Japan Wins Third AFC Women's Asian Cup Title

SYDNEY, March 21 (Bernama-Xinhua) -- Japan won the AFC Women's Asian Cup for a third time after defeating host Australia 1-0 in the 2026 final Saturday night, reported Xinhua.

Maika Hamano scored the only goal with a long-range strike in the 17th minute as Japan triumphed in front of a crowd of 74,397 at Sydney's Stadium Australia, a record for a Women's Asian Cup match.

After an opening 15 minutes in which Australia created the better chances, Hamano broke the deadlock when she received the ball with her back to goal on the left edge of the penalty area, turned and fired a dipping shot into the bottom right corner.