2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup

The 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup was the 19th edition of the AFC Women's Asian Cup, the quadrennial international football tournament in Asia competed by the women's national teams in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It was originally scheduled to be held in Jordan between 7 and 22 April 2018, but later was changed to 6 to 20 April 2018.^[1][2][3]

2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup

كأس آسيا لكرة القدم للسيدات 2018
Tournament details
Host country	Jordan
City	Amman
Dates	6–20 April
Teams	8 (from 1 confederation)
Venue(s)	2 (in 1 host city)
Final positions
Champions	Japan (2nd title)
Runners-up	Australia
Third place	China
Fourth place	Thailand
Tournament statistics
Matches played	17
Goals scored	66 (3.88 per match)
Attendance	31,537 (1,855 per match)
Top scorer(s)	Li Ying (7 goals)
Best player(s)	Mana Iwabuchi
Fair play award	Japan
← 2014 2022 →

The tournament served as the final stage of Asian qualification for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, with the top five teams qualifying for the World Cup in France.^[4]

Japan defeated Australia 1–0 in the final to win their second consecutive title. In the third-place match the same day, China PR defeated Thailand 3–1.^[5]

Qualification

Main article: 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup qualification

The draw for the qualifiers was held on 21 January 2017.^[6] The top three finishers of the last AFC Women's Cup qualified automatically and did not have to enter qualifying, while Jordan also qualified automatically as hosts but decided to also participate in the qualifying competition.^[7] The matches were played from 3 to 12 April 2017.^[8]

Qualified teams

The following eight teams qualified for the tournament.^[9]

Team	Qualified as	Appearance	Previous best performance	FIFA ranking at start of event[10]
Jordan	Hosts	2nd	Group stage (2014)	51
Japan	2014 champions	16th	Champions (2014)	11
Australia	2014 runners-up	6th	Champions (2010)	6
China	2014 third place	14th	Champions (1986, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2006)	17
Philippines	Group A runners-up[note 1]	9th	Group stage (1981, 1983, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003)	72
South Korea	Group B winners	12th	Third place (2003)	16
Thailand	Group C winners	16th	Champions (1983)	30
Vietnam	Group D winners	8th	Group stage (1999, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2014)	35

Notes:

1. Since the Group A winners Jordan already automatically qualified for the final tournament as hosts, Philippines also qualified for the final tournament as runners-up.^[11]

Venues

The competition was played in two venues in the city of Amman.

Amman	Amman International Stadium King Abdullah II Stadium	Amman
Amman International Stadium		King Abdullah II Stadium
Capacity: 17,619		Capacity: 13,000

Draw

The final draw was held on 9 December 2017, 13:00 EET (UTC+2), at the King Hussein bin Talal Convention Center on the eastern shores of the Dead Sea.^[12] The eight teams were drawn into two groups of four teams.^[13] The teams were seeded according to their performance in the 2014 AFC Women's Asian Cup final tournament and qualification, with the hosts Jordan automatically seeded and assigned to Position A1 in the draw.^[14]

Pot 1	Pot 2	Pot 3	Pot 4
Jordan (hosts)  Japan	Australia  China	South Korea  Thailand	Vietnam  Philippines

Squads

Main article: 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup squads

Each team must register a squad of minimum 18 players and maximum 23 players, minimum three of whom must be goalkeepers (Regulations Articles 31.4 and 31.5).^[15]

Match officials

A total of 10 referees and 12 assistant referees were appointed for the final tournament.

Referees

• Kate Jacewicz
• Casey Reibelt
• Qin Liang
• Mahsa Ghorbani
• Yoshimi Yamashita
• Ri Hyang-ok
• Oh Hyeon-jeong
• Thein Thein Aye
• Edita Mirabidova
• Công Thị Dung

Assistant referees

• Cui Yongmei
• Fang Yan
• Uvena Fernandes
• Ensieh Khabaz
• Maiko Hagio
• Naomi Teshirogi
• Hong Kum-nyo
• Kim Kyoung-min
• Lee Seul-gi
• Heba Saadieh
• Rohaidah Bte Mohd Nasir
• Trương Thị Lệ Trinh

Group stage

The top two teams of each group qualified for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup as well as the semi-finals. The third-placed team of each group entered the fifth-placed match.

