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Acting Premier Soccer League CEO Mato Madlala says the fact that most clubs do not own stadiums has been a major stumbling block regarding the introduction of video assistant referees. 

Glaring errors made by some match officials last season have heightened the need to have VAR being used in the PSL.  

The mistakes saw revered referees Jelly Chavani and Luxoilo Badi as well as assistant referee Andile Mncwango being suspended. 

But Madlala says issues preventing the introduction of VAR are infrastructure-related. 

“We don’t own the stadia, there is no soccer ground that has been given to AmaZulu FC or Royal AM, to own it,” Madlala told Far Post. 

“There is a project from Fifa that allows for movable VAR cameras, so we are still monitoring. As the technology is improving, maybe we might end up having that programme, but it won’t be fixed on any stadium.

"That would be great for us in South Africa, because we don’t have our own venues.” 

Madlala also ruled out the possibility of the PSL finding another sponsor to replace the Telkom Knockout Challenge, citing the coronavirus pandemic. 

Last season saw PSL competitions being reduced to just three after Telkom pulled out of sponsoring their knockout competition consisting of only top-flight league teams. 

“Journalists are the ones who always write about our teams competing in Africa, who don’t have enough time to prepare for their matches outside of the country,” continued Madlala. 

“Even if we want money, there are possibilities, but during these Covid-19 times, it will be impossible to do everything and give our teams a chance to compete in the continent. 

"It has been said that we congest their fixtures and we don’t allow them to compete, again you are asking me about another sponsor.  

“It’s very tight during this Covid-19 pandemic, when they [SA teams] leave here they need to get tested and again they get tested wherever they go, before they play.  

“At the same time there are airlines that are sometimes not working, which puts more pressure on the travelling logistics, like a team going to Egypt has to go via Ethiopia and sometimes they spend 24 hours waiting for a connection.

"So all these things impact on the fixtures, it becomes impossible to get another competition.”

Former Mamelodi Sundowns striker Alton Meiring is of the opinion the South African giants should release forward Gaston Sirino.

The 30-year-old has been unsettled at the club with reports emerging he wants to leave for Egyptian giants Al Ahly, who are handled by his former coach Pitso Mosimane.

According to Meiring, the PSL champions should let the player leave because he will end up breaking the team’s spirit, and insisted there is no player who is bigger than any club and Sundowns also existed before his arrival.

“Of course they must let him go, man, there is no player bigger than a team. Before him there was Sundowns,” Meiring said as quoted by KickOff.com.

“After him, there will be Sundowns, and he must go wherever he wants to go because his heart is not there at Sundowns. Because for him to do all these things.

“I understand from his part he wants to play for somebody that he will free with and all that, but it looks like he has a connection with Pitso...so let him go.”

Meiring further said Sundowns will regret having an unhappy player in their squad, insisting he will end up bringing problems to the team.

“Now you gonna have an unhappy player, he's gonna bring problems in the team, you know how players are. So the best thing is they must let him go and use the space for somebody else. Percy Tau was in a different class and is local, and he never had that attitude,” Meiring continued.

“Sundowns had Tau who I believe was Sundowns' best player then, but Sundowns survived after him. So you know what? Sirino must go then. Somebody else will come.”

Sirino was first linked with Al Ahly towards the end of last year, not long after Mosimane took charge of Africa's club of the century.

The Uruguayan was again linked with African champions when two sides clashed in a two-legged Caf Champions League quarter-final last month, when after the first leg game in Egypt, he was seen wearing an Al Ahly jersey, which he had swapped with one of the opposition players.

It was then interesting, and perhaps telling to note, that after the return game at the Lucas Moripe Stadium, Sirino once more donned a red Al Ahly jersey.

This time he elected to cover it with a jacket, but that didn't take away from the fact he had the chance to show loyalty to his current club by declining a jersey swap - knowing the situation - but chose not to.

He was also seen on camera after the game exchanging what seemed like pleasantries with an Al Ahly official. And while it could be a case of reading too much into the situation, there did seem to be in the body language a closeness between the two of them.  

