Australia, Kuwait and Jordan into 2011 Asian Cup finals

The qualification stage of the AFC 2011 Asian Cup has ended today with three more teams booking their spots in the final tournament that will be hosted by Qatar next January.

Australia go through after they topped group B with a 1-0 home win over Indonesia in their final fixture.

Kuwait also made it from this group as they finished second after a 0-0 away draw against Gulf Cup champions Oman, thanks to the heroics of their goalkeeper Noaf Al Fadli.

In group G, A 2-1 home win for Jordan over Singapore was enough to finish in second spot behind Iran who already qualified before this round of matches.

2011 Asian Cup Finals qualified teams

1 – Qatar (Hosts)

2 – Iraq (2007 Asian Cup champions)

3 – Saudi Arabia (2007 Runner-ups)

4 – South Korea (2007 Third-placed)

5 – India (2008 AFC Challenge Cup Champions)

6 – Uzbekistan (Group C)

7 – Syria (Group D)

8 – China (Group D)

9 – Iran (Group E)

10 – Japan (Group A)

11 – Bahrain (Group A)

12 – UAE (Group C)
13 – North Korea (2010 AFC Challenge Cup champions)

14 – Australia (Group B)

15 – Kuwait (Group B)

16 – Jordan (Group E)

Al Kass Channel appointed as Host Broadcasters of AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011

AFC has appointed Qatar’s reputable television channel Al Dawri & Al Kass as the Host Broadcaster of the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011.

Al Kass, who specialize in high-quality sports coverage in the West Asian region, will deliver host broadcast services for the continental showcase of football next year from January 7-29 for all of the 32 matches.

For the first time in the AFC Asian Cup’s history, all the matches will be telecast in High Definition (HD), which reflects hosts Qatar’s aim to provide state-of-the-art facilities for the competition.

The broadcasting agreement between Al Kass and AFC’s marketing partners, the Singapore-based World Sport Group, was signed here on Tuesday in the capital of Qatar.

“The AFC Asian Cup is Asian football’s flagship competition and deserves the best possible television coverage to enhance its image worldwide,” said AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam.

“Nearly 700 million people watched the 2007 AFC Asian Cup from key markets around the world and in 2004 the cumulative television audience was more than one billion worldwide,” added the AFC President.

“We expect a record audience next year too and the HD package of Al Kass is proof that our fans will not settle for anything less than the latest in broadcast technology.”

Essa Al Hitmi, General Manager of Al Kass, welcomed the opportunity to contribute to the tournament’s success.

“It is our pleasure to be a part of this event. We will make sure we produce high quality international TV coverage that will contribute to the success of the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2011”, said Al Hitmi.

Al Kass, which was launched in September 2006, are currently the host broadcasters of the Qatar Stars League (QSL) and the Qatar Stars Cup (QSC).