Member associations have until June 21 to put in their bids to stage Asia's premier international football competition but the Middle Eastern nation submitted their application two days before rivals India and Iran.

Qatar Football Association general secretary Saud Al Mohannadi and technical director Dr Athanasios Batsilas were at AFC House in Kuala Lumpur to hand over the bid documents to AFC president Mohamed Bin Hammam.

Al Mohannadi believes Qatar's successful hosting of last December's Asian Games should put them in a good position to host the Asian Cup for a second time four years from now.

He said: "We successfully hosted the Asian Games in December last year which shows our abilities as a host of major international events.

"We hope that the AFC Executive Committee will be satisfied with our bid and give us a chance to host the biggest Asian football event in four years' time.

"We have been hosting top football events and our facilities are ready to host the event even today."

This year's tournament, which takes place next month, is being co-hosted by Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.