SEOUL, South Korea: Qatar football icon Akram Afif and Japan star Kiko Seike were crowned the AFC Player of the Year in the men’s and women’s categories respectively on a starry Tuesday night at the AFC Annual Awards Seoul 2023 in Korea Republic. The duo took home the biggest prizes at the 28th edition of the ceremony, held at the magnificent Grand Peace Palace of the Kyung Hee University, which also saw 19 other awards handed out as the best of Asia were honoured. Afif was at his mercurial best during the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023™, scoring eight times – including the first ever Final hat-trick – and making three assists to help Qatar retain their Continental crown in stunning fashion. The first Qatari to win this award twice after his 2019 accolade, the 28-year-old was also instrumental in Al Sadd SC’s double-winning domestic campaign, starring with 26 goals and 11 assists in 22 league games. The third player to win this award more than once after Japan’s Hidetoshi Nakata and Uzbekistan’s Server Djeparov, Afif said: “I want to thank my wife, teammates and all the national team coaches and administrative staff. I will try my best to win this award for a third time (in the future).” He added: "I’d also like to thank all the administrators, technical committees, managers, club members and team members for their great help and encouragement. Every single player played a crucial role in this (Asian Cup) victory, making it possible for us to achieve this win for the second time. We owe our thanks to the organization in Qatar and the Asian Football Confederation as well for the success of the tournament. We are committed to striving for a third AFC Asian Cup victory (in 2027)." A stellar season from Seike saw her set the single-season record for goals scored in the WE League, netting 20 times and recording 10 assists to help Urawa Red Diamonds Ladies win back-to-back titles. The striker, 28, scored seven more times as they won the AFC Women’s Club Championship™ in 2023 and also featured for the Nadeshiko at the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023, before helping them qualify for the Olympic Games. She is the fifth Japanese winner of this award, after Homare Sawa, Natsuko Hara, Aya Miyama and Saki Kumagai. Into its 28th edition, the glitzy gala ceremony also conferred the Confederation’s highest honour – the AFC Diamond of Asia – to the FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, on a truly memorable night of celebration. The magnificent hosting of the AFC Asian Cup™ earlier this year saw the Qatar Football Association being honoured with the AFC Asian Cup Host Appreciation Award, while the Saudi Arabian Football Federation received the AFC President’s Recognition Award for Outstanding Contribution in recognition of their steadfast efforts towards the growth of Asian football over the past year. AFC Annual Awards Seoul 2023 - Winners All Winners Player of the Year - Men's & Women's Coach of the Year - Men's & Women's AFC Member Association & Regional Association of the Year Item 4 of 4 AFC Annual Awards Seoul 2023 Roll of Honour: AFC Diamond of Asia Gianni Infantino AFC Asian Cup Host Appreciation Award Qatar Football Association AFC President’s Recognition Award for Outstanding Contribution Saudi Arabian Football Federation AFC Member Association of the Year Platinum: Japan Football Association Diamond: The Football Association of Thailand Gold: All Nepal Football Association Ruby: Lao Football Federation AFC Regional Association of the Year Central Asian Football Association AFC President’s Recognition Awards for Grassroots Football Gold: Football Australia Silver: All India Football Federation Bronze: Vietnam Football Federation AFC Coach of the Year (Women) Park Youn-jeong (Korea Republic Women U20 and KOR) AFC Coach of the Year (Men) Go Oiwa (Japan U23 and JPN) AFC Futsal Player of the Year Saeid Ahmad Abbasi (IRN) AFC Women’s Player of the Year Kiko Seike (Urawa Red Diamonds Ladies/Brighton & Hove Albion and JPN) AFC Player of the Year Akram Afif (Al Sadd SC and QAT) The awards below were announced in Seoul and will be presented at an opportune time: AFC Asian International Player of the Year (Women) Ellie Carpenter (Olympique Lyonnais and AUS) AFC Asian International Player of the Year (Men) Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur and KOR) AFC Youth Player of the Year (Women) Chae Un Yong (Wolmido SC and PRK) AFC Youth Player of the Year (Men) Abbosbek Fayzullaev (CSKA Moscow and UZB) AFC Referees Special Award Yuichi Hatano (JPN) Turki' Abdullah Al Salehi (OMA) Ibrahim Yousif Al Raeesi (UAE)