Australia ponders bid for 2011 Asian Cup - reports

MELBOURNE, May 16 (Reuters) Australia would bid to stage the 2011 Asian Cup if the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) changed its rotation policy for staging the event, local media reported today.

''If the rotation policy changes to the extent that we would be in a position to bid for 2011, then we would be very eager to do that,'' Football Federation Australia Chief Executive Ben Buckley was quoted as saying in the Age newspaper.

''We believe we could put a very convincing bid forward.'' The venue for the continent's showpiece soccer tournament in 2011 is to be announced by the AFC during this year's July 7-29 event, being co-hosted by Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand.

The AFC's rotation policy announced last year stated that only nations from west or south Asia were eligible for 2011, with Iran, Qatar and India already formally submitting bids.

But reports in the Australian press claimed the AFC softened its stance last week.

No AFC official was available for comment.

Australia, which switched allegiance to the Asian from the Oceania federation last year, booked their maiden Asian Cup place by topping their qualifying group and have been paired with Oman, Iraq and co-hosts Thailand in Group A.

They kick off their campaign against Oman in Bangkok on July 8.

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