>>> AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 to take place between November 23-December 31
The aforementioned expansion was approved by the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Council during an online meeting held on June 16, which aimed to consider and discuss proposals from the AFF Competitions Committee concerning the organisation of the region’s largest football event of the year.
Permanent Vice President of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) Tran Quoc Tuan participated in the meeting as a member of the council.
The VFF official said that the AFF Council spoke highly of ideas and suggestions of the Competitions Committee, especially the issues related to the techniques and formats applied to upcoming AFF tournaments, including the AFF Suzuki Cup 2020.
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The VFF's recommendations at the meeting wins high appreciation from the AFF Council. (Photo: VFF)
Accordingly, the expansion of teams’ registration lists and final squads aims to help them make good lineup preparations and ensure the health of players after the long period of football disruption due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition, the AFF will also comply with FIFA’s recommendation on the number of substitutions per match from a maximum of three to a maximum of five, Tuan said, adding that to reduce disruption to the match, each team will have a maximum of three opportunities to make substitutions during the game.
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Vietnam stands out as the potential host of the 2020 AFF Suzuki Cup in the event that the COVID-19 pandemic has not yet been well controlled in other countries in the region. (Photo: VFF)
The AFF Council also unanimously approved a plan to set up a special task force responsible for closely monitoring the developments of the coronavirus disease in order to devise timely and appropriate solutions regarding the organisation of the 2020 AFF Suzuki Cup.
“We boldly proposed to the Council that the 2020 AFF Suzuki Cup will apply a two-group format hosted by one or two countries in the event that the COVID-19 outbreak has not been properly controlled in Southeast Asian countries by the end of this year. This will help to minimise risks as well as make it easier for the organising committee to enhance control and ensure the health and safety of teams, participants and the community. The AFF Council took note of this proposal and assigned the task force to continue closely following the pandemic situation to ensure the region’s largest football event will go ahead as scheduled,” the VFF Vice President stated.
