Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia could be postponed by a year amid Houthi attacks

Football’s Asian Cup, hosted by Saudi Arabia, could be moved back a year to 2028 following a series of attacks on the country by Yemen’s Houthis.

The continental tournament will be rescheduled “if we need to” but the organisers are in “no hurry” to make a decision, Asian Football Confederation President Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said on Thursday.

The 2027 Asian Cup is supposed to kick off on January 7 in the Saudi cities of Jeddah, Riyadh and al-Khobar.

The kingdom has in recent days come under sustained attack in a dramatic escalation from the Houthis.

“We can wait until the end of November,” Al Khalifa told reporters in Zurich on Wednesday about a decision on the fate of the Asian Cup.

“Things can change very quickly for better or worse in the region, and it is a question of seeing what happens,” he added.

“If we need to make a decision then we will, but we could move back a year to 2028 if we need to.

“But at the moment we are monitoring the situation and everything is on schedule.”

Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr saw their Asian Champions League match delayed by an hour on Monday after Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defence said it had intercepted a missile fired towards Riyadh.

Three matches in Saudi domestic football, including one involving Al-Nassr, were postponed this week.

The exhibition Six Kings Slam tennis tournament, due to include Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev, was pushed back to the end of December.

Australia, one of the 24 teams set to play at the Asian Cup, said this week it was “closely monitoring” the situation in Saudi Arabia.

The organisation representing South Korean players on Thursday said there was “serious concern regarding the safety of all players participating in the Asian Cup”.

“The ongoing military tensions and security instability in the Middle East are issues that cannot be taken lightly,” said Lee Keun-ho, president of the Korea Professional Footballers Association, according to the country’s Yonhap News Agency.

Lee added that “no tournament’s value can take precedence over the lives and safety of players and football fans.”