Suzuki hopes for more clubs in ACL 2012

Tokuaki Suzuki

Kuala Lumpur: AFC Competitions Director Tokuaki Suzuki is hoping to see more countries qualify for the AFC Champions League 2012 through the Special Mission Team projects for this year, which kicked off in China on February 25, 2011.

Last year, Suzuki’s team visited 11 countries to inspect their FAs, leagues, clubs and stadiums to verify whether they met the AFC Champions League criteria, however, only Japan met the stipulated conditions.

Suzuki told the-afc.com: “This year, we will inspect again the other 10 countries and Singapore to see if they can meet the criteria by improving the situations mainly around their leagues, clubs and stadiums."

"After all the inspections in 2010, we produced a very good assessment report. I believe that it may be the first report on professional football in AFC history. It shall provide a better understanding of the current situations around the clubs and leagues in the ACL participating countries."

Suzuki has promised this year’s SMT visit to be different from the previous one and emphasised on its importance.

He said: "The main difference of the inspections between 2010 and 2011 is that we will conduct a workshop in each country to help clubs and leagues understand each element for building a professional football platform.

“We may touch on items such as competition, marketing, media, legal and finance if necessary. I am sure that the workshop will give a clear idea to the clubs and help them meet the criteria in the end."

"The inspections this year will be critical for us to decide the participating number of clubs in 2012. We will strictly apply our criteria for an entry to the AFC Champions League 2012 and I look forward to seeing improvements in those countries."

Suzuki has expressed satisfaction for the results of the efforts made by the member associations involved in the professional football project.

"After an inception of the professional project, we reckon that the infrastructure and systems of those countries have made a significant improvement. For example, Qatar and Saudi Arabia have put a lot of efforts to meet the AFC Champions League criteria and it does help the leagues and clubs become more professional and healthier organisations. It would take more time, but I am sure that the clubs and leagues will be rewarded for their hard work in the near future."

"Our goal is very clear. Through this project, we will produce more professional leagues and clubs in Asia, which can compete in the world’s football stage in the end. If we succeed in this project, it won't take that long to see World Champions from Asia."


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