Tiebreakers

Teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings (Regulations Article 11.5):^[15]

1. Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
2. Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
3. Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
4. If more than two teams are tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams are still tied, all head-to-head criteria above are reapplied exclusively to this subset of teams;
5. Goal difference in all group matches;
6. Goals scored in all group matches;
7. Penalty shoot-out if only two teams are tied and they met in the last round of the group;
8. Disciplinary points (yellow card = 1 point, red card as a result of two yellow cards = 3 points, direct red card = 3 points, yellow card followed by direct red card = 4 points);
9. Drawing of lots.

All times are local, EEST (UTC+3).^[16]

Schedule

Matchday	Dates	Matches
Matchday 1	6–7 April 2018	1 v 4, 2 v 3
Matchday 2	9–10 April 2018	4 v 2, 3 v 1
Matchday 3	12–13 April 2018	1 v 2, 3 v 4

Group A

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	China	3	3	0	0	15	1	+14	9	Knockout stage and 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup
2	Thailand	3	2	0	1	9	6	+3	6
3	Philippines	3	1	0	2	3	7	−4	3	2019 FIFA Women's World Cup playoff
4	Jordan (H)	3	0	0	3	3	16	−13	0

Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
(H) Hosts

China	4–0	Thailand
Song Duan 56', 77' Wang Shuang 63' Li Ying 67'	Report

6 April 2018 (2018-04-06)

16:45

Amman International Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 5,060

Referee: Kate Jacewicz (Australia)

Jordan	1–2	Philippines
Jbarah 15'	Report	Khair 51' (o.g.) Bolden 76'

6 April 2018 (2018-04-06)

20:00

Amman International Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 9,473

Referee: Ri Hyang-ok (North Korea)

---

Philippines	0–3	China
	Report	Li Ying 17', 57' Ma Jun 31'

9 April 2018 (2018-04-09)

16:45

King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 226

Referee: Casey Reibelt (Australia)

Thailand	6–1	Jordan
Suchawadee 1', 69' Taneekarn 6' Silawan 39' Kanjana 41' Pitsamai 90'	Report	Jebreen 43'

9 April 2018 (2018-04-09)

20:00

King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 5,000

Referee: Yoshimi Yamashita (Japan)

---

Jordan	1–8	China
Abu-Sabbah 17'	Report	Wang Shuang 14', 53', 84' Khair 41' (o.g.) Song Duan 51' Li Ying 60', 72' (pen.) Tang Jiali 86'

12 April 2018 (2018-04-12)

20:00

Amman International Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 4,428

Referee: Công Thị Dung (Vietnam)

Thailand	3–1	Philippines
Kanjana 28' (pen.), 53' Silawan 62'	Report	Shugg 90+3'

12 April 2018 (2018-04-12)

20:00

King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 512

Referee: Oh Hyeon-jeong (South Korea)

Group B

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Australia	3	1	2	0	9	1	+8	5[lower-alpha 1]	Knockout stage and 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup
2	Japan	3	1	2	0	5	1	+4	5[lower-alpha 1]
3	South Korea	3	1	2	0	4	0	+4	5[lower-alpha 1]	2019 FIFA Women's World Cup playoff
4	Vietnam	3	0	0	3	0	16	−16	0

Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
Notes:

1. Head-to-head results: Australia 0–0 South Korea, South Korea 0–0 Japan, Japan 1–1 Australia. Head-to-head standings:

   • Australia: 2 pts, 0 GD, 1 GF
   • Japan: 2 pts, 0 GD, 1 GF
   • South Korea: 2 pts, 0 GD, 0 GF

   South Korea are ranked third on head-to-head goals scored. Australia and Japan are tied on their own head-to-head result, and are ranked on total goal difference.

Japan	4–0	Vietnam
Yokoyama 3' Nakajima 17' Iwabuchi 57' Tanaka 66'	Report

7 April 2018 (2018-04-07)

16:45

King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 142

Referee: Thein Thein Aye (Myanmar)

Australia	0–0	South Korea
	Report

7 April 2018 (2018-04-07)

20:00

King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 230

Referee: Qin Liang (China)

---

South Korea	0–0	Japan
	Report

10 April 2018 (2018-04-10)

16:45

Amman International Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 356

Referee: Qin Liang (China)

Vietnam	0–8	Australia
	Report	Simon 8' Kennedy 18' Logarzo 21' Van Egmond 28' Kerr 44', 51' Nguyễn Thị Tuyết Dung 71' (o.g.) Raso 75'

10 April 2018 (2018-04-10)

20:00

Amman International Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 401

Referee: Edita Mirabidova (Uzbekistan)

