The 2015 AFC Asian Cup saw the competition go down under for the first time as Australia stepped up to host the tournament, with Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Newcastle and Sydney all providing venues and Stadium Australia the venue for the final.
The 2011 AFC Asian Cup saw the tournament head back to the desert as Qatar hosted the tournament for the second time.
The AFC Asian Cup had taken place every year every four years since the first tournament in 1956. However, for the 14th edition of the tournament, the AFC made the decision to change the tradition as the tournament always clashed in the same year as the Summer Olympics and the European Championships, so the next tournament was scheduled for 2007, with the four-yearly cycle continuing from there.
The 2004 AFC Asian Cup in China PR was the biggest tournament yet, with an expanded finals tournament from 12 to 16 nations as the membership of the confederation grew to 45 members.
The new millennium saw over 40 countries enter the Asian Cup hoping to dethrone holders Saudi Arabia, with the tournament being held in Lebanon for the first time.
The last AFC Asian Cup of the 20th Century saw more teams that ever enter following the collapse of the Soviet Union and new nations joining the AFC and the tournament itself expanding to a 12-team competition, hosted for the first time in the United Arab Emirates.
The 1992 AFC Asian Cup was a competition that saw some of the established names fall short and also signalled the emergence of a new force in Asian football.
The 1988 AFC Asian Cup saw the continued dominance of the competition by West Asian nations, with seven of the 10 qualifying teams coming from West Asia, including the defending champions and the hosts, with the tournament coming to Qatar for the first time.
The 1984 AFC Asian Cup found a home in Singapore as they stepped up to host the competition for the first time, with all games taking place over a 15-day period at the National Stadium in Kallung.
The first Asian Cup of the 1980s saw the end of Iran’s dominance of the tournament as matters closer to home took their toll, with Kuwait repeating the benefits on home soil.
The 1976 tournament was a tournament that was hit by withdrawals, political bickering and expulsions, but ended with 112,000 people in the Aryamehr Stadium in Iran (now called the Azadi Stadium) celebrating as Iran became Asian Champions for the third time in succession.
The 1972 tournament saw an increase in the number of final teams, with eight teams due to be involved in the final competition in Israel, who would be hosting the tournament for the second time and who had qualified automatically alongside 1968 winners Iran.
The 1968 AFC Asian Cup was the biggest tournament to date, with five teams competing in the finals for the title of Asian Champions in a round-robin format with no final, for what would the last time. It was the first time Iran had hosted the tournament.
The 1964 tournament saw the AFC Asian Cup move to the western side of the continent for the first time as Israel took on the hosting rights for the tournament which had increased in size to a five-team round-robin tournament, with Israel qualifying as hosts and South Korea as holders of the tournament.
The 2nd edition of the AFC Asian Cup saw the inaugural champions South Korea confirmed as hosts, with the tournament again staying as a four-team round-robin competition with no final and the unusual arrangement of 80 minute games.