2011 AFC Asian Cup
| كأس آسيا 2011 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Tournament details | |
| Host country |
 Qatar
|
| Dates | 7–29 January |
| Teams | 16 |
| Venue(s) | 5 (in 2 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |
 Japan (4th title)
|
| Runners-up |  Australia |
| Third place |  South Korea |
| Fourth place |  Uzbekistan |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 32 |
| Goals scored | 90 (2.81 per match) |
| Attendance | 405,361 (12,668 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |
Koo Ja-Cheol (5 goals) |
| Best player |
Keisuke Honda
|
| Fair play award | South Korea |
The 2011 AFC Asian Cup finals were held in Qatar on 7–29 January 2011. It was the fifteenth time the tournament has been held, and the second time it has been hosted by Qatar, the other being the 1988 AFC Asian Cup. Japan won the cup after a 1–0 win against Australia, and earned the right to compete in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil as the representative from AFC.
A television viewing audience of 484 million in 80 countries across the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, North America and North Africa witnessed Japan defeat Australia 1–0 in the final.
Qatar, India and Iran all lodged interest in hosting the 2011 AFC Asian Cup, while Australia also considered making a late bid. Qatar officially submitted their bid on 19 June 2006, while India withdrew their interest and Iran failed to submit proper documentation for their bid on time.
Qatar was announced as host nation on 29 July 2007, during the 2007 AFC Asian Cup in Jakarta, Indonesia. Due to FIFA regulations stating that confederation events can be hosted either in January or July, and July being peak summer heat in the Middle East, 2011 Asian Cup took place in January of that year.
The teams finishing first, second and third in the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, and the host nation for the 2011 competition, received automatic byes to the finals. They were joined by the top two finishers in each of five qualifying groups. The AFC Challenge Cup acted as a further qualification competition for eligible countries within the emerging and developing category of member associations. The winners of the AFC Challenge Cup competitions in 2008 and 2010 qualified automatically to the 2011 AFC Asian Cup finals. These two winners were India and North Korea. It was India's first play for the Asian Cup since 1984, and North Korea's first since 1992.
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