Sirino has played 123 matches for Masandawana and has contributed 32 assists and 29 goals in all competitions since arriving in the 2017/18 season – a year after the Brazilians had won the Champions League.

Chelsea will continue to shop at the top table in the transfer window with a plan to bring in Borussia Dortmund teenager Jude Bellingham in the longer term.

This summer, Chelsea are in contact over signing Bellingham's Dortmund team-mate Erling Haaland or Tottenham's Harry Kane, who remains a significant target.

Furthermore, the Blues have requested information on Achraf Hakimi, with Inter ready to sell him to raise funds, but the Serie A side will block Chelsea's move for star striker Romelu Lukaku.

How does Haaland deal help Bellingham interest?

Chelsea are hoping that their efforts in building relationships relating to Haaland can ultimately allow them to win the longer-term race for wonderkid Bellingham.

The 17-year-old midfielder has had interest from Chelsea since his early teens and that has never gone away. The Blues' transfer bosses want to be at the front of the queue for when he leaves Germany, although he is soon expected to extend his deal at Westfalenstadion by two years until 2025.

In the meantime, however, the Blues can improve their connection with Dortmund. They have a mixed history with the Bundesliga side as, despite signing Christian Pulisic, they have previously snubbed approaches for Michy Batshuayi and Kevin De Bruyne.

As well as Manchester United, who had an offer rejected for Bellingham, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City have been known to have tried to turn the England international's head in the past.

Is a Haaland or Kane deal possible this summer?

The Blues continue to target a world-class striker in the upcoming transfer window.

Dortmund are only willing to accept an exceptional offer for Haaland after securing qualification for the Champions League and the finances that come with it.

Any deal this summer will be well over £100 million ($141m), with further costs incurred by Haaland's huge wage demands and agent fees. Of course, Blues owner Roman Abramovich could force a deal through, having taken a huge role in securing Kai Havertz from Bayer Leverkusen during protracted negotiations last summer.

The Blues could also wait until next summer to go for Haaland, when a variable release clause comes into play, meaning any transfer fee could be around £80m ($113m).

However, with a lower fee there will be more competition, with Manchester United, Manchester City, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus all likely to come to the table.

The Blues also remain in contact for Kane, with Manchester City and Manchester United also keen on the wantaway England captain.

Spurs chairman Daniel Levy has, however, been reluctant to sell to Chelsea in the past, blocking approaches for Luka Modric from Abramovich's staff.

Further reading

Antonio Rudiger has denied biting Paul Pogba in Germany's defeat to France, but does concede that the pictures of the incident looked "unfortunate".

France opened their Euro 2020 campaign with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Germany, who are now facing an uphill battle to qualify from Group F.

A Mats Hummels own goal proved to be the difference between the two sides, while Rudiger was perhaps a touch fortunate not to receive any punishment from match referee Carlos del Cerro Grande after a bizarre clash with Pogba.

What happened?

Towards the end of the first half, Rudiger was caught on camera pushing his face close into Pogba's shoulder, before then reaching his arms around the Manchester United midfielder's chest.

Pogba then appeared to complain to Del Cerro Grande that he had been bitten, but the match official decided against brandishing a card for the Chelsea defender.

What has Pogba said?

Pogba described Rudiger's actions as more of a "nibble" than a bite in his post-match interview, while insisting that he never wanted to see the German star sent off.

"We're friends," he said. "This was nothing big. I'm not crying for yellow or red cards for such actions. He nibbled, I think, a little bit on me.

"I felt it, I told the referee, he takes the decisions and he took the decision. He hasn't received any card and I think it's better like this. I don't want him to be suspended because of this."

Rudiger's response

Rudiger has admitted that the incident looked bad on television, but also insists he never meant to cause Pogba any harm and that referee took the correct stance by not awarding him a yellow or a red card.

"I should not come close with my mouth to his back, no doubt about it. It looks unfortunate," the 28-year-old told reporters after the game. "Paul and I have talked about it as friends after the final whistle.

