AFC Futsal Asian Cup Kuwait 2022™ official draw heralds return of futsal in Asia
The official draw ceremony of the AFC Futsal Asian Cup Kuwait 2022™ in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Thursday (May 26) at 3pm (GMT+8) will set the stage for the return of top-flight Continental futsal after a four-year hiatus caused by the pandemic.
After an intensive round of qualifying battles, the draw will reveal the opponents of Asia’s 16 teams who will compete for futsal’s grandest prize at the showpiece, staged in West Asia for the first time after 10 years, from September 27 to October 8, 2022.
The contenders will be divided into four groups of four teams, with hosts Kuwait placed as the top seeded Member Association (MA) while the ranking of the AFC Futsal Championship Chinese Taipei 2018™ will determine the seeding of the remaining challengers.
Joining Kuwait in Pot 1 are the defending champions the Islamic Republic of Iran, also the most successful side in the competition with 12 titles, Japan, runners-up in 2018, and Uzbekistan, who finished second on four occasions.
Iraq, Lebanon, Vietnam and Bahrain will occupy Pot 2 followed by Thailand, who are the Southeast Asian Games gold medalist, Chinese Taipei, Tajikistan and Korea Republic in Pot 3.
Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Turkmenistan and debutants Oman will have their names drawn from Pot 4.
As futsal makes a safe return on the Continent, the AFC Futsal Asian Cup Kuwait 2022™ draw ceremony is poised to unveil thrilling encounters in the Group Stage where the top two sides in each group advance to the next stage.
Futsal continues to grow at a rapid pace in Asia and this was evident when a record five teams - IR Iran, Japan, Thailand, Uzbekistan and Vietnam - qualified to the knockout stage of the FIFA Futsal World Cup Lithuania 2021 for the first time.
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Soccerphile.com