Qatari football star Akram Afif was celebrated for his remarkable 2023/24 season as he was awarded the prestigious AFC Player of the Year title on Tuesday night during the AFC Annual Awards Seoul 2023. 

The 27-year-old forward made history by becoming the first Qatari player to win this accolade twice, receiving the coveted trophy at the 28th edition of the ceremony held at the Grand Peace Palace of Kyung Hee University in Seoul. 

Afif triumphed over competitors Yazan Al Naimat of Jordan and Seol Young-woo from South Korea, solidifying his status as one of Asia's elite players. Having first been nominated for the award in 2019, Afif's latest win marks him as only the third player in history to secure the title on multiple occasions, joining the ranks of Japan's Hidetoshi Nakata (1997, 1998) and Uzbekistan's Server Djeparov (2008, 2011).

Notably, Afif is the third player from Al Sadd SC to achieve this honor, following in the footsteps of previous Qatari winners Khalfan Ibrahim (2006) and Abdelkarim Hassan (2018).