---

Japan	1–1	Australia
Sakaguchi 63'	Report	Kerr 86'

13 April 2018 (2018-04-13)

16:45

Amman International Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 446

Referee: Ri Hyang-ok (North Korea)

South Korea	4–0	Vietnam
Cho So-hyun 14' Lee Geum-min 38' Lee Min-a 49', 73'	Report

13 April 2018 (2018-04-13)

16:45

King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 86

Referee: Mahsa Ghorbani (Iran)

Knockout stage

In the knockout stage, extra time and penalty shoot-out are used to decide the winner if necessary, except for the third place match where penalty shoot-out (no extra time) is used to decide the winner if necessary.^[15]

Bracket

	Semi-finals				Final
	17 April – King Abdullah II
	China	1
					20 April – Amman International
	Japan	3
					Japan	1
	17 April – King Abdullah II
					Australia	0
	Australia (p)	2 (3)
	Thailand	2 (1)
					Third place match
					20 April – Amman International
					China	3
					Thailand	1

	Fifth place match
	16 April – Amman International
	Philippines	0
	South Korea	5

Fifth place match

Winner qualified for 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup.

Philippines	0–5	South Korea
	Report	Jang Sel-gi 34' Lee Min-a 45+3' Lim Seon-joo 56' Cho So-hyun 66', 84' (pen.)

16 April 2018 (2018-04-16)

20:00

Amman International Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 418

Referee: Casey Reibelt (Australia)

Semi-finals

Australia	2–2 (a.e.t.)	Thailand
Kanjanaporn 17' (o.g.) Kennedy 90+1'	Report	Kanjana 20' Rattikan 63'
Penalties
Van Egmond Kellond-Knight De Vanna Catley Kerr	3–1	Ainon Sunisa Silawan Pitsamai

17 April 2018 (2018-04-17)

16:45

King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 166

Referee: Edita Mirabidova (Uzbekistan)

---

China	1–3	Japan
Li Ying 90' (pen.)	Report	Iwabuchi 39' Yokoyama 85', 88' (pen.)

17 April 2018 (2018-04-17)

20:00

King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 502

Referee: Ri Hyang-ok (North Korea)

Third place match

China	3–1	Thailand
Li Ying 51' Wang Shanshan 56' Song Duan 61'	Report	Rattikan 81'

20 April 2018 (2018-04-20)

16:45

Amman International Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 1,026

Referee: Yoshimi Yamashita (Japan)

Final

Main article: 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup Final

Japan	1–0	Australia
Yokoyama 84'	Report

20 April 2018 (2018-04-20)

20:00

Amman International Stadium, Amman

Attendance: 3,065

Referee: Ri Hyang-ok (North Korea)

Awards

AFC Women's Asian Cup 2018 winners
Japan Second title

The following awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament:

Most Valuable Player[17]	Top Scorer[18]	Fairplay Award[19]
Mana Iwabuchi	Li Ying (7 goals)	Japan

Goalscorers

There were 66 goals scored in 17 matches, for an average of 3.88 goals per match.

7 goals

• Li Ying

4 goals

• Song Duan
• Wang Shuang
• Kumi Yokoyama
• Kanjana Sung-Ngoen

3 goals

• Sam Kerr
• Cho So-hyun
• Lee Min-a

2 goals

• Alanna Kennedy
• Mana Iwabuchi
• Rattikan Thongsombut
• Silawan Intamee
• Suchawadee Nildhamrong

1 goal

• Chloe Logarzo
• Hayley Raso
• Kyah Simon
• Emily van Egmond
• Ma Jun
• Tang Jiali
• Wang Shanshan
• Emi Nakajima
• Mizuho Sakaguchi
• Mina Tanaka
• Maysa Jbarah
• Shahnaz Jebreen
• Sarah Abu-Sabbah
• Sarina Bolden
• Jesse Shugg
• Jang Sel-gi
• Lee Geum-min
• Lim Seon-joo
• Pitsamai Sornsai
• Taneekarn Dangda

1 own goal

• Kanjanaporn Saengkoon (against Australia)
• Nguyễn Thị Tuyết Dung (against Australia)

2 own goals

• Yasmeen Khair (against China PR and Philippines)

Tournament teams ranking

This table will show the ranking of teams throughout the tournament.

