The 2000 AFC Asian Cup was the 12th edition of the men's

AFC Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second oldest cont ...

, a quadrennial international

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

tournament organised by the

Asian Football Confederation The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal in some countries/territories in Asia and Oceania. It has 47 member countries most of which are located in Asia. Australia, formerly in ...

(AFC). The finals were held in

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

between 12 and 29 October 2000.

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

defeated defending champion

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

in the final match in

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

Qualification

42 teams participated in a preliminary tournament. It was divided into 10 groups and the first-placed team of each group thus qualified. A total of 84 games were held, starting with the

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

versus

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the east. ...

game on 3 August 1999. The 12 qualifying teams were: Notes: :

¹ Bold indicates champion for that year

² ''Italic'' indicates host

Stadiums

Squads

Tournament summary

Lebanon participated in the country's first ever football competition in the history as host, but began disappointingly, losing 0–4 to mighty Iran. Lebanon sought to reinvigorate the team against Iraq and Thailand, but all ended up in just draws, and Lebanon finished bottom in the group, the first host nation since Qatar 1988 to not progress from the group stage. Iran and Iraq managed to survive in the group A with seven and four points respectively, and Thailand took the third, but did not progress due to inferior points, having won no match in their group. Group B saw South Korea failed to achieve a top two finish, falling behind group winner China and Kuwait, but qualified as the best third place team, with the team's only win was against Indonesia. Indonesia was the only team to not score a single goal in the tournament, being beaten by South Korea and China, and a goalless draw with Kuwait. Group C witnessed Uzbekistan to become the worst-performed team in the tournament, being heavily beaten 1–8 by Japan and 0–5 by defending champions Saudi Arabia. The Japanese scrambled to top the group with a famous 4–1 win over the Saudis, though Saudi Arabia would go on to progress together after an unpromising group stage performance. Qatar, another participant in the group, finished in third and progressed thanked for one point ahead of Thailand, having drawn in all three matches. The quarter-finals saw Iran lost 1–2 to South Korea by a golden goal of

Lee Dong-gook Lee Dong-gook (, ; born 29 April 1979) is a South Korean former professional footballer who played as a striker. He is a record scorer in the K League 1, and had brief spells in Europe with Werder Bremen and Middlesbrough. He also played for ...

, and the same happened in Saudi Arabia's victory over Kuwait, also by a golden goal of

Nawaf Al-Temyat Nawaf Bander Nawaf Al-Temyat ( ar, نواف بندر نواف التمياط; born 28 June 1976) is a Saudi Arabian former footballer who played as a midfielder. Club career Al-Temyat played his entire club career with Al-Hilal, starting in 19 ...

. China and Japan easily passed through their Arab rivals Qatar and Iraq, with 3–1 and 4–1 wins respectively, to set up an entirely East Asian affair in the semi-finals, with Saudi Arabia being the only non-East Asian team to be here. The first semi-finals saw Saudi Arabia sealed the victory over the South Koreans, with two goals by

Talal Al-Meshal Talal Al-Meshal ( ar, طلال المشعل) (born 7 June 1978) is a Saudi Arabian former footballer. Club career A prolific striker, Al-Meshal played for Al-Ahli, Al-Nassr, Al-Ittihad, Al-Markhiya and Al-Raed. He played for Al-Ittihad at the ...

at 76' and 80' meant

's late equalizer was too little, too late. Japan beat China in a thriller in Beirut, 3–2, to once again face the Saudis in the final. In the third place match, South Korea won bronze with a 1–0 win over China. The final in Beirut was filled with majority of Saudi supporters, and was seen as the rematch of the 1992 final and earlier group stage encounter.

Hamzah Idris Hamzah Idris Falatah ( ar, حمزة إدريس فلاتة, born 8 October 1972) is a Saudi Arabian footballer. He played as a striker for Ohud from 1992 to 1995 and then for Al Ittihad until he retired in 2007. For Saudi Arabia national tea ...

had a chance to take the Saudis ahead of Japan at 10', but he missed the opportunity. Eventually, the missing penalty was what the Saudis regretted the most, because

Shigeyoshi Mochizuki is a former Japanese football player and manager. He played for Japan national team. Club career Mochizuki was born in Shizuoka on 9 July 1973. After graduating from the University of Tsukuba, he joined Nagoya Grampus Eight with teammate Taka ...

, who had accidentally given the Saudis the failed opportunity on the penalty earlier, became the hero of Japan with a goal in 30'. Saudi attempt proved to be fruitless, and Japan won the game by just one goal margin, to conquer its second Asian trophy, repeating Japan's victory over Saudi Arabia eight years ago. Subsequently, Japan, the winner, automatically qualified for the

2004 AFC Asian Cup The 2004 AFC Asian Cup was the 13th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international association football, football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It was held from 17 July to 7 August 2004 in China. ...

