5 Unique Facts about the Qatar National Team Winning the 2023 Asian Cup

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Qatar national team emerged as champions of the 2023 Asian Cup after defeating Jordan in the final round, Saturday, February 10, 2024. The match which took place at Lusail Stadium, Lusail ended with a score of 3-1 in favor of the hosts.

Akram Afif became the star with a hat trick scored using the white dot. This is the second title in a row that Qatar has won throughout its participation in this four-yearly event. This record equals South Korea, which also won the 1956 and 1960 editions.

Qatar's success in winning the 2023 Asian Cup trophy presents a number of unique facts. Tempo summarizes 5 facts that emerged after The Maroons became champions:

1. Qatar players won 2023 Asian Cup Individual Awards

Qatar's 2023 Asian Cup title is even more complete after its players also won individual awards. Akram Afif was named the best player and top scorer of the tournament. The 27-year-old striker has eight goals, two ahead of Iraq's Aymen Hussein who scored six goals.

Apart from Akram Afif, goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham won the best goalkeeper award at the 2023 Asian Cup. The player who recently celebrated his 26th birthday recorded three clean sheets from seven appearances throughout the tournament.

2. The Fifth team that defend the title

Qatar became the fifth team to defend the Asian Cup title since the tournament started in 1956. The other four teams with similar records are South Korea (1956 and 1960), Iran (1968, 1972 and 1976), Saudi Arabia (1984 and 1988) , and Japan (2000 and 2004).

3. Continue the trend of the host winning in the final

The trend of the hosts always winning when they reach the Asian Cup final will continue in the 2023 edition after Qatar lifted the trophy. The Maroons became the seventh team to achieve this achievement.

Previously, the host teams that won the Asian Cup were South Korea (1960), Israel (1964), Iran (1968 and 1976), Kuwait (1980), Japan (1992), Australia (2015).

4. Twice Consecutive Champions with the Same Winning Score

In the 2023 Asian Cup, Qatar confirmed themselves as champions after winning with a score of 3-1 over Jordan. In the previous edition, The Maroons also won the tournament with a 3-1 win over Japan. They also became the first team to record this unique fact.

5. First Team to Get Three Penalties in the Final

Throughout the history of the Asian Cup finals from the 1956 edition until the 2019 edition, not a single team received three penalties in the final round. However, Qatar made history as the first team to do this.

In the 2023 Asian Cup final, Qatar received three penalty violations, all of which were executed well by Akram Afif. One additional fact about this frizzy-haired player is that he also scored a goal from the penalty spot in the final round which sealed Qatar's victory over Japan in the 2019 edition.

Randy Fauzi Febriansyah

Editor's Choice: Jakarta Cleans Up Waste from 2024 Election Campaign Equipment, Some Used for Power Plant Fuel

Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News