"And he stated in our little talk and talking to the press that it was no bite, as some viewers first thought it was. Even during the match, the ref told me that he would have punished me if he thought that it was violent conduct."

What's next?

Germany will now start preparing for a crunch showdown against holders Portugal on Saturday afternoon, which they cannot afford to lose as they bid to bounce back and reach the last 16.

World champions France, meanwhile, are scheduled to take on Hungary, who were beaten by Portugal 3-0 in their opening game, on the same day.

Further reading

Yanga SC coach Nasreddine Nabi has finally submitted a report of the new players he wants to be signed and areas to improve ahead of the new Mainland Premier League season.

The Tunisian tactician, who replaced Burundian Cedric Kaze at the Jangwani giants, has shortlisted eight players he wants to be brought on board to strengthen the current squad for the league and also Caf competition if they qualify.

In the report seen by Goal, Nabi has listed the areas he wants to be beefed up: the goalkeeping department, three defenders (for left, centre, and right), attacking midfielder, one winger, and two strikers and out of the new signings.

He further stipulated it should be five foreigners and three local-based players.

The coach has also recommended that the team drops four foreign players and five local players to pave way for the new signings.

“Nabi has given out his transfer list to the technical department and it is being worked on,” a source, who did not want to be named, told Goal.

“He wants new eight players signed and a similar number dropped.”

Already Yanga have reportedly sealed the signing of left-footed AS Vita Club defender Djuma Shaban from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kaizer Chiefs forward Lazarous Kambole, who has also reportedly signed a one-year loan deal, and they are talking to more prospective signings.

Apart from Kambole and Shaban, Goal also understands AS Vita’s Jean-Marc Makusu Mundele is another a primary transfer target for the record Tanzanian champions.

Timu ya Wananchi are expected to prioritise the signing of forwards after Fiston Abdul Razak and Michael Sarpong failed to live up to expectations.

Sarpong was signed before the season began and so far does not feature among the top five best scorers. Razak came during the mid-season transfer window but has been unable to successfully challenge Saidi Ntibazonkiza and Yacouba Sogne for a starting berth.

Makusu is expected to return to AS Vita after he failed to replicate his previous goalscoring form while at Premier Soccer League side Orlando Pirates on loan.

Watford will mark their return to the Premier League with a home fixture against Aston Villa on the opening weekend of the 2021-22 campaign.

The Hornets were the runners-up in the Championship in the 2020-21 season to earn promotion to the top flight, where they will be hoping to avoid relegation and an immediate return to the second tier.

Xisco Munoz's side will have a number of London derbies to look forward to in the new campaign, starting with an away clash against Tottenham on August 28.

A difficult run of fixtures in November, meanwhile, sees Watford take on the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United, Leicester and Chelsea in consecutive matches.

The Hornets then take on Premier League champions Manchester City on December 4.

Watford conclude their season with an away fixture at Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea on May 22, by which point their supporters will undoubtedly be hoping they'll be safe of the relegation places.

Watford Premier League fixtures 2021-22

Club-by-club Premier League 2021-22 fixtures

Aston Villa will fancy themselves to start the 2021-22 season with a bang, as two of their opening three fixtures pit them against newly-promoted sides.

In between facing Watford and Brentford, the Villans also take on Newcastle, who struggled throughout the previous campaign.

One of the most tricky-looking periods comes towards the end of the year, when Dean Smith's side must navigate clashes against Man City, Leicester then Liverpool.

The season run-in, often crucial for sides outside of the 'top six', includes ostensibly favourable match-ups against Norwich, Burnley and Crystal Palace.

Their final match of the season, however, pits them against Man City once again.

Of course, there will be no West Midlands derby after West Brom were relegated, but will Villa fans care? Probably not.

Leeds United are set to kick off the 2021-22 Premier League season with a tasty encounter with old rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford on August 14.

