Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia still on, organisers say, but golf tour postponed

Asian Cup preparations continue for January, but Asian Tour delays golf’s Saudi Invitational after Houthi attacks.

Aramco Stadium is to host the 2027 AFC Asian Cup in Khobar, Saudi Arabia [File: Hamad I Mohammed/Reuters]

The Asian Cup football tournament is on track to take place in Saudi Arabia early next year, local organisers say, but golf’s Asian Tour has postponed the Saudi International indefinitely in the aftermath of a series of attacks on Riyadh.

Yemen’s Houthi group claimed responsibility for the deadliest attack, which took place on Saturday on Riyadh’s international airport. It killed 14 people and ⁠wounded more than 300.

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Australia also withdrew its team from the urban cycling World Championships on Friday, citing safety concerns over travelling to Riyadh, where the event is scheduled to take place in early November.

The Six Kings Slam exhibition tennis tournament in Riyadh has already been moved from October to December while FIFA on Thursday postponed the FIFAe Finals 2026 video game competition in ‌Jeddah until an unspecified future date.

In that environment, serious questions were being asked about whether the 24-team Asian Cup could still go ahead in Saudi Arabia from January 7 to February 5.

Three Saudi Pro League matches, including one featuring Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr , were postponed this week while Al-Nassr’s Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League game on Monday was delayed by an hour after Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defence said it had intercepted a missile fired towards Riyadh.

AFC chief Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa said earlier this week that a postponement of the continental championships until 2028 was possible if necessary, but the local organising committee (LOC) said on Friday that it was sticking to the original schedule.

“Preparations across all organisational and operational areas are progressing according to the approved schedule, including work on venues, facilities ⁠and supporting services,” it said in a statement.

The LOC “will continue to monitor developments ⁠relevant to the tournament and ensure the appropriate conditions are in place for its successful delivery”.

Attacks in Saudi Arabia disrupt sport calendar

The $5m Saudi International, which is sponsored by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), is the flagship event on the Asian Tour and had been scheduled to take place at Riyadh ⁠Golf Club on November 18-21.

“The decision to postpone was taken following an assessment of the organisational and logistical challenges associated with hosting the tournament and ensuring the event is ⁠delivered to a standard befitting its international stature,” an Asian Tour statement ⁠said.

AusCycling said its decision to withdraw the Australian team from the urban World Championships was made “with the safety and wellbeing of our athletes and staff our highest priority”.

The Australian government is advising travellers to “reconsider” trips to Saudi Arabia in general and Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport in particular “due to recent ‌security incidents”.

The Saudi government has invested heavily in sport through the PIF in recent years, and the Asian Cup was pitched as an early rehearsal for hosting football’s FIFA World Cup in 2034.

亚洲杯的备战工作仍在继续，将于1月举行，但受胡塞武装袭击影响，亚巡赛推迟了沙特邀请赛。

沙特阿拉伯胡拜尔的阿美体育场将承办2027年亚足联亚洲杯。[图片：Hamad I Mohammed/路透社]

当地组织者表示，亚洲杯足球赛有望于明年初在沙特阿拉伯举行，但高尔夫亚洲巡回赛在利雅得发生一系列袭击事件后，无限期推迟了沙特国际赛。

也门胡塞武装声称对周六发生在利雅得国际机场的致命袭击事件负责。该袭击造成14人死亡，300多人受伤。

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澳大利亚周五也宣布退出城市自行车世界锦标赛，理由是担心前往利雅得的安全问题，该赛事计划于 11 月初在利雅得举行。

原定于10月在利雅得举行的六王网球表演赛已改期至12月举行，而国际足联周四宣布将原定于2026年在吉达举行的FIFAe总决赛电子竞技比赛延期至未来某个未定的日期。

在这种环境下，人们开始认真质疑24支球队参加的亚洲杯是否还能在1月7日至2月5日在沙特阿拉伯如期举行。

本周，三场沙特职业联赛比赛被推迟，其中包括克里斯蒂亚诺·罗纳尔多效力的阿尔纳斯尔队的一场比赛。此外，周一阿尔纳斯尔队的亚足联冠军联赛比赛也被推迟了一个小时，此前沙特阿拉伯民防部门表示，他们拦截了一枚射向利雅得的导弹。

亚足联主席萨勒曼·本·易卜拉欣·阿勒哈利法本周早些时候表示，如有必要，可以将洲际锦标赛推迟到 2028 年举行，但当地组委会（LOC）周五表示，将坚持原定赛程。

声明中称：“所有组织和运营领域的准备工作均按批准的时间表进行，包括场地、设施和配套服务的工作。”

组委会“将继续关注与赛事相关的进展情况，并确保具备成功举办赛事的适当条件”。

沙特阿拉伯的袭击事件扰乱了体育赛事日程

奖金高达 500 万美元的沙特国际赛由沙特阿拉伯公共投资基金 (PIF) 赞助，是亚洲巡回赛的旗舰赛事，原定于 11 月 18 日至 21 日在利雅得高尔夫俱乐部举行。

“经过对举办该赛事所涉及的组织和后勤挑战以及确保赛事达到与其国际地位相符的标准进行评估后，我们决定推迟比赛，”亚洲巡回赛在一份声明中表示。

澳大利亚自行车协会表示，他们决定让澳大利亚队退出城市世界锦标赛，“将运动员和工作人员的安全和福祉放在首位”。

澳大利亚政府建议旅客“重新考虑”前往沙特阿拉伯的旅行计划，特别是前往利雅得哈立德国王国际机场的计划，“因为最近发生了一些安全事件”。

近年来，沙特政府通过沙特公共投资基金（PIF）对体育进行了大量投资，并将亚洲杯视为举办2034年国际足联世界杯的早期预演。