The Gulf nation has a long history of hosting AFC tournaments, as it was awarded the 2030 Asian Games.

Qatar’s young stars rimmed Syria 6-5 on penalties on Saturday to debut in the final of the West Asia U23 Football Championship for the first time.

Held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the third West Asian tournament witnessed Qatar draw 1-1 with the Syrians in the semifinal encounter.

The young maroons qualified for the semifinals as winners of Group A with four points, while the Oman squad reached second with three points and Lebanon third with one punch.

Ahead of the semifinals, Qatar defeated Oman 1-0 as Makki Tombari nailed a goal early in the match.

Qatar’s neighbour, Saudi Arabia, finished with three points, with Syria finishing second and Bahrain third.

The Saudis are among the favourites as they were runner-up in the second tournament held in 2021.

They lost to Jordan in last year’s edition, who clinched the crown.

This year’s tournament will close on the 15th of November.

In 2024, Qatar will heighten its sports resume as it has been selected to host the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2024.

After a thorough bid evaluation by the AFC, Qatar was chosen over its regional neighbours, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Uzbekistan.

Besides delivering Qatar the bidding rights for the U23 Asian Cup 2024, the AFC Committee approved the proposal to adopt a singular system to align other AFC competitions with the AFC Asian Cup schedule.

The Gulf nation has a long history of hosting AFC tournaments, as it was awarded the 2030 Asian Games.

This will be the third time it will be held in Qatar, having already been held in 1988 and 2011.

The 2019 AFC champions will debut in their first World Cup tournament against Ecuador, Senegal and the Netherlands.