The opener against the Red Devils is followed by a home game against Everton on August 21, with a trip to Burnley on August 28 followed by an exciting clash with Liverpool on September 11.

Their run of games over the Christmas period will be particularly tricky to navigate, with games against Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal in December, with Liverpool at Anfield on Boxing Day.

The Whites will ring in the new year at home to Burnley and will be targeting points in the first few months of 2022, with games against West Ham and Newcastle United also to come in January.

Leeds' end-of-season run in is not particularly easy either, as they face Man City at the end of April and Arsenal at the beginning of May before concluding things with games against Brighton and new faces Brentford.

Kuwait captain Bader Al-Mutawa had matched Egyptian legend Ahmed Hassan’s record for the most international appearances made by a player in football history.

Al-Mutawa made his 184th appearance for the Blue Wave in Tuesday’s 2-1 win over Chinese Taipei in a 2022 Fifa World Cup qualification encounter played at the Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium.

In the process, he equalled the mark set by the four-time Africa Cup of Nations winner, who played his last game for the Pharaohs in May 2012.

The Asian side marked the 36-year-old’s milestone with a victory, as Yousef Nasser’s brace helped Andres Carrasco’s men subdue Vom Ca-nhum’s team.

The Kuwait Football Association went on social media to felicitate with the former Qadsia and Al Nassr goal machine on his achievement.

“The chairman of the board of directors of the Kuwait Football Association, Sheikh Ahmed Al-Yousef Al-Sabah, and the members of the board of directors congratulate the captain of the national team Bader Al-Mutawa, on the occasion of his participation in the 184th international match, equalling the number of the dean of the Egyptian player, Ahmed Hassan,” an Instagram post from the Kuwait FA read.

Al-Mutawa made his debut for Kuwait at the age of 17 on September 4, 2003 – making him one of the national team’s youngest players to represent the senior team.

He scored his first goal as Kuwait silenced Saudi Arabia 2-1 during an Arabia Gulf Cup encounter on December 14, 2004.

Al-Mutawa impressed at the competition, forming a strike partnership with star striker Bashar Abdullah – managing five goals between them.

Also, the forward established himself as an indispensable part of the Kuwait team that won the 2010 West Asian Football Federation Championship hosted by Jordan.

The same year, he was instrumental as the county defeated Saudi Arabia on penalties to lift the Arabian Gulf Cup diadem.

Al-Mutawa will eclipse Hassan’s record if he is dressed for action in an Arab Cup game versus Bahrain on June 25.

Kuwait are currently second behind Australia in Group B of Asia's qualification to Qatar 2022 - tied on 14 points with Jordan after eight matches.

Even at that, they are unlikely to qualify for the global football showpiece, although that position would automatically guarantee them a place in the Asian Cup qualifying third round.

Diego Maradona was paid a tribute by CONMEBOL, who are the governing body for football in South America, ahead of Argentina’s opening match in Copa America against Chile.

Sourav Ganguly, who has expressed his admiration for the legendary Argentina number 10, was pleased with the tribute given to Maradona.

“That’s how you pay tribute to a genius. My superstar. Well done Copa America,” posted the Board of Cricket Control for India (BCCI) President.

A holographic image of Maradona appeared at the Estadio Nilton Santos Stadium with him doing kick-ups, the memorable goal against England where he bamboozled past several defenders in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. The tribute ended with Maradona balancing the ball on his head with ‘1960 to infinity’ written above.

Maradona passed away at the age of 60 on November 26, 2020 after suffering a heart attack.

The former Argentina coach coach had been hospitalised at the start of November, days after celebrating the landmark birthday, after complaining of low spirits and fatigue. 

Tests at the La Plata clinic revealed a blood clot on the brain, which doctors later revealed was operated on successfully. 

Maradona was subsequently released from hospital as an outpatient to continue his convalescence, which he carried out in his dwelling in a private neighbourhood near Tigre, northern Buenos Aires. 

However, he suffered cardiac arrest a few days later, and paramedics at the scene failed to revive him. 

