Australia was the sole bidder for the hosting rights and was officially named host on 5 January 2011. “Considering the efforts of the Football Federation Australia in developing the game on their territory and considering also all the achievements that have been made towards the development of football in Australia and to encourage Australia to take steps towards developing the game, I am happy and honoured to announce that the executive committee of the Asian Football Confederation has approved Australia as the host nation of the 2015 AFC Asian Cup,” said then-AFC President, Mohammed Bin Hammam.