The AFL has confirmed the dates and location for the 2024 Asia Cup, the last of three regional championships to be played this year as part of the refreshed AFL-sanctioned international program.
Thanh Long Sports Center in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam will host the Asia Cup from December 6-8 in 2024. Invited nations include host country Vietnam and all affiliated AFL Asia countries, including, but not limited to Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand with the final list of participating countries to be confirmed.
The Asia Cup will follow the Transatlantic Cup, which starts on August 2 and will be held in Toronto, Canada, before the Pacific Cup takes place in Maroochydore, Queensland in November.
The 2024 Asia Cup is looking to host approximately 250 participants across a men’s and a women’s division, with up to 10 men’s and 10 women's teams competing in each division. The three-day event will see matches played over Friday and Saturday with a super-Sunday finals day for the top men’s and women’s sides.
Players will be picked based on performances in domestic competitions. Each team will manage their own selection processes, with AFL-mandated criteria being that each player must be a citizen of the country they are representing.
AFL Executive General Manager Game Development, Rob Auld, said: "Holding international events where players from all over the world are given the opportunity to represent their country is an important part of the AFL’s commitment to supporting the game across the globe.
"These regional international competitions will bring the Australian Rules Football community from different regions together for the first time in seven years, which is exciting for all players and officials involved.
"The three-event program promises to be a special celebration of the game played in countries from each of the regions after all the challenges in recent years."
The AFL International Cup was first staged in 2002 and held every three years through to 2017, when it was last played in Melbourne. The 2020 event was cancelled because of the pandemic and last year the AFL announced that the 2023 edition would not be held as the game continued its recovery from two years of disruption. The focus shifted to the best and most appropriate way to get international competition going again in 2024.
2024 AFL INTERNATIONAL REGIONAL EVENTS
Transatlantic Cup
Date: 2 – 11 August 2024
Host: Toronto, Canada
Invited nations: Canada, Colombia, USA and all affiliated AFL Europe Countries.
Pacific Cup
Date: 14 – 24 November 2024
Host: Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia
Invited nations: Fiji, Nauru, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Vanuatu, South Africa
Asia Cup
Date: 6 – 8 December 2024
Host: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Invited nations: All affiliated AFL Asia countries (including, but not limited to Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam)
Keep checking https://www.afl.com.au/international for the latest news from the three international events being held in 2024.