Ganguly had tweeted,” My hero, no more….my mad genius rest in peace. I watched football for you.”

Read: Maradona and his visits to the City of Joy!

PM Narendra Modi leads tribute for Diego Maradona

The former India cricketer had met El Diego twice, and on both occasions, the meeting took place in the city of Kolkata, West Bengal.

The first time when Maradona visited Kolkata was in December 2008 where he visited Mohun Bagan ground and also made a few social appearances including a visit to the iconic Mother House of Mother Teresa.

In December 2017, he once again returned to Kolkata and this time to take on former Sourav Ganguly in a friendly match at the Barasat Stadium. This time, it was a bulkier version of him that took the field but nothing mattered to his millions of admirers in the city. 

Crystal Palace kick off the 2021-22 Premier League season against Chelsea on Saturday, August 14.

Palace will be hoping to improve on last term's disappointing 14th-place finish by getting off to a good start, but will be heavy underdogs against the European champions at Stamford Bridge.

Premier League new boys Brentford are due to arrive at Selhurst Park the following weekend before the Eagles wrap up their August schedule with a clash against West Ham at the London stadium.

Palace, who are still looking for a new permanent manager after Roy Hodgson's departure, have home games against Tottenham and Brighton to negotiate in September with a trip to Anfield to face Liverpool wedged in between.

Arsenal will welcome the Eagles to Emirates Stadium on October 16, and the south London outfit have a trip to Manchester United to look forward to on December 4.

Palace then have a potentially crucial run of fixtures against Everton, Southampton and Watford before they are due to come up against Spurs again on Boxing Day.

The Eagles will see in the new year at home to the Hammers and will also play Liverpool at Selhurst Park in January before taking on Chelsea at the same venue on February 19.

Wolves, reigning champions Manchester City and Newcastle United are scheduled to face Palace in March, and the Eagles have five matches to play in April, including home clashes with Arsenal and Leeds United and away dates against Leicester and Everton.

Palace have Watford and Aston Villa to contend with at the start of May, and will wrap up their campaign on the 22nd of the month against Man Utd at Selhurst Park.

Wolves kick off the 2021-22 Premier League season against Leicester City on Saturday, August 14.

The Wanderers will open with a tough trip to the King Power Stadium as new boss Bruno Lage, who replaced Nuno Espirito Santo at Molineux earlier this month, gets his first taste of English football.

The West Midlands outfit will then prepare for two home fixtures against Tottenham and Manchester United to complete their August schedule, before facing newly-promoted Watford at Vicarage Road on September 11.

Wolves' first derby meeting with Aston Villa is pencilled in for October 16, and they will make their way to Yorkshire to face Leeds United the following weekend.

Lage's side have tricky games against Liverpool and Manchester City to contend with at the start of December, but are due to face Watford again at Molineux on Boxing Day.

Manchester United will welcome Wolves to Old Trafford on New Year's Day, and the Wanderers are set to see out January with clashes against Southampton and Premier League debutants Brentford.

Palace, Everton and Leeds await Wolves in March, which could prove to be a crucial run of fixtures for Lage's men if they are in the running for a top-seven finish, which they achieved in back-to-back seasons under Nuno before slumping to 13th place last term.

Wolves' second Midlands derby clash against Villa is on April 2, and reigning champions City are set to arrive at Molineux 14 days later.

The Wanderers will finish the season on May 22 when they head to Anfield to take on 2019-20 champions Liverpool.

Manchester City kick off the 2021-22 Premier League season against Tottenham on Saturday, August 14.

City finished 12 points clear of second-placed Manchester United to clinch their fifth title last term, and can lay down a marker for the new campaign by seeing off Spurs in north London.

Pep Guardiola's side will host newly-promoted Norwich City seven days later, before they prepare to see out the month with a heavyweight clash against Arsenal at Etihad Stadium.

City have another testing three fixtures to contend with in September, starting with a trip to FA Cup winners Leicester City, which is followed by a home game against Southampton and a trip to European champions Chelsea.

