April 17 – Asian Football Confederation (AFC) General Counsel and Director of Legal Affairs Benoit Pasquier is leaving his position at the end of April after nearly seven years with the confederation.
April 15 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC), the first regional body to postpone its international club and national team calendar when the coronavirus hit, has pushed back its competitions scheduled for May and June into July earliest, remaining fully committed to finishing its seasons on time. But only after public health issues are prioritised.
March 26 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has harnessed some of its biggest stars to launch its #BreakTheChain public awareness campaign to encourage people from around the world to do their part in the fight to stop the spread of Covid-19.
March 25 – After seemingly getting a hold of the spread of Covid-19, China, the country where it all started, is also the first place where football could be about to resume again.
March 20 – Japan’s J.League, that was just one game and two days old before its season was suspended by the spread of coronavirus, has announced that there will be no relegation for the 2020 season from the top tier.
March 9 – The AFC Champions League has been put on temporary hold in West Asia while officials work out ways to get the remaining group matches played as a result of the coronavirus.
February 28 – Saudi Arabia has launched a women’s league, two years after women were first allowed into stadiums in the Gulf kingdom.
February 20 – India have become the front runners to stage the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup following a recommendation by the continental governing body’s Women’s Football Committee.
February 18 – In 2021, Japan will replace their existing women’s Nadeshiko League with a fully-professional league that will require one female executive at each club.
By Paul Nicholson
February 14 – This is a big week for Iraqi football. On Wednesday FIFA announced a normalisation committee would take over the running of the game in the country. This weekend the Iraqi Premier League will restart play after a period of suspension due to political situation and safety fears.
February 12 – The Asian Football Confederation has been forced to postpone all AFC cup matches due to be played in East Asia until April because of concerns over the coronavirus.
By Samindra Kunti
February 5 – Saudi Arabia has announced it has entered the bidding to stage the 2027 Asian Cup. The blue riband Asian Football Confederation (AFC) event for national men’s teams was successfully expanded to 24 teams for the UAE hosting last year. In 2023 it will be hosted in China.
February 3 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has called an emergency meeting of all its stakeholders – member associations, leagues, clubs and commercial parties – participating in the East Zone of the AFC Champions League to discuss the spread of the coronavirus.
January 30 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has extended its integrity partnership with Sportradar aimed at tackling match manipulation and betting fraud in the Asian game. The agreement will run through to 2023 and the next Asian Cup in China.
January 29 – The deadly coronavirus that started in the Chinese city of Wuhan and has killed over 130 people with 6,000 others affected has had an immediate effect on international football with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) changing the order of home matches to be played by Chinese clubs in the AFC Champions League group stage.