Asian Football Confederation is one of the six confederations making up FIFA and is the governing body overlooking all the Football matches happening in the Asian subcontinent. The confederation was officially inaugurated on 8th May 1954 at Manila, Philippines and was officially recognized by FIFA on June 21st, 1954 at Berne, Switzerland.
The current headquarters of the Confederation is at Kualalumpur, Malaysia and it has 46 member associations and one associate member association. The current president of AFC is Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa of Bahrain. The tagline of the confederation “One Asia, one goal” clearly indicates the confederation’s strong vision of propagating, boosting, and maintaining the dignity of Football among the youngsters in the Asian sub-continent. So, let us know more about the Asian Football Confederation.
History of AFC
The founding members of the confederation were Afghanistan, Burma, China, HongKong, Iran, India, Israel, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, and South Vietnam. The AFC Asian Cup is the second oldest competition of the tournament which started in the year 1956. The Asian Ladies Football Confederation was independently established in the year 1968 and merged with AFC in 1986.
AFC Member Associations
The member association countries of the Asian Football Confederation are split into five regions. These five regions are as follows
- West Asian Football Federation
- Central Asian Football Association
- South Asian Football Federation
- East Asian Football Federation
- A SEAN Football Federation
West Asian Football Federation
Following countries fall under WAFF
| Code | Association | National Teams | Founded | FIFA Affiliation | AFC Affiliation | IOC member |
| BHR | Bahrain | M, W | 1957 | 1968 | 1969 | Yes |
| IRQ | Iraq | M, W | 1948 | 1950 | 1970 | Yes |
| JOR | Jordan | M, W | 1949 | 1956 | 1970 | Yes |
| KUW | Kuwait | M, W | 1952 | 1964 | 1964 | Yes |
| LIB | Lebanon | M, W | 1933 | 1936 | 1964 | Yes |
| OMA | Oman | M, W | 1978 | 1980 | 1980 | Yes |
| PLE | Palestine | M, W | 1928 | 1995 | 1995 | Yes |
| QAT | Qatar | M, W | 1960 | 1972 | 1974 | Yes |
| KSA | Saudi Arabia | M, W | 1956 | 1956 | 1972 | Yes |
| SYR | Syria | M, W | 1936 | 1937 | 1970 | Yes |
| UAE | United Arab Emirates | M, W | 1971 | 1974 | 1974 | Yes |
| YEM | Yemen | M, W | 1962 | 1980 | 1980 | Yes |
Central Asian Football Association
The countries associated with this association are as follows
| Code | Association | National teams | Founded | FIFA Affiliation | AFC Affiliation | IOC member |
| AFG | Afghanistan | M, W | 1933 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes |
| IRN | Iran | M, W | 1920 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes |
| KGZ | Kyrgyzstan | M, W | 1992 | 1994 | 1993 | Yes |
| TJK | Tajikistan | M, W | 1936 | 1994 | 1993 | Yes |
| TKM | Turkmenistan | M, W | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | Yes |
| UZB | Uzbekistan | M, W | 1946 | 1994 | 1994 | Yes |
South Asian Football Federation
This football federation has the following countries
| Code | Association | National teams | Founded | FIFA Affiliation | AFC Affiliation | IOC member |
| BAN | Bangladesh | M, W | 1972 | 1976 | 1974 | Yes |
| BHU | Bhutan | M, W | 1983 | 2000 | 1993 | Yes |
| IND | India | M, W | 1937 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes |
| MDV | Maldives | M, W | 1982 | 1986 | 1984 | Yes |
| NEP | Nepal | M, W | 1951 | 1972 | 1954 | Yes |
| PAK | Pakistan | M, W | 1947 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes |
| SRI | Sri Lanka | M, W | 1939 | 1952 | 1954 | Yes |
East Asian Football Federation
| Code | Association | National teams | Founded | FIFA Affiliation | AFC Affiliation | IOC member |
| CHN | China | M, W | 1924 | 1931 | 1974 | Yes |
| GUM | Guam | M, W | 1975 | 1996 | 1991 | Yes |
| HKG | Hong Kong | M, W | 1914 | 1914 | 1954 | Yes |
| JPN | Japan | M, W | 1921 | 1921 | 1954 | Yes |
| PRK | North Korea | M, W | 1945 | 1958 | 1974 | Yes |
| KOR | South Korea | M, W | 1928 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes |
| MAC | Macau | M, W | 1939 | 1978 | 1978 | No |
| MNG | Mongolia | M, W | 1959 | 1998 | 1993 | Yes |
| NMI | North Mariana Islands | M, W | 2005 | N/A | 2009 | No |
| TPE | Chinese Taipei | M, W | 1936 | 1954 | 1954 | Yes |
A SEAN Football Federation
| Code | Association | National teams | Founded | FIFA Affiliation | AFC Affiliation | IOC member |
| AUS | Australia | M, W | 1961 | 1963 | 2006 | Yes |
| BRU | Brunei | M, W | 1952 | 1972 | 1969 | Yes |
| CAM | Cambodia | M, W | 1933 | 1954 | 1954 | Yes |
| IDN | Indonesia | M, W | 1930 | 1952 | 1954 | Yes |
| LAO | Laos | M, W | 1951 | 1952 | 1968 | Yes |
| MAS | Malaysia | M, W | 1933 | 1954 | 1954 | Yes |
| MYA | Myanmar | M, W | 1947 | 1948 | 1954 | Yes |
| PHI | Philippines | M, W | 1907 | 1930 | 1954 | Yes |
| SIN | Singapore | M, W | 1892 | 1952 | 1954 | Yes |
| THA | Thailand | M, W | 1916 | 1925 | 1954 | Yes |
| TLS | Timor-Leste | M, W | 2002 | 2005 | 2002 | Yes |
| VIE | Vietnam | M, W | 1960 | 1952 | 1954 | Yes |
Tournaments under Asian Football Confederation
There are various tournaments played under the AFC. These tournaments include the following AFC Asian Cup, AFC Champions League, AFC Cup, AFC Futsal Championship, AFC Futsal Club Championship, AFC President’s Cup, AFC U-14 Girls Championship, AFC U-16 Championship, AFC U-19 Championship, AFC Women’s Asian Cup, AFC U-16 Women’s Championship, AFC U-19 Women’s Championship, AFC U-14 Championship and AFC U-23 Championship.
Management
AFC has come a long way since it was established and the confederation has continuously strived to spread the love and charm of Football in the Asian Subcontinent. In order to achieve this motive with greater zeal, the management of the team has also made certain structural changes in AFC. These changes are as follows
- They have a newly established commercial department
- A General Administration and services department
- Finance and HR Department
- Competitions and Football event division
The AFC management is highly confident that these changes will enhance the opportunities provided to the next decade rising players, who are going to be the face of football in the near future.
Vision and Mission of AFC
Now after so many successful decades, the main mission of AFC is to become the top football confederation in the world helping the Asian teams to win on bigger platforms and helping the member associations under it to unleash their full potential, raise the standard of Asian competitions and help football reach the peak in the Asian sub-continent.
AFC Awards
Asian Football Confederation is not only involved in organizing football matches in Asia but also gives awards and appreciates their highly acclaimed players. The AFC Annual Awards Function has come a long way and now is the most anticipated ceremony among the Asian Football players and fans. In this function, they acknowledge the hard work of the players by giving them the prestigious player of the year award. This award is given in both male and female categories. In this way, the Confederation also builds the confidence of the star players for their contribution to the game.
So, this is all you need to know about AFC, the Asian Football Confederation. If you think we have missed some information about it do leave a comment below and we would be happy to impart that into our blog.