The East Asian Football Federation E-1 Championship finals, which were originally scheduled to be held in China in July, will now be hosted by Japan, the Japan Football Association said Tuesday.
The 2022 edition of the E1 finals was set to take place July 19-27 in China, but with strict pandemic measures preventing matches from being staged, Japan said it would step in as an alternate host.
The tournament is not organized by FIFA, meaning clubs may be reluctant to release players for the competition as it falls outside the global body's international match calendar. Teams have traditionally called up players in Asian domestic leagues for previous editions.
The move comes after Chinese Super League side Shanghai Port withdrew from the Asian Champions League earlier this month due to the tightening of restrictions on movement in and out of the city.
South Korea and Japan will be joined by China and Hong Kong in the men's tournament after the EAFF scrapped plans for a qualifying tournament involving other regional sides.
The women's competition will feature recently crowned Asian Cup winner China as well as Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.
The most recent competition was held in Busan, South Korea, in 2019. South Korea won the men's tournament and Japan claimed the women's trophy.