There will be 80,000 fans packed into ANZ Stadium on Saturday, just a few thousand shy of the capacity due to the temporary seating arrangements, but there will be about 800 million who will watch what unfolds from their living rooms. That figure is the predicted global audience for the Asian Cup final between Australia and South Korea as the game is shown live on 80 channels around the world.
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In terms of attendances, 650,000 will have walked through the turnstiles by kick-off on final day, exceeding the local organising committee's initial target of at least half a million. More than 45,000 fans are understood to have travelled from overseas, providing a nice little boost to the coffers to many local businesses in the five hosting cities, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra and Newcastle.
There will be some legacy in Australia but the greatest impact may be felt across the region, which is already experiencing a boom in football participation. There were 80 million players registered with the confederation in 2006, but that figure is expected to grow to more than 380 million in five years' time.
Bigger than K-Pop
The Asian Cup has set some impressive records for viewers but perhaps this is the greatest testament to its popularity: the final between South Korea and Australia has forced channels in Korea to cancel popular K-Pop music shows on Saturday night. Infinity Challenge and Star King, two of the most well-watched shows in Korea, will not be shown live due to the match.
End of an era
Australia's Asian Cup is about to an end and it is safe to say there will never be another tournament quite like this. That's because the format is to change for the 2019 Asian Cup, which will expand from 16 teams to 24 teams. This summer is the last time the group stage will be as cut-throat when half the teams exit early and the first round of the knockout-stage is the quarter finals. Instead, only a quarter of the teams will bow out in the group stage in 2019 and four third-placed teams of the six groups will progress, based on similar results. The first knock-out round will be a round of 16. Iran and the UAE are the two remaining bidders for this tournament.
