South Korea Signs Up To Bid To Host The 2023 Asian Cup To Replace China, President Yoon Suk-yeol Gives Full Support

South Korean stadium illustration. (Photo: instagram.com/@thekfa)

JAKARTA - The South Korean Football Association (KFA) has rushed to send a proposal to the AFC to host the 2023 Asian Cup. This follows China's decision to withdraw from hosting status.

Quoted from Reuters, after China officially withdrew from hosting the 2023 Asian Cup in May, the AFC then opened up the opportunity for participating countries to host substitutes.

The opportunity is opened by the AFC with a deadline for submissions until 30 July. For interested countries, they can send an 'Expression of Interest' (EoI).

This is what South Korea is trying to do.

"The Korean Football Association is promoting the bid for the 2023 Asian Cup to be hosted by the AFC in Korea," the KFA said in a statement quoted by Reuters.

"For that, we want to send applications from local governments that own stadiums to hold international matches, such as special football fields and public sports facilities," they continued.

KFA's intention was later supported by the President of South Korea, Yoon Suk-yeol. When he learned that the KFA had proposed to host, he ordered the Korean Minister of Sports to ensure that the proposal to host the 2023 Asian Cup was approved by the AFC.

This was conveyed by Yoon Suk-yeol after attending a dinner with players and officials before the friendly match against Brazil some time ago.

Previously, China decided to withdraw as the host of the 2023 Asian Cup because it wanted to focus on controlling the spread of COVID-19 in the country. Previously, several regions in China had to be locked down due to the increasing number of active cases.