Kuala Lumpur: Asian teams discovered their challengers for the AFC Futsal Championship 2020 Qualifiers following the official draw ceremony at the AFC House on Thursday. A total of 31 Member Associations (MAs) were divided into four zones - East, ASEAN, West and the combined Central and South. For the combined Central and South Zones, 12-time champions Islamic Republic of Iran were drawn in Group B alongside Kyrgyz Republic and Turkmenistan, the hosts for the AFC Futsal Championship 2020. Four-time runners-up Uzbekistan will face Tajikistan, Nepal, Afghanistan in Group A. In the East Zone, three-time champions Japan will have Korea Republic and Macau for company in Group B, while Chinese Taipei, China PR, Mongolia and Hong Kong are in Group A. [caption id="attachment_40938" align="alignright" width="667"] Futsal National team "Archive"[/caption]

n the West Zone, Iraq - who finished fourth in 2018 - will have Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Palestine and Kuwait for company in Group A, while Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and newcomers Oman were drawn in Group B.The

ASEAN Zone was not drawn on Thursday as the AFF Futsal Championship 2019 will serve as the qualifying competition for the AFC Futsal Championship Turkmenistan 2020.

ASEAN powerhouse Thailand are in Group A with Myanmar, Timor-Leste and Cambodia while Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia are in Group B. The tournament will be held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam on October 21-27 with the top three teams qualifying for the AFC Futsal Championship Turkmenistan 2020. The six group winners - two each from West, East and the combined Central and South zones - from the Qualifiers will advance to the Finals. They will be joined by the respective group runners-up from the Central and South Zones. The third team from the East Zone will be decided through a playoff. The respective runners-up from the West zone will also qualify with the fifth spot to be decided via a playoff between the third-placed teams from the two groups. The dates for the Qualifiers will be announced in due course. the-afc.com