November 2 – Thirty-five teams will begin chasing just seven places in the 2027 AFC U17 Asian Cup Uzbekistan when qualifying begins on Sunday.
The field has been divided into seven groups of five, with each section played as a single round-robin competition at a centralized venue.
There is very little room for error – only the group winners progress to next May’s finals, where they will join nine AFC nations already qualified thanks to their participation at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar earlier this year.
Australia, People’s Republic of China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam have already finished, leaving the rest of Asia fighting for the remaining places.
The qualifiers represent another opportunity to break a long-standing ceiling for many of the teams less accustomed to the opportunity to compete on the continental stage.
Thirteen of the 35 contenders have never reached the continental finals, including Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Guam, Lebanon, Maldives, Mongolia, Palestine, Philippines and Sri Lanka.
Others are trying to end long absences, such as Pakistan, who have not appeared in the finals since their debut in 2002, while Bahrain, Kuwait, Singapore and Turkmenistan are also trying to return after more than a decade away.
That said, there is plenty of pedigree in the field as well. Iran, Iraq, Oman and Thailand have already lifted the trophy.
The games will be spread over a series of centralized venues spanning Myanmar, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, Laos, Malaysia, the Kyrgyz Republic and Oman.
The qualifying format should keep things simple enough: win the group or go home.
With only one spot available in each section and no safety net for runners-up, the next fortnight offers one of the most unforgiving routes to an AFC Finals tournament.
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at (email protected)
