AFC Asian Cup

The AFC Asian Cup is the top continental competition for national teams in Asia and is run by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The winning national team is proclaimed champions of Asia and qualifies for the FIFA Confederations Cup. The 16 finalists play in 4 groups of 4 teams. The top 2 teams advance to the Quarters, with the winners advancing to the Semis and Final. The Asian Cup has been held once every 4 years from 1956 onwards. However, as the Summer Olympics and the European Football Championship were also held in the same even year as the Asian Cup (2008, 2012, etc.), the sporting calendar became somewhat crowded. The AFC decided to change that and hold the tournament every odd 4 years (2011, 2015, etc.).