Navi Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar Picked as Venues for 2022 Women’s Asian Cup

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of AFC Women’s Asian Cup India 2022 confirmed the three host cities and stadiums, which will stage the Continent’s premier women’s national team competition.

The D.Y. Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, Ahmedabad’s TransStadia and the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar have been selected as the three stadiums and host cities that will provide the ultimate backdrop for some of the finest players in Asian and world women’s football from January 20 to February 6, 2022.

India is also scheduled to host the next edition of the FIFA Women’s U-17 World Cup in 2022.

After the announcement of the venues, Asian Football Confederation general secretary Dato’ Windsor John, said, “Women’s football in Asia is world-class, and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the LOC have selected exceptional venues that will deliver a true spectacle befitting the stature of the tournament.

“The AFC is grateful to the AIFF, the LOC and the three host cities for their dedication and we are confident that the tournament will serve as a catalyst to take women’s football in India, which continues to make significant strides, to even greater heights in the coming years.”

“We applaud them for their vision and wish the AIFF and LOC the very best of success in their ambitions to showcase their capability to stage a successful international showpiece,” John added.

Meanwhile, AIFF president and FIFA council member Praful Patel said that this is a reward for the three cities that have put in a lot of work to upgrade their footballing infrastructure. “We are excited to kick off the new year with the AFC Women’s Asian Cup. Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar and Navi Mumbai have put in a lot of work to upgrade their footballing infrastructure.”

This is not the first time that the DY Patil Stadium will host an international event. It was one of the six venues of the FIFA U7 World Cup in 2017.  Ahmedabad’s TransStadia too has been involved with international event, when it hosted the second edition of the Intercontinental Cup in 2019.

“While we have seen Navi Mumbai deliver spectacularly in 2017 for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, we are taking the game to new places with Bhubaneswar and Ahmedabad through the two women’s tournaments next year, which is really encouraging for our overall football ecosystem.”

The Qualifiers for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup India 2022 is set to take place from September 13 to 25, 2021 in centralised venues with the draw scheduled to be held on May 27, 2021, at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.