The competition had been suspended since last March due to the COVID-19 crisis and was originally scheduled to resume this month in centralized venues. However, the complex developments of the coronavirus forced organizers to make an unwanted decision.

“In view of the logistics in coordinating the five zones of the AFC Cup and completing the Inter Zone matches, the Executive Committee agreed that the pandemic created complexities which constituted a Force Majeure event and led to the cancellation of the 2020 competition,” the AFC said.

The decision means two Vietnamese football clubs, Ho Chi Minh City FC and Quang Ninh FC, will miss the chance to compete in the event and instead they will focus on national tournaments, the National Cup and V. League.  

The Asian football governing body also decided that the AFC Champions League, the continent’s showpiece competition, which has been suspended since March, will resume in West Asia hub Qatar on September 14.

Meanwhile, the AFC Futsal Championship has been pushed back by a month to December, while the AFC Solidarity Cup and AFC Futsal Club Championship UAE 2020 have been cancelled.