AFC Asian Cup 2023: Dates, UK kick-off times, groups, schedule and how to follow as Qatar look to defend title on home soil

The 2023 Asian Cup is set to get underway this week as the continent's biggest teams compete for glory in Qatar.

The host nation are the reigning champions after beating Japan 3-1 in the 2019 final.

Qatar will hope to emulate their past successCredit: Getty

But Japan will be out for revenge, while several other sides also have hopes of victory in the desert.

And despite being played in 2024, this is the 2023 edition because it was meant to be held last year, but due to the summer heat in Qatar, the tournament was pushed back into the winter.

Asian Cup 2023: Dates and kick-off times

The Asian Cup will begin on Friday, January 12.

The group stage action comes to a close on January 25.

The round of 16 then takes place from January 28 to January 31, with the quarter-finals being held on February 2 and 3.

The semi-finals will be held on February 6 and 7 before the final on February 10.

The opening game of the tournament will kick-off at 4pm UK time, but the rest of the group games will start at 11.30am, 2:30pm and 5:30pm, with some of the final group games being played at 3pm.

The semi-finals and final will start at 3pm.

The Lusail Stadium will host the final, just over a year after the World Cup concluded hereCredit: Getty

Asian Cup 2023: How to follow

All fixtures at the AFC Asia Cup will be broadcast exclusively live on TrillerTV+ in the UK and Ireland.

Fans can sign up to TrillerTV+ for £7.99 per month. More details can be found here.

The AFC Asian Cup YouTube channel will also provide some coverage.

In the US, all games will be streamed on Paramount+.

talkSPORT and talkSPORT.com will keep you up to date throughout.

Asian Cup 2023: Stadiums

Nine stadiums across Qatar will host games at this event.

All venues are spread across five cities.

Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor Lusail Stadium, Lusail Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha Al Thumama Stadium, Doha Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan Education City Stadium, Al Rayyan Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Al Rayyan Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan

Asian Cup 2023: Groups

24 teams from the Asian Football Confederation, which includes countries from Oceania and the Middle East, have been split into six groups of four.

The top two and four best-ranked third teams will progress to the last 16.

Hosts Qatar are in Group A with China, Lebanon and Tajikistan.

Heung-min Son's South Korea face Malaysia, Jordan and Bahrain.

Meanwhile, the AFC Asian Cup's most successful team Japan are in Group D with Indonesia, Iraq and Vietnam.

Group A: Qatar, China, Lebanon, Tajikistan Group B: Australia, Syria, India, Uzbekistan Group C: Iran, UAE, Hong Kong, Palestine Group D: Japan, Indonesia, Iraq, Vietnam Group E: South Korea, Malaysia, Jordan, Bahrain Group F: Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Kyrgyzstan, Oman Japan are one of the clear favouritesCredit: Getty

Asian Cup 2023: Schedule

(All kick-off times UK time)

Friday, January 12

Qatar vs Lebanon - 4pm

Saturday, January 14

Australia vs India - 11:30am China vs Tajikistan - 2:30pm Uzbekistan vs Syria 5:30pm

Sunday, January 14

Japan vs Vietnam - 11:30am UAE vs Hong Kong - 2:30pm Iran vs Palestine - 5:30pm

Monday, January 15

South Korea vs Bahrain - 11:30am Indonesia vs Iraq - 2:30pm Malaysia vs Jordan - 5:30pm

Tuesday, January 16

Thailand vs Kyrgyzstan - 2:30pm Saudi Arabia vs Oman - 5:30pm Saudi Arabia will hope to win a major international tournamentCredit: Getty

Wednesday, January 17

Lebanon vs China - 11:30am Tajikistan vs Qatar - 5:30pm

Thursday, January 18

Syria vs Australia - 11:30am India vs Uzbekistan - 2:30pm Palestine vs UAE - 5:30pm

Friday, January 19

Iraq vs Japan - 11:30am Vietnam vs Indonesia - 2:30pm Hong Kong vs Iran - 5:30pm

Saturday, January 20

Jordan vs South Korea - 11:30am Bahrain vs Malaysia - 2:30pm

Sunday, January 21

Oman vs Thailand - 2:30pm Kyrgyzstan vs Saudi Arabia - 5:30pm Son will look to lead his country to glory in QatarCredit: Getty

Monday, January 22

Qatar vs China - 3pm Tajikistan vs Lebanon - 3pm

Tuesday, January 23

Australia vs Uzbekistan - 11:30am Syria vs India - 11:30am Hong Kong vs Palestine - 3pm Iran vs UAE - 3pm

Wednesday, January 24

Japan vs Indonesia - 11:30am Iraq vs Vietnam - 11:30am

Thursday, January 25

South Korea vs Malaysia - 11:30am Jordan vs Bahrain - 11:30am Kyrgyzstan vs Oman - 3pm Saudi Arabia vs Thailand - 3pm

Sunday, January 28

R16 1: Group B winner vs third place Group A/C/D - 11:30am R16 2: Second place Group A vs second place Group C - 4pm

Monday, January 29

R16 3: Group D winner vs third place Group B/E/F - 11:30am R16 4: Group A winner vs third place Group C/D/E - 4pm

Tuesday, January 30

R16 5: Group B second place vs Group F second place - 11:30am R16 6: Group F winner vs Group E second place - 4pm

Wednesday, January 31

R16 7: Group E winner vs Group D second place - 11:30am R16 8: Group C winner vs third place Group A/B/F Iran boast plenty of strong playersCredit: Getty

Friday, February 2

QF 1: Winner of R16 1 vs winner of R16 2 - 11:30am QF 2: Winner of R16 3 vs winner of R16 4 - 3:30pm

Saturday, February 3

QF 3: Winner of R16 5 vs winner of R16 6 - 11:30am QF 4: Winner of R16 7 vs winner of R16 8 - 3:30pm

Tuesday, February 6

SF 1: Winner of QF 1 vs winner of QF 2 - 3pm

Wednesday, February 7

SF 2: Winner of QF 3 vs winner of QF 4 - 3pm

Saturday, February 10

Final: Winner of SF 1 vs winner of SF 2 - 3pm