The 16th women's soccer Asian Cup (officially: AFC Women's Asian Cup 2008 ™ ) took place in Vietnam from May 28th to June 8th, 2008 . Eight teams competed against each other first in the group stage in two groups and then in the knockout system . The Southeast Asian country hosted the Asian Cup for the first time. The main venue was the Thống Nhất Stadium . Games that were kicked off at the same time were played at Army Stadium , which had already hosted a preliminary round match at the men's Asian Cup a year earlier. Both stadiums are located in the largest city in Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City.
The winner of the tournament was North Korea , which beat defending champions China 2-1 in the final . Japan went third, Nadeshiko won the game for third place against Australia's selection 3-0. The host's national team was eliminated in the preliminary round.
The top scorer was Ri Kum-suk , the team captain of North Korea scored seven goals during the tournament, including a hat-trick in the 3-0 win over Australia in the semifinals and another hit in the final against China. The best player of the tournament was Homare Sawa from Japan.
The qualification for the tournament was carried out in two phases. Due to the placements at the 2006 Asian Cup , Australia , China , Japan and North Korea were set for the finals and therefore did not have to qualify.
Attendees
Finally, the following teams qualified for the finals:
The draw took place on April 18, 2008 at the Park Royal Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City. The eight teams were divided into three pots. The top seeded teams from Australia and China were in the first pot. In pot two, the selections from North Korea and Japan were found again. The remaining teams were divided into the third pot.
North Korea (3rd title)
Vietnam
Ri Kum-suk (7 goals)
Homare Sawa
Australia
China
Chinese Taipei
Thailand
