Qatar will look to emulate its successful staging of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 by hosting more than 600 delegates at the 7th Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Medical Conference in its capital Doha from March 2 to 6, 2023.

The Conference will be jointly organised by the AFC, the Qatar Football Association and Aspetar Orthopaedic & Sports Medicine Hospital – the first FIFA and AFC Medical Centre of Excellence to hold the prestigious conference.

In his welcome message, AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said:

“This is the ideal platform for renowned medical experts to share the latest information, development and research in sports science. It is also an opportunity for participants to learn and discuss best practices for the benefit of our footballers and the sport.

“This comprehensive conference will welcome leaders in their fields and present a unique opportunity for participants to be actively involved in dialogue on the latest challenges, issues and cutting-edge advances in sports medicine.”

Themed “Football and Sports Medicine – Celebrating Diversity”, the event will again assemble renowned global experts to share and discuss the latest scientific medical developments with physicians, allied healthcare practitioners and sports science and medicine specialists, among others.

It will empower participants to effectively and efficiently supervise various football-related medical situations. These include creating a management plan for common health conditions, explaining gender challenges, applying a multidisciplinary team approach to healthcare and creating a strategy to manage medical emergencies.

The pre-conference, from March 2 to 3, comprises workshops and sessions that touch on musculoskeletal ultrasound-guided injections, football emergency medicine, sports physiotherapists and anti-doping procedures.

The main conference scheduled for March 4 to 6 will include keynote addresses, lectures, symposia, poster presentations and clinical workshops. It will also highlight the return of football after the COVID-19 pandemic and how the game has evolved in terms of diversity and inclusion.

Key topics showcased at the Conference will include rehabilitation after sport-related concussions, gender eligibility, nutrition and supplements, sudden cardiac arrest, injury imaging, harassment and abuse in women footballers and dental health.

Similar to the last Conference in Chengdu, China PR in 2019, this year’s event will also host the AFC Medical Awards. The ceremony acknowledges team doctors and physiotherapists and recognises their contributions towards the progress of football.

Held every four years, the first Conference was staged in 1995 in Tokyo, Japan. Every edition since has seen increased response, with the number of attendees growing steadily.

The 7th AFC Medical Conference is supported by FIFA, the AFC’s sister confederations, the Olympic movement and international sports and medical bodies.

Click here to access the agenda of the conference. https://www.afcmedicalconference.org/