Football is the most popular sport in Lebanon. It was introduced to Lebanon in the late-19th century, becoming particularly popular among teachers and students Christian schools. The Lebanese Football Association (LFA) was formed in 1933 as one of the earliest administrative bodies for association football in the Middle East. The Lebanon national team made its unofficial debut in 1935 against Romanian club CA Timișoara (T.A.C.), while their first official FIFA game was in 1940 against Mandatory Palestine.
The Lebanon national football team, controlled by the Lebanese Football Association (LFA), have represented Lebanon in association football since their inception in 1933. The squad is governed by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) continentally, and FIFA worldwide. While Lebanon have yet to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, they have qualified three times to the AFC Asian Cup: they first participated in 2000, when they hosted the event. Lebanon's main venue is the Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium in Beirut; however they also play in other locations such as the Saida Municipal Stadium in Sidon.
The AFC U-20 Asian Cup, formerly known as the AFC Youth Championship and AFC U-19 Championship, is a biennial international association football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-20 national teams of Asia. The competition has been held since 1959. Between 1959 and 1978, the tournament was held annually ; since 1980, it has been held every two years. The 1980 AFC Youth Championship had a qualification stage for first time.
The AFC U-17 Asian Cup, formerly known as the AFC U-16 Championship and AFC U-17 Championship, is a football competition, organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) held once every two years for Asian under-17 teams that also serves as a qualification tournament for the FIFA U-17 World Cup. The top 4 countries qualify to participate in the FIFA U-17 World Cup. Up to 2000, the tournament was for U-16 teams. Between 2002 and 2006 it was held as an under-17 tournament. Between 2008 and 2020, it was switched back to a U-16 Championship. The AFC have proposed switching back to an under-17 tournament starting from 2023. Moreover, the tournament will also be rebranded from the "AFC U-16 Championship" to the "AFC U-17 Asian Cup".
The AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup, founded as the AFC U-17 Women's Championship and later the AFC U-16 Women's Championship, before changing to its current name after the 2019 edition, is a biennial women's football tournament for youth teams organised by the Asian Football Confederation. It further serves as the qualifying competition for the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup. The AFC have agreed to the proposal for switching the tournament from under-16 to under-17 starting from 2022. Moreover, the tournament will also be rebranded from the "AFC U-16 Women's Championship" to the "AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup".
The 2002 AFC Youth Championship was the 32nd edition of the AFC U-19 Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-19 national teams of Asia. The tournament took place in Qatar, between 15 to 31 October 2002. A total of 12 teams played in the tournament which included Uzbekistan who was competing in their first AFC tournament.
Because of Lebanon's unique geography, both summer and winter sports thrive in the country. In fact, during autumn and spring it is sometimes possible to engage in both activities on the same day; for example, skiing in the morning and swimming in the afternoon.
The 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup was the 19th edition of the AFC Women's Asian Cup, the quadrennial international football tournament in Asia competed by the women's national teams in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It was originally scheduled to be held in Jordan between 7 and 22 April 2018, but later was changed to 6 to 20 April 2018.
The 2015 AFC U-19 Women's Championship qualification was a women's under-19 football competition which decided the participating teams of the 2015 AFC U-19 Women's Championship. Players born between 1 January 1996 and 31 December 2000 were eligible to compete in the tournament.
The 2016 AFC U-16 Championship was the 17th edition of the AFC U-16 Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-16 national teams of Asia. The tournament was held in India, as announced by the AFC on 3 June 2015, and was played between 15 September and 2 October 2016. A total of 16 teams played in the tournament.
The 2017 AFC U-16 Women's Championship was the 7th edition of the AFC U-16 Women's Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the women's under-16 national teams of Asia. The tournament was held in Thailand between 10 and 23 September 2017, with a total of eight teams competing.
The 2018 AFC Women's Futsal Championship was the second edition of the AFC Women's Futsal Championship, the biennial international futsal championship organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the women's national teams of Asia. It took place in Thailand, which was appointed as hosts by the AFC on 29 July 2017, between 2 and 12 May 2018. The tournament was originally to be held between 15–26 August 2017, two years after the inaugural edition in 2015, but was postponed to the following year.
The 2018 AFC U-16 Championship was the 18th edition of the AFC U-16 Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-16 national teams of Asia. It took place in Malaysia, which was appointed as hosts by the AFC on 25 July 2017, between 20 September and 7 October 2018. A total of 16 teams played in the tournament.
The futsal competition at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics was held from 7 to 18 October. At Tecnópolis and the CeNARD, the first one located in Villa Martelli, and the second one in Buenos Aires. There are two tournaments, one for boys and one for girls.
The 2019 AFC U-16 Women's Championship was the 8th edition of the AFC U-16 Women's Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the women's under-16 national teams of Asia. The tournament was held in Thailand between 15 and 28 September 2019, with a total of eight teams competing.
The 2019 AFC U-19 Women's Championship was the 10th edition of the AFC U-19 Women's Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the women's under-19 national teams of Asia. The tournament was held in Thailand between 27 October and 9 November 2019, with a total of eight teams competing.
The 2020 AFC U-16 Championship would have been the 19th edition of the AFC U-16 Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-16 national teams of Asia. It was scheduled to take place in Bahrain, who had been appointed as the host by the AFC on 17 September 2019. It was originally scheduled between 16 September and 3 October 2020, but was postponed twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2002 AFC Youth Championship qualifying competition is a men's under-19 football competition that determined the eleven teams joining the automatically qualified hosts Qatar in the 2002 AFC Youth Championship final tournament.
The 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup will be the 19th edition of the AFC U-17 Asian Cup, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-17 national teams of Asia. This edition will be the first since 2006 to be played as an under-17 tournament, as the AFC proposed to switch the tournament from under-16 to under-17 starting from 2023. Moreover, the tournament was also rebranded from the "AFC U-16 Championship" to the "AFC U-17 Asian Cup".
The 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup will be the 41st edition of the AFC U-20 Asian Cup, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-20 national teams of Asia. This edition will be the first to be played as an under-20 tournament, as the AFC proposed to switch the tournament from under-19 to under-20 starting from 2023. Moreover, the tournament was also rebranded from the "AFC U-19 Championship" to the "AFC U-20 Asian Cup". On 25 January 2021, the AFC announced that Uzbekistan would retain hosting rights for the 2023 edition after the cancellation of the 2020 AFC U-19 Championship due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
