S. Korea expresses interest in hosting AFC Asian Cup

SEOUL, Jan. 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korea has expressed interest in hosting Asia's largest football tournament for the first time in more than six decades. The Korea Football Association (KFA) said it has submitted a letter of interest in staging the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup, calling it "the first step" in its bidding process. "Although the deadline to submit the letter of interest was March 31, we wanted to take care of it early to demonstrate our strong willingness to stage the competition," the KFA said in a press statement. "We will hand in our formal bid sometime in the first half of next year." The host country for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup will be determined during the AFC's Executive Committee meeting in November 2017. South Korea last hosted the Asian Cup in 1960, the second edition of the quadrennial event, and captured the title on home soil. South Korea won the first two Asian Cups, along with four runner-up finishes in 1972, 1970, 1988 and 2015. South Korea will stage the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2017, and the KFA said hosting the 2023 AFC Asian Cup will further boost football popularity in the country. jeeho@yna.co.kr