On the evening of January 12, the opening ceremony of the 2023 Asian Cup took place in a grand and colorful manner at Lusail Stadium (Qatar), opening a month of competition in the continent's biggest football tournament.
The Asian Cup opening ceremony began with a spectacular fireworks display over the Lusail Stadium, the same stadium that saw Lionel Messi and his teammates crowned World Cup 2022 champions - Photo: REUTERS
The 2023 Asian Cup opening ceremony was divided into two parts. The art part showed the characteristics of Qatar. And then there was a program supporting Palestine - a country suffering from the war in Gaza.
The opening ceremony of the 2023 Asian Cup was considered less exciting than the 2022 World Cup - where fans continuously shouted. The 89,000-seat Lusail Stadium was still quite empty.
However, Qatar also showed efforts to bring sound and light technology into the opening ceremony, creating a particularly interesting color.
The female artist sang the official song of the tournament called Hadaf (meaning goal) at the opening ceremony of the 2023 Asian Cup - Photo: REUTERS
The theme of the opening ceremony was "The Lost Chapter of Kelileh and Demneh". Kelileh and Demneh (two jackals) also appeared at the opening ceremony to tell fables with the narrator (in a cloak) - Photo: REUTERS
The fables told are related to the formation of the country of Qatar, conveyed in a simple and easy-to-understand way - Photo: REUTERS
A model of the 2023 Asian Cup trophy appeared at the opening ceremony at Lusail Stadium - Photo: REUTERS
A magnificent and impressive scene at the opening ceremony of the 2023 Asian Cup - Photo: REUTERS
A performance at the opening ceremony of the 2023 Asian Cup - Photo; REUTERS
The 2023 Asian Cup will feature 51 matches, opening with a match between Qatar and Lebanon. 6,000 volunteers have been mobilized to support the organizing committee. As of January 10, more than 900,000 tickets have been sold. The 2023 Asian Cup will be broadcast on television in 160 countries. This is a record number in the history of the tournament - Photo: REUTERS