First round

All times are Lebanon summer time (

UTC+3 UTC+03:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +03:00. In areas using this time offset, the time is three hours later than the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Following the ISO 8601 standard, a time with this offset would be wri ...

Group A

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Group B

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Group C

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Third-placed qualifiers

At the end of the first stage, a comparison was made between the third placed teams of each group. The two best third-placed teams advanced to the quarter-finals.

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

and

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...

, the two best third-placed teams, qualified for the quarter-finals.

Knockout stage

All times are Lebanon summer time (

) Extra times were played under the

golden goal The golden goal or golden point is a rule used in association football, lacrosse, field hockey, and ice hockey to decide the winner of a match (typically a knock-out match) in which scores are equal at the end of normal time. It is a type of sud ...

rule.

Quarter-finals

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Semi-finals

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Third place play-off

Final

Statistics

Goalscorers

With six goals, Lee Dong-Gook is the top scorer in the tournament. In total, 77 goals were scored by 43 different players, with two of them credited as own goals. 6 goals *

5 goals *

Akinori Nishizawa is a Japanese former footballer who played as a forward. He played for Japan national team. Club career Nishizawa was born in Shizuoka on 18 June 1976. After graduating from Shimizu Higashi High School, he joined Cerezo Osaka in 1995. He moved ...

Naohiro Takahara is a Japanese Association football, football player and manager. He played for Japan national football team, Japan's national football team. Currently, he is the manager for Okinawa SV. Club career Takahara was born in Mishima, Shizuoka, Mishim ...

3 goals *

Qi Hong Qi Hong (; born June 3, 1976 in Shanghai) is a former Chinese international footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or shadow striker throughout his career. At Shanghai Shenhua he won the league and Chinese FA Cup with them before con ...

* Yang Chen *

Ali Daei Ali Daei ( fa, ; born 21 March 1969) is an Iranian football manager and former player. A striker, he was the captain of the Iranian national team between 2000 and 2006 and played in the German Bundesliga for Arminia Bielefeld, Bayern Munich ...

Hiroshi Nanami is a Japanese former professional football player and manager. He played for Japan national team and currently manager of Matsumoto Yamaga until 2022. Club career Nanami was born in Fujieda on November 28, 1972. After graduating from Juntendo ...

Mohammad Al-Shalhoub Mohammad Bandar Al-Shalhoub ( ar, محمد بندر الشلهوب; born 8 December 1980) is a former Saudi Arabian footballer who played as an attacking midfielder for Al Hilal in the Saudi Professional League. A legend of Saudi football, he w ...

2 goals * Li Ming *

Karim Bagheri Karim Bagheri ( fa, ; born 20 February 1974) is an Iranian professional football coach and former player. He played over half of his professional career for Persepolis in the Persian Gulf Pro League. He is an assistant coach for Persepolis and t ...

Hamid Estili Hamid Reza Estili ( fa, حميد استيلی; born 1 April 1967) is an Iranian association football, football coach and former player. Estili was a member of the Iran national football team, Iran national team and is mostly remembered for his m ...

Sabah Jeayer Sabah Jeayer, (born 26 May 1970) is an Iraqi football forward who played for Iraq in the 2000 Asian Cup, Talaba SC, and Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya. Sabah Jeayer was a talented forward, who is great in the air and also a goalscorer capable of rising t ...

Tomokazu Myojin is a Japanese former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played for the Japan national team. Club career Myojin was born in Kobe on 24 January 1978. He joined J1 League club Kashiwa Reysol from youth team in 1996. He playe ...

Jasem Al-Huwaidi Jasem Mohammed Ibrahim Al Huwaidi ( ar, جاسم محمد ابراهيم الهويدي, born 28 October 1972 in Kuwait City) is a retired Kuwaiti footballer who played as a forward. Career He was part of the Kuwaiti national football team t ...

Sakesan Pituratana Seksan Piturat (also written Sakesan Pituratana) ( th, เศกสรรค์ ปิตุรัตน์) or the nickname "James" is a Thai former football player, who has been described as the "Ronaldo" of Thai football. He played as a stri ...

1 goal *

Fan Zhiyi Fan Zhiyi (; born 6 November 1969) is a Chinese coach and former international footballer. He played as a defender for Shanghai Shenhua, Crystal Palace, Dundee, Shanghai COSCO Huili, Cardiff City, Buler Rangers and Shanghai Zobon. He was con ...

Shen Si Shen Si () (born 1 May 1973 in Shanghai) is a former Chinese international footballer who played as a left midfielder where he gained a reputation for his technical and free kick skills, which saw him become a runner-up in the 2004 Free Kick Mas ...

Su Maozhen Su Maozhen (; born 30 July 1972) is a Chinese football coach and former international player. As a player, he spent his whole career with Shandong Luneng as a striker where he won several league and cups with them as well as being a regular f ...

