AFC Challenge Cup

AFC Challenge Cup

Official logo of the AFC Challenge Cup
Founded	2006
Abolished	2014
Region	Asia (AFC)
Number of teams	8 (at the finals)
Last champions	Palestine (1st title)
Most successful team(s)	North Korea (2 titles)
Website	Official website

The AFC Challenge Cup was an international football competition for Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member countries that was categorized as "emerging countries" in the "Vision Asia" programme.^[1] "Vision Asia", created by former AFC president, Mohammed Bin Hammam, is the AFC's plan for a continent wide programme to raise the standards of Asian football at all levels.^[2] The AFC Challenge Cup, which reflected the philosophy of Vision Asia, was created for teams to experience playing in a continental competition with the possibility to win an AFC trophy and to potentially discover new talent.^[3]

The inaugural tournament was hosted by Bangladesh in 2006 and is held biennially. An amendment to men's national team competitions in July 2006, meant that starting with the 2008 and 2010 editions of the AFC Challenge Cup, the winners automatically qualify for the AFC Asian Cup.^[4]

In the 2011 and 2015 AFC Asian Cup tournaments, two qualification spots have been allocated to the two most recent AFC Challenge Cup winners. The 2014 tournament was the last edition of this competition, due to the expansion of the Asian Cup to the 24-nations format from the 16-nations one after the 2015 edition.^[5][6] In April 2016, several associations requested a new competition to replace the Challenge Cup as they were having problems arranging friendly matches, AFC created the AFC Solidarity Cup.^[7]

Selection of teams

The AFC initially divided their 46 member nations into three groups in 2006. Although the tournament is meant for the countries of emerging associations class, some countries from the developing associations class and even the developed associations class have participated in the qualification and the finals of the tournament such as India, Maldives, Myanmar, North Korea, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. As a result, only one team from the emerging class ever won the tournament, when Palestine won in 2014. In late March 2012, the Northern Mariana Islands Football Association, although only an associate member of the AFC, was approved by the AFC to enter their national team in the competition.^[8] In November 2012, the AFC announced North Korea's exclusion from future AFC Challenge Cups.^[9]

  Eligible in the AFC Challenge Cup

  Former participants

The last 17 are classed as emerging associations, which need time to develop their football. They are eligible in the AFC Challenge Cup. These are the teams which participate:

Results

Year	Host	Final			Losing semi-finalists			Number of teams
		Winner	Score	Runner-up
2006 Details	Bangladesh	Tajikistan	4–0	Sri Lanka	Kyrgyzstan and    Nepal			16
Year	Host	Final			Third place match			Number of teams
		Winner	Score	Runner-up	Third place	Score	Fourth place
2008 Details	India	India	4–1	Tajikistan	North Korea	4–0	Myanmar	8
2010 Details	Sri Lanka	North Korea	1–1 (a.e.t.) (5–4 pens.)	Turkmenistan	Tajikistan	1–0	Myanmar	8
2012 Details	Nepal	North Korea	2–1	Turkmenistan	Philippines	4–3	Palestine	8
2014 Details	Maldives	Palestine	1–0	Philippines	Maldives	1–1 (a.e.t.) (8–7 pens.)	Afghanistan	8

Successful national teams

Team	Champion	Runners-up	Third place	Fourth place
North Korea	2 (2010, 2012)		1 (2008)
Tajikistan	1 (2006)	1 (2008)	1 (2010)
Palestine	1 (2014)			1 (2012)
India	1 (2008)
Turkmenistan		2 (2010, 2012)
Philippines		1 (2014)	1 (2012)
Sri Lanka		1 (2006)
Kyrgyzstan			1 (2006^)
Nepal			1 (2006^)
Maldives			1 (2014)
Myanmar				2 (2008, 2010)
Afghanistan				1 (2014)

Participating nations

The participating countries of the AFC Challenge Cup and their number of appearances in the tournament.

  4 appearances

  3 appearances

  2 appearances

  1 appearance

  Never qualified

  Ineligible

  Not an associate member of AFC

Legend

For each tournament, the number of teams in each of the finals tournament are shown.

Teams	2006 (16 teams)	2008 (8 teams)	2010 (8 teams)	2012 (8 teams)	2014 (8 teams)	Years
Afghanistan	GS	GS	×	•	4th	3
Bangladesh	QF	•	GS	•	•	2
Bhutan	GS	•	•	•	•	1
Brunei	GS	•	•	×	×	1
Cambodia	GS	•	•	•	•	1
Chinese Taipei	QF	•	•	•	•	1
Guam	GS	•	•	•	•	1
India	QF	1st	GS	GS	•	4
Kyrgyzstan	SF	•	GS	•	GS	3
Laos	•	×	•	•	GS	1
Macau	GS	•	•	•	•	1
Maldives	‡	‡	•	GS	3rd	2
Mongolia	•	×	•	•	•	0
Myanmar	‡	4th	4th	•	GS	3
Nepal	SF	GS	•	GS	•	3
North Korea	‡	3rd	1st	1st	‡	3
Northern Mariana Islands	‡	‡	‡	‡	•	0
Pakistan	GS	•	•	•	•	1
Palestine	QF	×	•	4th	1st	3
Philippines	GS	•	•	3rd	2nd	3
Sri Lanka	2nd	GS	GS	•	•	3
Tajikistan	1st	2nd	3rd	GS	•	4
Timor-Leste	×	×	×	×	×	0
Turkmenistan	‡	GS	2nd	2nd	GS	4

General statistics

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts.
North Korea	15	12	2	1	35	4	+31	38
Tajikistan	19	11	2	6	36	16	+20	34
Turkmenistan	16	8	4	4	27	14	+13	28
Palestine	14	8	3	3	29	8	+21	27
Philippines	13	6	3	4	18	14	+4	21
India	15	5	3	7	13	21	−8	18
Kyrgyzstan	11	5	0	6	7	12	−5	15
Myanmar	13	5	0	8	15	22	−7	15
Sri Lanka	12	4	2	6	12	22	−10	14
Nepal	11	3	2	6	11	14	−3	11
Bangladesh	7	3	1	3	10	13	−3	10
Maldives	8	2	2	4	9	12	−3	8
Afghanistan	11	1	5	5	7	19	−12	8
Chinese Taipei	4	1	2	1	3	5	−2	5
Brunei	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	4
Pakistan	3	1	1	1	3	4	−1	4
Cambodia	3	1	0	2	4	6	−2	3
Bhutan	3	0	1	2	0	3	−3	1
Macau	3	0	1	2	2	8	−6	1
Laos	3	0	1	2	1	7	−6	1
Guam	3	0	0	3	0	17	−17	0

Awards

Most Valuable Players

Year	Player
2006	Ibrahim Rabimov
2008	Baichung Bhutia
2010	Ryang Yong-Gi
2012	Pak Nam-Chol
2014	Murad Ismail Said

Top scorers

Year	Player	Goals
2006	Fahed Attal	8
2008	Pak Song-Chol	6
2010	Ryang Yong-Gi	4
2012	Phil Younghusband	6
2014	Ashraf Nu'man	4

References

External links

• AFC Challenge Cup