Tony Popovic's career as coach of the Australian national football team has become uncertain after the delay of the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.
The tournament was postponed due to the conflict in the Middle East and the recent bombing attack on Riyadh's international airport, which caused severe questions around whether the Cup would go ahead.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) confirmed on Tuesday that the international tournament will be delayed by 11 months.
The AFC said “logistical complexities” were the main reason for the postponement.
“The organising committee for AFC Asian Cup approved to reschedule the flagship national team tournament in light of the current exceptional circumstances arising from developments in the region, including substantial logistical complexities and travel disruptions,” the AFC said in a statement.
“Exceptional circumstances have been created for the organisation and delivery of the competition as originally scheduled, making the postponement necessary in the interest of all participating teams, officials, spectators and other stakeholders.”
Australia was scheduled to face Singapore, Iraq and Tajikistan in the group stage of the tournament, with Iraq being coached by ex-Socceroos boss, Graham Arnold.
Popovic's contract was set to expire after the original Asian Cup schedule, following a contract extension before the recent FIFA World Cup.
The former Socceroos defender took over the head coaching role in 2024 after Arnold resigned following a terrible start to the World Cup qualifying campaign.
Popovic took the Socceroos to World Cup qualification, and the incredible upset against Turkiye in their opening World Cup match ultimately sealed Australia's progress out of the group stage.
Australia narrowly missed out on going past Round 32 as the side lost to Egypt on penalties.
The Socceroos were one of the favourites heading into the Asian Cup, with their current FIFA world ranking of #26, the third best in the AFC confederation, just behind Japan (#17) and Iran (#23).
The new dates for the tournament are expected to land in the 2027 Christmas break, starting December 23 and running all the way through to January 21.
These dates are yet to be approved by FIFA, with many doubting approval will come, as this is one of the busiest time periods in European club football.
Football Australia has an important decision to make: do they carry on with Popovic or find a new coach for the Socceroos?
