Graham Arnold and his Socceroos will return to Doha next year to take part in the next edition of the Asian Cup.

The Asian Football Confederation confirmed on Wednesday the quadrennial continental championship will be held in Qatar from January 12 to February 10.

The tournament was awarded to China in 2019, but the world’s most populous country relinquished the rights this year as it pursued a zero-COVID policy.

Qatar, which hosted the men’s World Cup finals last year, was named host after the Gulf state was preferred to bids from South Korea and Indonesia.

The 24-team tournament has been moved from mid-2023 to early 2024 to avoid the heat of the Gulf summer.

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Qatar has staged the Asian Cup twice, in 1988 and 2011 and it won the last tournament in the United Arab Emirates in 2019.

The AFC said the tournament will be staged across eight stadiums, six of which were used during the World Cup.

The Asian Cup will coincide with the Africa Cup of Nations finals, which will run from January 13 to February 11 in the Ivory Coast.

Qater holds a special place for Arnold and his bold warriors who were eliminated in the last 16 after narrowly going down to eventual champions Argentina.