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The new year will bring ecstasy for the Asian football fans as AFC Asian Cup will kick off from 5th January 2019. AFC Asian Cup is the biggest footballing event in Asia, and it is organised by Asian Football Confederation (AFC) after every 4 years. The specialty about the competition is it is the second oldest football competition after Copa America
Asian countries have proved themselves and performed brilliantly in the last few editions of the World Cup. The most notable of their performances was at the 2002 FIFA World Cup in which South Korea reached the semifinals. So, AFC Asian Cup 2019 is going to be an exciting contest where Asian powers will battle each other out.
Here, in this slideshow, we will look at the 4 successful countries at the AFC Asian Cup.
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4. South Korea
South Korea has twice won the AFC Asian Cup. They won the inaugural edition in 1956 and again won it in 1960. During the 1956 and 1960 editions, only 4 teams participated and 19 teams participated in the qualification process. One team from each zone (Central eastern and western) participated in the tournament. In the 2015 edition, South Korea lost to Australia in the final. They are one of the title contenders for the 2019 edition.
3. Iran
Iran won the AFC Asian Cup thrice. They won the 1968, 1972 and 1976 editions. Iran hosted the 1968 and 1976 AFC Asian Cup.
In 1972 Asian Cup, 6 teams participated which were divided into two groups of three teams. Since then group stages plus knock-out round format is followed in the Asian Cup. In 2015 AFC Asian Cup Iran lost Iraq in the quarterfinals. Iran is currently at the 1st position in FIFA rankings (Asian zone).
2. Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia also won the AFC Asian Cup thrice. They won it in 1984, 1988 and 1996. In 1984, they won against China PR in the final, in 1988 they won against South Korea, and in 1996 they won against United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Saudi Arabia participated in 9 AFC Asian Cup out of which they won 3, lost 3 finals and got knocked out 3 times in the group stages. They are currently at the 69th position in FIFA rankings and is the 5th position in Asian rankings.
1. Japan
Japan is the most successful team in the AFC Asian Cup as they won it a record four times. Japan won the AFC Asian Cup in 1992, 2000, 2004 and 2011.
Japan has made a total of 8 appearances in the competition. They are the only team which has never lost a final at the AFC Asian Cup. In 2019, Japan will be aiming for their 5th title. Japan is placed in group F alongside Uzbekistan, Oman and Turkmenistan.
