambodia
Report
Samo Sports Complex, Fergana

Cambodia 0–7 Iraq
Report
Samo Sports Complex, Fergana
Malaysia 3–4 Uzbekistan
Report
Samo Sports Complex, Fergana

Uzbekistan 3–1 Iraq
Samo Sports Complex, Fergana
Malaysia 5–2 Cambodia
23', 27'
Samo Sports Complex, Fergana

Group H

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Japan 2 2 0 0 7 0 +7 6 Qualify for the final tournament
2  Australia 2 1 0 1 3 6 −3 3
3  Chinese Taipei (H) 2 0 0 2 2 6 −4 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Australia 0–4 Japan
Report

Chinese Taipei 2–3 Australia
Report

Japan 3–0 Chinese Taipei
Hirata 7'
Uchida 17', 33'
Report

Ranking of second-placed teams

The seven best second-placed teams from the eight groups advanced to the final tournament along with the eight group winners. Due to fewer matches in groups A and H, results against the fourth-placed teams of each group C to G were not counted in determining the ranking of the second-placed teams.

Pos Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 D  South Korea 2 1 0 1 7 6 +1 3 Qualify for the final tournament
2 B  Saudi Arabia 2 1 0 1 5 5 0 3
3 F  Bahrain 2 1 0 1 4 5 −1 3
4 G  Iraq 2 1 0 1 3 4 −1 3
5 E  Myanmar 2 1 0 1 2 4 −2 3
6 H  Australia 2 1 0 1 3 6 −3 3
7 C  Kyrgyzstan 2 1 0 1 7 14 −7 3
8 A  Hong Kong 2 0 0 2 2 11 −9 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers

Goalscorers

There have been 303 goals scored in 43 matches, for an average of 7.05 goals per match.

8 goals

7 goals

6 goals

5 goals

4 goals

3 goals

2 goals

1 goal

1 own goal

Team rankings

The team rankings will be used for seeding in the qualification draw and the final draw of the next edition for non-qualified teams.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification results
1  Iran 3 3 0 0 34 4 +30 9 Qualify for
final tournament[a]
2  Kuwait 3 3 0 0 17 6 +11 9
3  China 2 2 0 0 11 2 +9 6
4  Vietnam 3 3 0 0 16 3 +13 9
5  Tajikistan 3 3 0 0 15 4 +11 9
6  Japan 2 2 0 0 7 0 +7 6
7  Uzbekistan 3 3 0 0 13 5 +8 9
8  Afghanistan 3 2 1 0 28 11 +17 7
9  South Korea 3 2 0 1 13 7 +6 6
10  Saudi Arabia 3 2 0 1 14 5 +9 6
11  Bahrain 3 2 0 1 10 6 +4 6
12  Iraq 3 2 0 1 10 4 +6 6
13  Myanmar 3 2 0 1 7 6 +1 6
14  Australia 2 1 0 1 3 6 −3 3
15  Kyrgyzstan 3 2 0 1 15 17 −2 6
16  Hong Kong 2 0 0 2 2 11 −9 0 Eliminated in
qualification[a]
17  Indonesia 3 1 1 1 21 10 +11 4
18  Malaysia 3 1 0 2 9 8 +1 3
19  Chinese Taipei 2 0 0 2 2 6 −4 0
20  Palestine 3 1 0 2 8 13 −5 3
21  Lebanon 3 1 0 2 10 12 −2 3
22  East Timor 3 1 0 2 9 9 0 3
23    Nepal 3 0 1 2 2 11 −9 1
24  Mongolia 3 0 1 2 3 13 −10 1
25  India 3 0 0 3 10 17 −7 0
26  Brunei 3 0 0 3 3 18 −15 0
27  Cambodia 3 0 0 3 3 18 −15 0
28  Maldives 3 0 0 3 6 32 −26 0
29  Macau 3 0 0 3 2 39 −37 0
Source: AFC
  1. ^ a b Teams are ranked in descending order as follows: position in the group stage, points in same number of group matches among the teams with same group position, goal difference in same number of group matches among the teams with same group position, goals scored in same number of group matches among the teams with same group position, disciplinary points in same number of group matches among the teams with same group position and drawing of lots. [6]

Qualified teams for the 2024 AFC Futsal Asian Cup

Of the 16 teams qualified, 11 teams were returning after appearing in the 2022 edition.

Afghanistan were the only debutant in the final tournament, while Australia marked their return for the first time in 8 years. China, Kyrgyzstan and Myanmar also qualified for the first time in 6 years. Japan, Iran, Thailand and Uzbekistan were the only four teams to qualify for every edition.

Three nations from the previous edition failed to qualify (Chinese Taipei, Indonesia and Lebanon) and other two nations from the previous edition did not enter to qualifiers (Oman and Turkmenistan).

Team Method of qualification Date of qualification Finals appearances Last appearance Previous best performance
 Thailand Hosts 5 September 2023 17th 2022 Runners-up (2008, 2012)
 China Group A winners 13 October 2023 13th 2018 Fourth place (2008, 2010)
 Afghanistan Group B winners 11 October 2023 1st Debut None
 Saudi Arabia Group B runners-up 11 October 2023 3rd 2022 Group stage (2016, 2022)
 Iran Group C winners 11 October 2023 17th 2022 Champions (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2016, 2018)
 Kyrgyzstan Group C runners-up 11 October 2023 16th 2018 Fourth place (2006, 2007), Semi-finals (2005)
 Vietnam Group D winners 9 October 2023 7th 2022 Fourth place (2016)
 South Korea Group D runners-up 9 October 2023 15th 2022 Runners-up (1999)
 Tajikistan Group E winners 9 October 2023 12th 2022 Quarter-finals (2007, 2022)
 Myanmar Group E runners-up 9 October 2023 2nd 2018 Group stage (2018)
 Kuwait Group F winners 9 October 2023 13th 2022 Fourth place (2003, 2014)
 Bahrain Group F runners-up 9 October 2023 4th 2022 Quarter-finals (2018)
 Uzbekistan Group G winners 9 October 2023 17th 2022 Runners-up (2001, 2006, 2010, 2016)
 Iraq Group G runners-up 9 October 2023 13th 2022 Fourth place (2018)
 Japan Group H winners 11 October 2023 17th 2022 Champions (2006, 2012, 2014, 2022)
 Australia Group H runners-up 11 October 2023 8th 2016 Fourth place (2012)

References

  1. ^ "AFC Futsal & Beach Soccer Committee welcomes return of futsal in Asia". Asian Football Confederation. 7 October 2022.
  2. ^ "Suspension of the Football Federation of Sri Lanka" (PDF). International Association Football Federation. 22 January 2023..
  3. ^ "Bureau of the FIFA Council lifts suspension on Football Federation of Sri Lanka". FIFA. 28 August 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  4. ^ "2024 Qualifiers groups finalised". the-AFC. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  5. ^ "Teams set to discover AFC Futsal Asian Cup 2024 Qualifiers journey". the-AFC. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  6. ^ a b c d "AFC Competition Operations Manual (Edition 2023)" (PDF). Asian Football Confederation. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  7. ^ "Competition Regulations AFC Futsal Asian Cup 2024" (PDF). Asian Football Confederation. Retrieved 9 October 2023.

External links