Asian Cup 2027 starts 7 January as planned: Saudi Arabia vs Palestine in Riyadh

The AFC Asian Cup 2027 will kick off on 7 January in Riyadh with hosts Saudi Arabia against Palestine, under a schedule the Asian Football Confederation published on Monday, Al Jazeera reported. The final is on 5 February, also at the 72,000-seat King Fahd Sports City Stadium.

The announcement ends, for now, talk of moving the tournament. Earlier this month AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said it could slip "back a year to 2028 if we need to", and the local organising committee answered that preparations remained "on schedule", AFP reported.

The schedule

• Opening match: Saudi Arabia vs Palestine, Thursday 7 January, Riyadh (Group A)
• 11 January: Qatar, the defending champions, vs Thailand; Japan vs Indonesia
• Other openers: South Korea vs Yemen, Australia vs Singapore, Iran vs China
• Group stage ends: 20 January
• Knockouts begin: 22 January
• Final: 5 February, Riyadh

There are 51 matches over 29 days at eight stadiums: five in Riyadh, two in Jeddah and one in Al Khobar. Saudi Arabia is hosting the Asian Cup for the first time, seven years before it stages the 2034 World Cup. Saudi Arabia is two hours behind Pakistan, so an evening kick-off at 8pm in Riyadh would be 10pm PKT.

Why there were doubts

Saudi Arabia has faced weeks of Houthi missile and drone attacks. A strike on 10 October killed 13 people and wounded hundreds, and flights from Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport were suspended before resuming from Terminal 2 on Sunday. Several sporting events in the kingdom have been postponed or cancelled, and on Monday the Dakar Rally said its 2027 edition would leave Saudi Arabia.

Some of the 24 federations are still uneasy. Japan Football Association president Tsuneyasu Miyamoto said last week it would not be easy to hold the tournament there if the situation stays as it is, while the Saudi side told him safety was its top priority.

What it means for Pakistanis

Pakistan are not in the tournament, but millions of Pakistanis live and work in Saudi Arabia, many in Riyadh and Jeddah, and January's matches will play out in their cities. Anyone planning a trip should watch for travel advisories; check the Saudi riyal rate and our report on Saudi Arabia's new Nitaqat minimum wage.