The hosts, Qatar, were proclaimed the AFC Asian Cup winners by Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani after they defeated Jordan 3-1 in the all-Arab championship match yesterday night. At the Lusail Stadium, jubilant cheers broke out as Al Annabi emerged as the sixth country in history to win the top competition twice in a row.
Qatar's hero was Akram Afif, who scored a hat-trick of penalties to deny a determined Jordanian team the victory, playing in their first major final,
After Jordan's Yazan Al Naimat scored the equaliser in the 67th minute, the star striker scored twice more from penalty kicks in the 73rd and 90+5 minutes to give the home team the lead. He also converted a penalty kick in the 22nd minute.
Minister of Sports and Youth H E Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Thani; H H Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa Al Thani; H H Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Thani; H E Sheikh Jassim bin Khalifa Al Thani; Personal Representative of H H the Amir, H H Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani; Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani; Speaker of the Shura Council, H E Hassan bin Abdullah Al Ghanim; and a line-up of Their Excellencies Sheikhs and Ministers also attended the final at the iconic venue which was packed with 86,500 fans.
Similar to their first-ever championship win in the United Arab Emirates five years prior, Qatar won the event seven times in a row to win back-to-back titles.
The Qatari team rejoiced with a victory parade that began at Lusail Stadium and attracted hundreds of spectators, especially along Lusail Boulevard.
Nine top-tier stadiums, including seven that played home to the greatest World Cup ever in 2022, accommodated the 24-nation competition, which broke attendance records for 51 matches with over 1.5 million fans showing their team spirit.
Aside from surprise packages Jordan, who made it to their first final, the top Asian event also saw incredible team advancement, with Palestine, Syria, Indonesia, and Tajikistan making it to the knockout round for the first time.
