ASEAN Football Federation reschedules Suzuki Cup for the second time



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The Suzuki Cup has been rescheduled for next December and January © Getty Images

The ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) has rescheduled the Suzuki Cup for the second time due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Originally scheduled to take place this year, the event was delayed from April 11 to May 8, 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 crisis.

The tournament is now scheduled for December 5 to January 1, 2022.

AFF President Khiev Sameth said the decision “reflects the continued priority of the AFF, which is the health and safety of all, and has also been made to provide greater certainty to all stakeholders of the event, including associations, teams, players, officials, business partners and fans “.

“As always, our first priority is the health and safety of everyone associated with the event,” Sameth said.

The Suzuki Cup is the most important international soccer tournament in Southeast Asia © Getty Images
The Suzuki Cup is the most important international soccer tournament in Southeast Asia © Getty Images

“As such, we have been monitoring COVID-19 developments, both within ASEAN and in the wider world, on an ongoing basis.

“While there have been encouraging results in vaccine development, we are aware that the vaccine approval process, as well as the practicalities of distribution and implementation of vaccine programs around the world, including ASEAN, will take some time”.

The AFF plans to continue the current format of the competition, where teams play at home and away from home from group stage to final in the various qualifying nations.

The Suzuki Cup is the largest international soccer tournament in Southeast Asia and is also known as the AFF Championship.

Vietnam is the reigning champion after defeating Malaysia 3-2 on aggregate in the 2018 final.

Thailand has won the title more times than any other nation with five victories, and its latest successes were back-to-back victories in 2014 and 2016.



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