Qahtan Chathir Qahtan Chathir is an Iraqi football forward who played for Iraq in the 1996 Asian Cup. He also played for Al Talaba, Al Karkh, Al Ittihad, Al-Thaid, Al Sinaa. Career Playing career Qahtan Chathir played for Al Talaba, Al Karkh, Al Itti ...

Abbas Obeid Abbas Obeid ( ar, عباس عبيد جاسم; born December 10, 1973) is a former Iraqi football player. He played for Anyang LG Cheetahs and Pohang Steelers of the South Korean K League. He was also capped for the Iraq national football team. ...

Haidar Mahmoud Haidar Mahmoud Majid ( ar, حيدر محمود مجيد; born 19 September 1973) is an Iraqi football coach and former player. As a player, Mahmoud played as a right-back, representing Iraq in the 1996 and 2000 AFC Asian Cup. He also played clu ...

Hideaki Kitajima is a former Japanese football player and last play for Japan national team. He is head coach Japan Football League club of Criacao Shinjuku from 2023. Club career Kitajima was born in Narashino on May 23, 1978. After graduating from high schoo ...

Hiroaki Morishima is a Japanese former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played for the Japan national team. Club career Morishima was born in Hiroshima on April 30, 1972. After graduating from high school, he joined Japan Soccer League club ...

Shinji Ono is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for J1 League club Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo. Career Urawa Reds Ono grew up in the Shizuoka Prefecture and began his professional career with Urawa Reds in the J1 League in 1998. ...

Atsushi Yanagisawa is a Japanese former professional footballer who played as a forward. He played for Japan national team. He is best known for playing the majority of his career at Kashima Antlers, in addition to his spells with Italian sides Sampdoria and ...

Kim Sang-sik Kim Sang-sik (born 17 December 1976) is a South Korean football manager and former player. He is currently the manager of K League 1 club Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors. During his playing career, he played for South Korean national team as a centre ...

Lee Young-pyo Lee Young-pyo ( ko, 이영표; ; born 23 April 1977) is a retired South Korean professional footballer who played as a right-footed left back. Lee was recognized for his speed and dribbling skills. His former manager Martin Jol once called him ...

* Noh Jung-yoon *

Bashar Abdullah Bashar Abdullah Abdul Aziz ( ar, بشار عبد الله سالم عبد العزيز; born 12 October 1977) is a Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in W ...

* Abbas Chahrour * Luís Fernandes *

Moussa Hojeij Moussa Ali Hojeij (; born 6 August 1974) is a Lebanese football manager and former player who is the head coach of club Safa. Hojeij was the best player in the Al-Manar Football Festival several times, and was captain of the national team. He ...

Mohammed Salem Al-Enazi Mohammed Salem Al Enazi ( ar, محمد سالم العنزي; birth 22 November 1976) is a retired Emirati football striker. Born in Qatar, he represented the Qatar national football team and is considered one of best top goal scorer for Qatar, ...

Abdulnasser Al-Obaidly Abdulnasser Al Obaidly is a Qatari association football, footballer who played as a Midfielder (association football), midfielder for Qatar national football team, Qatar in the 2000 Asian Cup. He also played for Al Sadd. External links * *11v11 ...

* Mohammed Gholam *

Marzouk Al-Otaibi Marzouk Al-Otaibi ( ar, مرزوق العتيبي; born 7 November 1975) is a Saudi Arabian former footballer, who last played as a center forward for Al-Markhiya in Qatar. Club career Al-Otaibi started his career at Al-Shabab Club. In 1999, h ...

Sergey Lushan Sergey Ivanovich Lushan (russian: Серге́й Иванович Лущан) (born 14 June 1973 in Bekabad, Uzbek SSR) is a Russian-Uzbekistani football manager and former professional association football, football defender. Career Club Hi ...

Mirjalol Qosimov Mirjalol Kushakovich Qosimov ( uz, Mirjalol Qoʻshoqovich Qosimov, russian: Мирджалол Кушакович Касымов; in English also: Mirdjalal Kasimov or Kasymov) (born 17 September 1970) is a former head coach of the Uzbekistan na ...

Own goal *

(''for Japan'') * Ryuzo Morioka (''for Saudi Arabia'')

Awards

Most Valuable Player *

Top scorer *

Best Defender * Ryuzo Morioka Best Goalkeeper *

Jiang Jin Jiang Jin (; born October 17, 1968 in Tianjin) is a former Chinese international football goalkeeper. He was the first-choice goalkeeper for China during the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Along with his older brother Jiang Hong he also became a goalkee ...

Fair Play Award * Team of the Tournament

Final standings

References

External links

RSSSF Details
* {{DEFAULTSORT:2000 AFC Asian Cup AFC Asian Cup tournaments

Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second oldest cont ...

International association football competitions hosted by Lebanon October 2000 sports events in Asia