Muscat: The ‘Asia Cup Qatar 2023’ football tournament, hosted by Doha, begins today and will continue until February 10, with the participation of 24 teams for the second time in its history after the numbers were increased in the previous edition in 2019, making it a distinctive version at all levels.
The inaugural match of the tournament will be played between Qatar, the defending champions, and the Lebanese national team at Lusail Stadium on Friday, at 8:00 pm Muscat time, while the opening ceremony will start at 6:00 pm.
The Japanese team appears to be a strong candidate to win the Cup of the 18th edition of the Asian Football Cup in Qatar, based on the strong performances it achieved last year, while the powerful South Korea seek to win a continental title that has been long awaited for 64 years.
The Oman national football team is participating in the Asian Cup for the fifth time in its history, and this is the third in a row after the 2015 editions in Australia and the 2019 editions in the UAE.
Oman will begin their campaign by facing Saudi Arabia on January 16 at Khalifa International Stadium, after that they will face Thailand on 21st of the same month at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Al-Duhail Club, before concluding their matches in the first round at the same stadium, by facing Kyrgyzstan on January 25 in the third round.
