The Asian market - if European football talks about expansion, then that term is not far off. He promises growth rates, where the money is still to get. For another reason, it is a symbol for what is going wrong in modern commercial football. The Asian market - glitter and fight alike.
The Asian Cup is currently running in Abu Dhabi. And if you really consider football on this continent as a market, it's the biggest trade fair in Asia, so to speak. With so far rather sobering results.
For two weeks, the record number of 24 teams is played, from Thursday the quarter-finals will be held, the spectator interest in the games has been reserved, especially in the group matches, to put it diplomatically. For the sporting level is similar. Some international stars, such as Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean Heung-Min Son, have not even joined them and stayed with their clubs. In Europe, the results have so far made it to the margins of the media.
Politically explosive duels
If the Asian Cup has received more attention so far, then it was not so much that the games were exciting, but the political explosiveness of many a duel. Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Palestine, Syria, North and South Korea - many of the participating countries are more likely to be involved in political rather than sports reporting. Crisis states, rivals, former and current enemies of the war.
The game Saudi Arabia against Qatar in the previous week was stylized to a duel of archenemies, politically highly explosive. Both countries have been in the grip for years, the Saudis accuse Qatar of supporting terrorists, but not only since the murder of the regime critic Kashoggi themselves in the sights of human rights organizations. The fact that this is not just about political but also about economic interests, that acts from Saudi Arabia from a pirate radio station, which broadcasts all major sporting events and uses uninhibited images of the Qatar rightsholder beIN Sports, is added.
In the field, relatively little was noticeable about all this. The game went in civilized ways, Qatar won against the slightly favored Saudis something surprising 2: 0 and has meanwhile also advanced to the quarterfinals. Saudi Arabia, however, failed Japan in the last sixteen.
Playground of the coaches celebrities
The Asia Cup, he is also a playground of well-known and mostly formerly successful trainer routines, the end of their career once again make big money. Italy's world champion Marcello Lippi, China's coach since 2016, expects Iran on Thursday with former Real coach Carlos Queiroz. The Swedish hiking bird Sven-Göran Eriksson has already left the Philippines, as did former top coach Hector Cuper with Uzbekistan. In the competition, Italy's Alberto Zaccheroni, once under contract with Inter Milan and Lazio Roma, is now the national coach of the hosting United Arab Emirates, which will face defending champion Australia on Friday.
The only German coach Bernd Stange has been dismissed as a supervisor of the Syrian selection during the tournament, also India coach Stephan Constantine threw out after his team was eliminated.
The last sixteen were exciting at least: four of the eight games went over the extension, two were decided only on penalties. The tournament favorites are all in the top eight with Japan, Australia, South Korea and Iran. Only remaining surprise team is Vietnam, which is now clearly outsiders against the Japanese.
Until 1 February, the Asian championship is still going on. A real dress rehearsal for the World Cup in three years in the region is certainly not this tournament. From the perspective of the World Cup host Qatar, one can probably say: fortunately.