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Final result
1	Japan	5	3	2	0	9	2	+7	11	Champions
2	Australia	5	1	3	1	11	4	+7	6	Runners-up
3	China	5	4	0	1	19	5	+14	12	Third place
4	Thailand	5	2	1	2	12	11	+1	7	Fourth place
5	South Korea	4	2	2	0	9	0	+9	8	Eliminated in group stage
6	Philippines	4	1	0	3	3	12	−9	3
7	Jordan (H)	3	0	0	3	3	16	−13	0
8	Vietnam	3	0	0	3	0	16	−16	0

Source: ^{[citation needed]}
(H) Hosts

Qualified teams for FIFA Women's World Cup

The following five teams from AFC qualified for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup.

Team	Qualified on	Previous appearances in FIFA Women's World Cup1
China	9 April 2018[20]	6 (1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2015)
Thailand	12 April 2018[21]	1 (2015)
Australia	13 April 2018[22]	6 (19952, 19992, 20032, 2007, 2011, 2015)
Japan	13 April 2018[22]	7 (1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015)
South Korea	16 April 2018[23]	2 (2003, 2015)

¹ Bold indicates champions for that year. Italic indicates hosts for that year.

² Australia qualified as a member of the OFC in 1995, 1999 and 2003.

Broadcasting rights and sponsorships

Le Sports acquired the all-media broadcasting and signal production rights in China in 2015,^[24] but they collapsed due to financial problems thus giving in all the rights they've acquired and transferred them to China Central Television and PP Sports in 2017. Tire manufacturer Continental announced they would be official sponsor.^[25]

References

1. "Jordan to host AFC Women's Asian Cup 2018 finals". AFC. 4 September 2016.
2. "AFC Competitions Calendar 2018". AFC. 11 January 2018. Archived from the original on 14 February 2018.
3. "AFC WOMEN'S COMMITTEE MAKES KEY DECISIONS". AFC. 22 September 2017.
4. "Circular #1565 - FIFA women's tournaments 2018-2019" (PDF). FIFA.com. 11 November 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 November 2016.
5. "Yokoyama the hero as Japan emerge champions". the-afc.com. 20 April 2018.
6. "Teams learn AFC Women's Asian Cup Jordan 2018 qualifying opponents". Asian Football Confederation. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
7. "Teams set to find out path to AFC Women's Asian Cup Jordan 2018". AFC. 20 January 2017.
8. "AFC Calendar of Competitions 2017 (UPDATED)" (PDF). the-AFC.com. 12 April 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 April 2017. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
9. "Line-up complete for AFC Women's Asian Cup Jordan 2018". AFC. 13 April 2017.
10. "Women's Ranking – 23 March 2018 (AFC)". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 19 May 2018.
11. "Philippines qualify for the 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup". AFC. 10 April 2017.
12. "Contenders to learn AFC Women's Asian Cup fate at official draw". AFC. 8 December 2017.
13. "AFC Women's Asian Cup draw pairs heavyweights Japan and Australia". AFC. 9 December 2017.
14. "AFC Women's Asian Cup 2018 Official Draw". YouTube. 9 December 2017.
15. "AFC Women's Asian Cup 2018 Competition Regulations". AFC. Archived from the original on 15 February 2018.
16. "Match Schedule". AFC Women's Asian Cup Jordan 2018. Archived from the original on 18 April 2018. Retrieved 6 March 2018.
17. "Iwabuchi credits Japan team unity for MVP accolade". AFC. 20 April 2018.
18. "Li Ying lands Top Scorer award". AFC. 20 April 2018.
19. "Yokoyama the hero as Japan emerge champions". AFC. 20 April 2018.
20. "China PR book ticket to France 2019". FIFA.com. 9 April 2018.
21. "Thailand qualify for second successive Women's World Cup". FIFA.com. 12 April 2018.
22. "Australia and Japan qualify for France 2019". FIFA.com. 13 April 2018.
23. "Korea Republic secure France 2019 qualification". FIFA.com. 16 April 2018.
24. "Le Sports Acquires China Rights For AFC". 28 October 2015. Archived from the original on 26 September 2018. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
25. "Continental becomes Official Sponsor of 2019 AFC Asian Cup in the United Arab Emirates". Archived from the original on 3 April 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.

External links

• AFC Women's Asian Cup Jordan 2018
• AFC Women's Asian Cup, the-AFC.com
• AFC Women's Asian Cup 2018, stats.the-AFC.com

Further reading

• AFC Women's Asian Cup Jordan 2018 Official Programme 6-20 April 2018 (Print ed.). Asian Football Confederation. 2018.