The decision was made following discussions between the Chinese Football Association (CFA) and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) - and made more than a year before the event was due to begin.

It comes in the wake of the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games' postponement which was also down to coronavirus.

China's move not to host the Asian Cup next year has subsequently cast doubt over whether Hangzhou will be able to stage the multi-sport event in 2023.

"The AFC appreciates that China PR, the CFA and the AFC Asian Cup China 2023 Local Organising Committee (LOC) have made this very difficult but necessary decision in the collective interests of the AFC Asian Cup 2023, which has also provided the AFC the required time to assess the situation regarding the hosting of the AFC Asian Cup 2023," read an AFC statement.

Shanghai in particular, where the new Pudong Football Stadium was unveiled in October 2021, has been under a tough lockdown for the last month.

However, the city's leaders now think that the outbreak is almost contained and have ordered a mass clean-up, with thousands of compounds and residential areas to be disinfected.

"The AFC worked closely with the CFA and the AFC Asian Cup China 2023 LOC during the preparations and several milestones were achieved, including the launch of the tournament logo and the unveiling of the newly completed Shanghai Pudong Football Stadium last year," continued the statement.

"The AFC will continue to work closely with its commercial partners and stakeholders to chart the course forward and remains grateful to them for their understanding and support during this period.

"Further details about the next steps related to the hosting of the AFC Asian Cup 2023 will be announced in due course."

The 24-team competition was due to take place across 10 Chinese cities from June 16 to July 16 in 2023.