الشيخ سلمان يؤكد على أهمية الدعم القوي للاتحادات الأعضاء والاتحادات الإقليمية في الاتحاد الآسيوي لكرة القدم

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC)’s commitment towards uplifting its Member Associations (MAs) and Regional Associations (RAs) was further emphasised at the 35th AFC Congress 2025, which concluded today in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.At the outset, the AFC President conveyed the condolences of the Asian football family to the communities affected by the ongoing conflict in Palestine as well as those impacted in Myanmar and Thailand following the devastating earthquake which has tragically claimed more than 3,000 lives.

Shaikh Salman, who led the AFC delegates in observing a moment of silence, said: “The AFC stands in solidarity with the people of Palestine, Myanmar and Thailand in this time of grief and mourning.

“The thoughts and prayers of the Asian football family are with all those who have lost their lives and homes and we hope that everyone impacted will find strength and comfort in the compassion from those around them.”

Reflecting on an exceptional era of progress since the last Congress, the AFC President outlined the Confederation’s increased financial investment in its MAs and RAs in a year which saw the AFC deliver the best-ever AFC Asian Cup™ in Qatar amongst a record roster of 16 competitions – a significant rise from the 11 competitions organised in 2023.

Shaikh Salman said: “Our competition reforms, including our men and women’s club competitions, are central to our ambitions, as envisaged through the AFC’s Vision and Mission, and I am delighted to note that the foundations for the Asian football family to reach new summits of excellence is stronger than ever.

“We can take great pride in our achievements and our notable advancements are largely due to the unity of the Asian football family in spearheading our reforms’ agenda and the AFC’s support for all our members at every level.”

The AFC Congress also approved the Budgets for 2025 and 2026 as well as the 2024 Audited Financial Statements and Auditors’ Report, which saw the Confederation’s overall investment expenditure increase by 63.9% to USD303 million in 2024.

The AFC President added: “The AFC has reinforced its desire to strengthen the beautiful game throughout the Continent by driving greater investment towards establishing more tailored assistance and a comprehensive suite of development programmes for our MAs and RAs.

“These are exciting times for Asian football and the coming years offer a continuation of our shared journey as we strive to exceed expectations, reach unprecedented levels of success, and further establish the AFC as a leading Confederation.”

Shaikh Salman also took the opportunity to congratulate Japan and the Islamic Republic of Iran on becoming amongst the first non-host nations in world football to secure their places at the FIFA World Cup 2026 and wished all of the AFC’s representatives the very best of success ahead of the upcoming FIFA competitions, including the FIFA Club World Cup in June.

At the same time, the AFC President also underscored his confidence in the organisational capabilities of both Football Australia and the Saudi Arabian Football Federation – the Host Associations of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026™ and the AFC Asian Cup 2027™ respectively – and praised the record number of Expressions of Interest received in the bidding process for the AFC Asian Cup 2031™.

Shaikh Salman further expressed the AFC’s forward-looking ambition to potentially explore the possibility of presenting the bids for both the 2031 and 2035 editions of the AFC Asian Cup™ for approval at a single Congress, as part of a long-term strategy to enhance planning across Asian football.

A day earlier, the AFC President had informed the AFC Executive Committee at its sixth meeting that no fewer than seven MAs had expressed their interest in hosting Asia’s most prestigious men’s national team tournament.

Relive all the key moments from the 35th AFC Congress 2025 here.

Members of the media can access the images of the 35th AFC Congress 2025 here.