Qatar retained the Asian Cup with a 3-1 victory over surprise package Jordan , thanks to a hat-trick of penalties from Akram Afif. It was a fitting conclusion to a month of football that began with 24 teams and included a number of exciting games and goals.
It will also help to erase memories of Qatar’s 2022 World Cup, when they lost all three games, the poorest record of any host in tournament history. Jordan played in front of 86 492 people at Lusail Stadium, which hosted the World Cup final 14 months ago. It was their first Asian Cup final and the greatest match in their history.
Ranked 87th in Fifa’s world rankings, 29 places lower than their opponents, they fell down midway through the first half when striker Afif converted a penalty for his sixth goal of the tournament.
Qatar deserved their halftime lead, but Jordan rallied to equalise through Yazan Al-Naimat’s clever finish. The underdogs were level for just six minutes, with Afif scoring again from the penalty spot after VAR recommended the referee to check his pitch-side monitor. This time, there would be no Jordan comeback, and Afif scored his third goal from the penalty spot in injury time, following another VAR intervention. At the final whistle, the joyful Qatari substitutes surged off the bench and threw Afif into the air.
The 27-year-old was named player of the tournament and best scorer. Qatar entered the final wanting to become the fifth team to win back-to-back Asian championships and to erase the terrible memories of their home World Cup. The competition, which was originally planned to take place in China last year but was postponed and shifted due to Covid, will be remembered for its shocks, even if the final failed to generate one. Pre-tournament favourites Japan were eliminated in the quarterfinals by Iran, who then fell to Qatar in a five-goal thriller.
Jordan advanced to the semifinals for the first time and defeated South Korea, leaving coach Jurgen Klinsmann clutching perilously to his job.
Tajikistan advanced to the quarterfinals in their Asian Cup debut, and Palestine created history by reaching the knockout rounds for the first time. The next Asian Cup will take place in Saudi Arabia in 2027.