Riyadh: Saudi Arabia has denied it is excluded from the shortlist of countries bidding to host Asia Cup 2019, the country’s football governing body’s spokesperson said.
Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) spokesperson Adnan Al Moaibed said the country is in the race to bid for the right to host Asia Cup 2019 along with other contenders - the UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, Thailand and Iran.
The SAFF has received an invitation from Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to attend a workshop on the bidding process to be held at AFC headquarters in Kuala Lumpur on September 10 and 11, he said and added that the meeting also reviewed the plans submitted by the finance and marketing committee for all national tournaments and its various age group teams.
The spokesperson said this following a meeting of SAFF Board of Directors held on Tuesday in Riyadh. Eleven countries had expressed their interest to host Asia Cup 2019 when the bidding started. Lebanon, Malaysia and Myanmar have since pulled out of the race.
Representatives from the remaining eight Member Associations - Bahrain, China, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Thailand and the UAE - are invited to attend the workshop.
Information on the rights, roles and responsibilities will be given to the bidding associations during the workshop. QNA
