DOHA (Qatar): Qatar have pulled out of the 2021 Copa America starting in June, the Qatar Football Association said on Tuesday.
The Copa America will be held between 11 June to 10 July in Argentina and Colombia across nine cities.
This decision not to play Copa America has been made after the AFC decided to postpone the joint qualifiers’ dates for the AFC Asian Cup 2023 and FIFA 2022 World Cup.
The Copa America draw had placed Qatar in the second group, including hosts Colombia and Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, and Ecuador.
It is worth mentioning that this year’s edition was scheduled to take place in the summer of last year but was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, Argentina has also pulled out due to a clash with World Cup qualifying dates.
“The Copa America is absolutely going ahead. But Qatar and Australia, who had asked to take part, will not be able to come,” Belloso told Argentine radio La Red. “The Asian confederation has programmed World Cup qualification on the same dates as the Copa.”
The news was confirmed by both the Australian and Qatari football federations.
“It is with great disappointment that Australia cannot feature at the Copa America in 2021,” said Football Australia CEO James Johnson.