Liverpool are due to welcome the Premier League holders to Anfield on October 2, and Guardiola will likely already have one eye on the first Manchester derby date of the season on November 6.

City will begin their December schedule with favourable fixtures against Watford, Wolves, Leeds United and Newcastle, but have Leicester to deal with once again on Boxing Day.

The champions are pencilled in for a trip to Arsenal on New Year's Day, and will play host to Chelsea 14 days later in what could be a crucial two games in the overall title picture.

Tottenham, who are reportedly set to be coached by Paulo Fonseca, are due to travel to the Etihad on February 19, and City will travel to Everton seven days later before their second derby meeting with United on March 5.

City have another crucial meeting with Liverpool scheduled for April 9, and will conclude the season on May 22 with a home game against Dean Smith's Aston Villa.

Tottenham will take on Premier League champions Manchester City at home on the opening day of the 2021-22 season.

Spurs, who have yet to appoint a new manager to replace Jose Mourinho, are scheduled to tackle City at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday, August 14.

That game is followed by the short trip to promoted Watford before Spurs will also face Wolves at home before the end of the opening month.

There are huge back-to-back derbies in September. Spurs are at home to Chelsea and, the following week, it’s the first north London derby against Arsenal at Emirates Stadium.

It is a similar story in January when Spurs will welcome Arsenal for the return north London derby and then head to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea the following week.

Spurs are at home to Liverpool in their final game before Christmas and are then due to meet Crystal Palace at home on Boxing Day. Away games against Southampton and Watford, respectively, will end the year and begin a new one.

The final home fixture of the season is on the penultimate weekend against Burnley before the season concludes on May 22 with a trip to promoted Norwich.

Burnley kick off the 2021-22 Premier League season at home to Brighton, with that game at Turf Moor being played on August 14.

It gets a little bit trickier in the following weeks for the Clarets, who face Liverpool in week two, Leeds United in week three, Everton in week four and Arsenal in matchday five.

While the prospect of meeting the Reds and the Gunners so early in the season may not be ideal, fans will take heart from the fact that they managed to beat them both in 2020-21.

Burnley play Manchester City at the Etihad on October 16 and their first meeting with Manchester United doesn't come until December 28 at Old Trafford.

They will ring in 2022 against Leeds at Elland Road, but January and February are sure to be stern months, with games against Leicester City, Arsenal, Man Utd and Liverpool in store.

The Clarets' final five matches of the season are slightly kinder on paper, with games against Wolves, Watford, Aston Villa, Tottenham and Newcastle United closing out the campaign.

See Burnley's full fixture schedule below.

Arsenal kick off their 2021-22 Premier League season with, on paper at least, a kind fixture against newly-promoted Brentford.

Things quickly become tricky for the Gunners, however, with their second match a home date against Champions League winners Chelsea.

It doesn't ease up after that either, as they then must travel to face Premier League champions Manchester City at the Etihad.

When is the north London derby?

The first of the two 'NLD' dates comes just six matches into the season, on September 25, when Arsenal host Tottenham at the Emirates.

The second north London derby comes to a screen near you on January 15.

Arsenal Premier League fixtures 2021-22

Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila are set to hold talks with their head coach Dylan Kerr amidst reports linking the club with former Kaizer Chiefs mentor Gavin Hunt.

Kerr steered Tshakhuma to safety from relegation in the PSL after joining Vhadau Vha Damani midway through the 2020/21 season.

Recent reports have indicated that Kerr has attracted interest from ambitious National First Division side Cape Town Spurs, and that his future with Tshakhuma is uncertain. 

However, the English tactician has insisted that he did not receive an offer from Spurs and he revealed that he will soon hold a meeting with Tshakhuma chairman Abram Sello.

“Honestly, those are just rumours. I did not receive an offer. However, I was asked by my agent if I would be interested in coaching in the NFD," Kerr told Daily Sun. 

"At the moment, I am still going to meet my chairman [TTM chairman Abram Sello] and discuss the next plans.”

