afc-magazine11

Inside AFC
Japan Hosts Assistant
Referees Course
he Japan Football Association started its biennial
International Refereeing Course in May as assistant
Treferees from 12 Member Associations across Asia
visited Osaka.
Previously held for
referee instructors, the
focus of the course
was to improve and
upgrade the skills of
assistant referees
while also providing
opportunities for
the exchange of
information and ideas
from the participants
from Australia,
Bangladesh, Bahrain,
Cambodia, Guam,
Hong Kong, Iran,
Saudi Arabia, Northern
Mariana Islands, Chinese Taipei, Myanmar and the
Philippines.
The five-day course was conducted by a team of the
Japan Football Association’s leading referee instructors
led by FIFA/AFC referee instructor Noboru Ishiyama.
“This year’s target is assistant referees who make crucial
and important decisions of their own and also assist and
support the referees in
making correct decisions
during the match,” said
Director of the AFC
Referees Department
Yoshimi Ogawa.
“However, most
training programmes
focus on the referees
although the difficult
and important roles of
assistant referees are
acknowledged. Therefore
it’s really a good idea to
focus on the assistants
this time.
“AFC did not have
assistant referee courses until the 2011 season. And AFC
Assistant Referees have improved a lot since we launched
courses for them in 2012. We look forward to seeing them
become AFC Assistant Referees in the near future.”
B
Bahrain & India
Confirmed As Hosts
ahrain has been confirmed as the host for the
2016 AFC U-19 Championship, while India will
be the venue for the same year’s AFC U-16
Championship.
A total of 43 Member Associations including hosts
Bahrain and 2014 champions Qatar will compete
in the qualifiers for the 16-team 2016 AFC U-19
Championship.
The 10 group winners and the five best secondplaced
teams will qualify for the finals, while hosts
Bahrain receive automatic qualification.
Should Bahrain finish top of their qualifying group or
in one of the five second best-placed teams, the next
second placed team will qualify for the finals following
the completion of the qualifiers between 28 September
and 6 October.
The 2016 AFC U-16 Championship will also be made
up of 16 teams, with 45 nations entering the qualifiers.
The 11 group winners and the four best secondplaced
teams will qualify for the finals following
September’s qualifiers, with hosts India receiving
automatic qualification.
Should India finish top of their qualifying group or
amongst the four best second-placed teams, the next
second best placed nation will qualify for the finals.
AFC U-19 Championship 2016 Qualifiers
Group A Uzbekistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bhutan
Group B Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, Syria
Group C UAE, Palestine, India, Afghanistan
Group D Qatar, Oman, Lebanon, Kyrgyzstan
Group E Iran, Kuwait, Jordan, Nepal
Group F Iraq, Bahrain, Maldives, Tajikistan
Group G Myanmar, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Brunei, Timor-Leste
Group H Thailand, Korea Republic, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Northern Mariana Islands
Group I DPR Korea, China, Malaysia, Macau
Group J Japan, Australia, Philippines, Laos
AFC U-16 Championship 2016 Qualifiers
Group A Uzbekistan, Yemen, Palestine, Maldives
Group B Nepal, Oman, Kyrgyzstan, Jordan
Group C Qatar, Tajikistan, Iraq, Turkmenistan
Group D Saudi Arabia, UAE, Pakistan, Bangladesh
Group E Iran, Bahrain, India, Lebanon
Group F Syria, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka
Group G Malaysia, Laos, Philippines, Northern Mariana Islands, Timor-Leste
Group H DPR Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia
Group I Korea Republic, China, Chinese Taipei, Macau
Group J Australia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Guam
Group K Japan, Hong Kong, Brunei, Mongolia
T
Futsal Benchmark
Visit Concludes
he AFC/UEFA Futsal Benchmark Study
programme concluded with a visit to UEFA
headquarters in Switzerland in April.
The two-day visit, part of an exchange
programme between AFC and UEFA, was aimed
at further developing and improving futsal in Asia
following earlier study visits to Russia and Spain.
The visit, under the AFC Futsal Development
Programme, began at UEFA Headquarters with
a reception by UEFA’s Head of National Team
Competitions Lance Kelly, while UEFA Futsal
Competitions Manager Laurent Morel also
welcomed the visitors.
The AFC delegation, led by AFC Director
of Futsal and Beach Soccer Development Ali
Targholizade, made a presentation on the current
status of Asian futsal, highlighting all AFC futsal
competitions, components of the AFC Futsal
Development Programme and the progress of the
game in Asia.
UEFA also presented on their structure, coach
education programmes, futsal competitions, events,
marketing and development components.
Familiar Draw For
Defending Champions
efending champions Nagoya Oceans of Japan
will face familiar foes Lokomotiv Tashkent of
DUzbekistan in the group stage of the 2015 AFC
Futsal Club Championship following June’s draw in the
Iranian city of Isfahan.
Nagoya, winners of the 2011 and 2014 editions, met
Lokomotiv in the group stage last year in Chengdu and
will have a return clash with the Tashkent side in the
2015 tournament in Group B along with Kyrgyzstan’s
champions MFC Emgek.
Last year’s runners-up Chonburi Bluewave of Thailand
will face Qatar’s Al Rayyan SC and Iraqi side NAFT Al
Wasat Club in Group C.
The host country’s representative, Tasisat Daryaei of
Iran, are in Group A alongside Kuwait’s Qadsia SC and
Al Khaleej SC of the United Arab Emirates.
Group D, meanwhile, comprises China’s Shenzhen
Nanling Tielang, who finished fourth last year; Lebanese
club Bank of Beirut and Vietnam’s Thai Son Nam.
Tasisat Daryaei as hosts, as well as Nagoya,
automatically qualified for the finals, with the top
three clubs from Japan, Thailand and China seeded
as per the final rankings at the 2014 AFC Futsal Club
Championship.
The 2015 AFC Futsal Club Championship will take
place from 31 July to 7 August.
AFC Futsal Club Championship
Group A Tasisat Daryaei (Iran), Qadsia SC (Kuwait), Al Khaleej SC (UAE)
Group B Nagoya Oceans (Japan), MFC Emgek (Kyrgyzstan), Lokomotiv (Uzbekistan)
Group C Chonburi Bluewave (Thailand), Al Rayyan SC (Qatar), NAFT Al Wasat Club (Iraq)
Group D Shenzen Nanling Tielang (China), Bank of Beirut (Lebanon), Thai Son Nam (Vietnam)
AFC QUARTERLY 77