AFF Championship's reschedule set on April 2021

The premier competition in Southeast Asian football has now a new date as the AFF Suzuki Cup is set to kick off by the second quarter of 2021.

Originally scheduled in November this year, the ASEAN Football Federation moved its thirteenth edition of the biennial meet by five months owing to the coronavirus pandemic, as they are set to be played starting in April 11 next year, with the second leg of the final to be played on May 8.

Like in the previous edition two years ago, the competition will be held in a home-and-away basis. As for the AFF, they are signifying their intent to play in full format, provided that the pandemic subsided.

Said on its press release, "In consultation with the region’s Football Federations and other relevant authorities, the AFF Suzuki Cup Task Force Committee has determined that the above dates work best to accommodate the domestic football schedules, and will continue to monitor the situation closely to ensure the safety and well-being of all players, coaches, partners, fans and the public."

AFF president Khiev Sameth was delighted with the positive response on its rescheduled date by its member associations, yet he plays caution to the wind with the pandemic still raging in other parts of the region.

"While we are well aware that the fight against the global pandemic is not over, we are cautiously optimistic for the AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 to take place in its full format as we hope to deliver the best of ASEAN in the tournament next year," he said.

The said reschedule could give the Philippines a boost on its quest for its first major honor, after making their mark in the past decade with four semifinal appearances as they are more that two months away from their tenth anniversary of one of the biggest wins on its history, a 2-0 upset away at Vietnam in the group stages.

Still ranked 124 in the world by FIFA, the Azkals will have their hands full next year, as they also have the joint World Cup and Asian Cup qualifiers to contend with alongside favorites Syria and 2023 hosts China.

FILE PHOTO: AFF