May 22, 2003	Thursday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 19,1424

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LAHORE,  May  21: Twenty-seven teams have qualified  for  the Asia Cup China-2004 football championship qualifying round to  be held  from  September  to  November  2003.  The  main  round  is scheduled to be held in China in April 2004.

The  teams  qualified  after taking  top  position  in  their respective zones in the preliminary rounds held in March.

Pakistan have been ousted from the competition after  earning second  position in the preliminary round held in Singapore.  The hosts Singapore qualified for the qualifying round and were placed  in Group B with Qatar, Kuwait and Palestine. Pakistan beat Macau 3-0 in the opener but lost to Singapore 2-0 to gain the second spot.

Following is the group position of qualifying rounds: Group”A”: Uzbekistan, Thailand, Tajikistan, Hong Kong. Group “B”: Qatar, Kuwait, Palestine, Singapore. Group “C”: Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Indonesia and winner of Group “F” (preliminary). Group “D”: Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, North Korea. Group “E”: North Korea, Oman, Vietnam, Nepal. Group “F”: Iraq, Bahrain, Malaysia, Myanmar. Group “C”: UAE, Syria, Turkmenistan, Sri Lanka.