Qatar awarded 2011 Asian Cup hosting rights

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Jakarta, July 29: Qatar has been confirmed as the host nation for the 2011 Asian Cup, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced today.

The Gulf state was the only country to submit a formal bid to host the event but had to satisfy the AFC of their ability to stage the tournament before being confirmed as hosts.

India and Iran had initially indicated they would bid but pulled out before the final deadline in May.

Under the AFC's rotation policy, only countries from West Asia were allowed to bid but the AFC said it would have opened the bidding process had Qatar's proposal failed to meet the required standards.

''I think it will be a great tournament,'' AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam, who is from Qatar, told a news conference.

''The Asian Cup from now on will be different from what we've seen in the past, in terms of organisation, in terms of popularity and in terms of standard. This is my promise to you.'' Qatar hosted the Asian Cup in 1988 and joins Iran (1968 and 1976) as the only countries to stage the event on more than one occasion.

Bin Hammam said the final details of the 2011 event were still being finalised but it was likely the tournament would be staged in January.

The timing of the event is likely to clash with some national leagues, including the English Premier League, but Bin Hammam said he was confident all the teams would have their best players available because January was one of two windows provided by soccer's world governing body FIFA for continental championships.

''The other window is July but that is the hot season in Qatar so it cannot be held at that time of year,'' he said.

''At the moment the indications are that this competition should be organised in January.

''We have been protected by the international window so all our players will be released.''

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