The AFC Challenge Cup is a major football tournament for emerging(those in the lowest of three categories as designated by the AFC president) Asian countries. There are 46 member countries from Asia which are divided into developed, developing and emerging nations by AFC. The top fifteen countries fall under developed, the next 14 are developing and the remaining 17 are emerging nations.
However,some countries from the developing nations(India,Tajikistan,Maldives, Turkmenistan) and North Korea which is a developed nation and also had qualified for World Cup 2010 is also participating in the tournament.Indeed North Korea has participated in the last two editions of the Challenge Cup and only lost one game in the tournament,winning the trophy in 2010 beating Turkmenistan in the final.
The first tournament was hosted by Bangladesh in 2006. All three previous winners(Tajikistan ,India and North Korea) are from the developed or developing sections in a tournament supposedly made for emerging nations. This is somewhat contradictory to FIFA’s ideas of the tournament being for the emerging nations and controversy remains as to why North Korea, India and Tajikistan, as well as the Maldives, Turkmenistan and Myanmar as the other examples, can compete in the tournament despite being classed as developing or developed nations.
Only three out of the eight nations in the final stage are emerging nations:Philippines, Palestine and host Nepal. In 2006, India and Tajikistan were the only non-emerging nations to compete and Tajikistan won the final against Sri Lanka.So, Sri Lanka is the only national team from emerging football nation to have reached the final of the Challenge Cup.
However,some countries from the developing nations(India,Tajikistan,Maldives, Turkmenistan) and North Korea which is a developed nation and also had qualified for World Cup 2010 is also participating in the tournament.Indeed North Korea has participated in the last two editions of the Challenge Cup and only lost one game in the tournament,winning the trophy in 2010 beating Turkmenistan in the final.
The first tournament was hosted by Bangladesh in 2006. All three previous winners(Tajikistan ,India and North Korea) are from the developed or developing sections in a tournament supposedly made for emerging nations. This is somewhat contradictory to FIFA’s ideas of the tournament being for the emerging nations and controversy remains as to why North Korea, India and Tajikistan, as well as the Maldives, Turkmenistan and Myanmar as the other examples, can compete in the tournament despite being classed as developing or developed nations.
Only three out of the eight nations in the final stage are emerging nations:Philippines, Palestine and host Nepal. In 2006, India and Tajikistan were the only non-emerging nations to compete and Tajikistan won the final against Sri Lanka.So, Sri Lanka is the only national team from emerging football nation to have reached the final of the Challenge Cup.
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