TTM are said to be considering dismissing Kerr despite him guiding Vhadau Vha Damani to the 2021 Nedbank Cup title, which was the club's first-ever major trophy. 

Far Post are reporting that Vhadau Vha Damani have made contact with Hunt, after the accomplished tactician was dismissed by Chiefs late last month.

The four-time PSL title-winning mentor has also been linked with Chiefs' arch-rivals Orlando Pirates, with Bucs head coach Josef Zinnbauer under fire due to the team's inconsistency in the PSL in the recent season.

It is believed that Hunt is not short admirers as SuperSport United and Stellenbosch FC are also said to have shown interest in signing Hunt ahead of the new 2021/22 campaign. 

Furthermore, Tshakhuma are reportedly interested in Dan Malesela, who has remained unattached since he parted ways with Chippa United in April this year.

The local tactician was in charge of TS Galaxy in the PSL between September and December 2020, having guided the Mpumalanga side to a historic Nedbank Cup triumph during the 2018/19 season.

Lastly, TTM chairman Sello is expected to rename the club Marumo Gallants FC with the Polokwane-based side set to hold an unveiling on Wednesday afternoon. 

The pharmaceutical businessman purchased the club from Limpopo-based business mogul Lawrence Mulaudzi in January 2021.

After drawing against Afghanistan, India have qualified for the AFC Asian Cup third round qualifiers by virtue of being the third-placed team in Group E of the joint qualifiers of World Cup 2022 and AFC Asian Cup 2023. 

On Wednesday, AFC officially confirmed 22 out of 24 teams who will advance to the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers third round. 

Three of the lowest ranked second-placed teams, all eight third and fourth-placed teams across Groups A to H, as well as three best fifth-placed teams – 22 teams in total – have qualified for the 24-team AFC Asian Cup China 2023 Qualifiers Final Round.

The remaining four participating teams, ranked 36 to 39, will compete in the AFC Asian Cup China 2023TM Qualifiers Play-offs, which will be played over two legs on September 7 and October 12, 2021, with the draw to be held on June 24, 2021.

13 participating teams, including AFC Asian Cup 2023 host China and FIFA World Cup 2022 host and reigning Asian champions Qatar have sealed their places for the continental showpiece, which is scheduled to take place from June 16 to July 16, 2023.

Which are the 22 teams that have already qualified for Asian Cup third round qualifiers?

Let us now look at the 22 teams who have qualified for the AFC Asian Cup China 2023 Qualifiers Final Round by virtue of their final positions in the Asian Qualifiers Preliminary Round 2.

Whereas, the following four participating teams (ranked 36 to 39) will be drawn to compete in the AFC Asian Cup China 2023 Qualifiers Play-off, with the two winners qualifying for the AFC Asian Cup China 2023 Qualifiers Final Round.

When is the 2023 Asian Cup third round qualifying draw?

The draw will take place on June 24, 2021. 

How will the seeding for 2023 Asian Cup third round qualifying draw happen? 

The final seeding will be based on the FIFA World Rankings that will be released on June 18 2021 only made for the confederation at the time of draw. There will be four pots. 

Pot 1 will have the top six seeded teams. Pot 2 will comprise of teams seeded between 7-12. Pot 3 will be made up of teams seeded between 13-18 and finally, pot 4 will have the rest of the teams.

Then all the teams will be drawn into six groups of four, with one team from each pot. 

How do the pots for 2023 Asian Cup third round qualifiers currently look like? 

As mentioned before, the FIFA rankings will decide the seedings when the actual draw takes place. The current arrangement is based upon the latest rankings. Hence, some of the positions may change at the time of draw. 

The two spots will be filled by the two winners of the Play-off round. 

* The two particular spots in Pot 2 and Pot 4 have been left out because there is a chance that Chinese Taipei (141) and Guam (198) will progress through the play-offs and if that's the case, Chinese Taipei will be placed in Pot 2 and Guam in Pot 4 as per current rankings.