The Asian Cup final is finally about to be staged, and in the middle of the night on the first day of the new year, the big dark horse Jordan team will challenge the defending champion Qatar. For this Asian Cup final, there are also very strong Chinese elements, referees Ma Ning and Fu Ming from China, contracted the main task of this Asian Cup final, which is the first time since the start of the Asian Cup.
Judging from the live broadcast arrangement announced by CCTV, the plan has been temporarily adjusted, and at around 21 o'clock in the middle of the night, the final of the Asian Cup will be broadcast live. For Chinese fans, whether it is the Jordanian team winning the championship or the Qatar team's success in defending the title, it may not be the most concerned, but Chinese fans are focusing all their attention on the Chinese referee team.
For Chinese referees, this time they were able to officiate the finals of the Asian Cup, in addition to the fact that the teams in the two finals were from West Asia, the law enforcement level of Chinese referees was also recognized by the AFC. Especially for the referee Ma Ning, he caught Sun Xingmin's fake fall penalty in the group stage, and the knockout round also decisively blew the penalty to let the Japanese team go home.
For Chinese football, the national football team's performance in the Asian Cup is very dismal, but the performance of the Chinese referees is remarkable. Some fans also concluded that the Chinese referee earned back the face lost by the national football team in the Asian Cup. In the final Asian Cup final, if the task of law enforcement can be successfully completed, it cannot be ruled out that Ma Ning and others will continue to be reused.
In fact, as early as in the previous FIFA assessment, Ma Ning's ranking was very high, and the referee, who caused a lot of controversy in the Chinese Super League, was reused in the international arena, especially in the Asian arena. If the main whistle of this Asian Cup final is recognized, it is likely that it will be pushed to the World Cup by the AFC next.
There is still a big question mark over whether the Chinese men's football team can break into the 2026 World Cup, but the appearance of Chinese referees in the World Cup should be a matter of high probability. Especially after the anti-corruption and anti-crime in football, the referees of the Chinese Super League have withstood the test, and I hope that in the process of revitalizing Chinese football, Ma Ning and others can play a greater role.