The Asian Football Confederation has released key details about the U-17 Asian Cup finals, to be held in Saudi Arabia in 2026. The most intriguing point is that the draw date is now confirmed as well: the event 12 February 2026 will take place in Kuala Lumpur.
The tournament itself 14–31 May 2026 will be staged in Saudi Arabia. So preparations for a major youth-football showdown have now officially started ticking “by the clock.”
Uzbekistan in Pot 1 — because they are the reigning champions
In the draw, the participating teams will be split into four potsUzbekistan’s U-17 team, as tournament winners, will be placed in Pot 1. This may reduce the chance of landing relatively “tough on paper” opponents in the group, but in Asia there are no truly “easy games.”
Road to the U-17 World Cup in Qatar
This Asian Cup serves another important purpose: it acts as qualification for the FIFA tournament for players under 17, to be held in Qatar — the FIFA World Cup According to the regulations, the best eight teams will earn the right to compete at the 2026 youth World Cup.
So it’s not only about the trophy — it’s about reaching the World Cup. Motivation is at its maximum.
List of U-17 Asian Cup participants
The national teams taking part in the U-17 Asian Cup are as follows:
- Saudi Arabia (hosts)
- Qatar (listed as hosts of the FIFA U-17 World Cup)
- Uzbekistan (2025 champions)
- Korea Republic, DPR Korea (as semi-finalists)
- Japan, Indonesia, UAE, Tajikistan (as quarter-finalists)
- China, Yemen, Vietnam, India, Australia, Thailand, Myanmar (as group winners)
What to expect?
As draw day approaches, the key question will be: which group will Uzbekistan land in, and how tough will the route map be? But one thing is clear: being in Pot 1 as champions is not just “status” — it’s a signal that opponents will view you differently.
If this momentum is maintained, Uzbekistan U-17 will have a chance to write another major chapter on Saudi pitches in May.
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