AFC Champions League Elite and Two Draw

August 21, 2025 – The AFC Champions League Elite and AFC Champions League Two competitions held their group stage draws earlier in August. Here’s what to expect from the continental competitions this season.

AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ELITE

Twenty four teams are divided into two regional groups, East and West, for the 2025/26 AFC Champions League Elite campaign.

Two teams qualified through the Qualifying Play-offs. In the West, Qatar Stars League side Al-Duhail defeated Persian Gulf Pro League (IRAN) side Sepahan, 3-2, at Khalifa International Stadium in Al Rayyan. In the East, the Chinese Super League’s Chengdu Rongcheng defeated Thai League 1 runner-ups Bangkok United 3-0 in Chengdu, qualifying for the continental competition for the first time in club history – all in front of a crowd of over 41,000 supporters. The two defeated sides qualified for AFC Champions League Two.

The draw functions as follows: 24 qualified teams have been divided into two regions, West and East. Each region of 12 teams is drawn into three groups of four teams.

Each team plays 8 matches in the group stage, four at home and four away. The home and away fixtures were predetermined based off of where each team was drawn into, and teams drawn into the same group will NOT play each other. Subsequently, teams from the same nation CANNOT be drawn into the same group. For example, in the West, Al Ittihad was drawn into Group C. That means both Al Ali and Al Hilal, both from the Saudi Pro League like Al Ittihad, also are only eligible to be drawn into Group C – but the position in which the team is drawn into Group C determines what teams they play at home and which teams they will play away at. Group C teams don’t play against each other, only against Group A and Group B.

WEST:

Group A:
Al Sadd (QATAR)
PFC Nasaf (UZBEKISTAN)
Al Duhail (QATAR)
Al Gharafa (QATAR)

GROUP B:
Shabab Al Ahli (UAE)
Al Shorta (IRAQ)
Sharjah FC (UAE)
Al Wahda (UAE)

GROUP C:
Tractor FC (IRAN)
Al Ahli (SAUDI ARABIA)
Al Hilal SFC (SAUDI ARABIA)
Al Ittihad (SAUDI ARABIA)

EAST:

GROUP D:
Shanghai Port (CHINA)
Melbourne City (AUSTRALIA)
Shanghai Shenhua (CHINA)
CHengdu Rongcheng (CHINA)

GROUP E:
Ulsan HD FC (SOUTH KOREA)
Johor Darul Ta’zim (MALAYSIA)
FC Seoul (SOUTH KOREA)
Gangwon FC (SOUTH KOREA)

GROUP F:
Buriram United FC (THAILAND)
Vissel Kobe (JAPAN)
Sanfrecce Hiroshima (JAPAN)
FC Machida Zelvia (JAPAN)

The complete schedule of matches is below:

AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TWO

The AFC Champions League Two format is a bit more simple than ACL Elite. 32 teams between two regions are drawn into four groups of four. Each team will play home and away in each group for six total matches, and the top two teams in each group move on to the knockout stage.

Indian Super League champions Goa and Ýokary Liga runners-up Ahal defeated Al-Seeb and Regar-TadAZ Tursundoza, respectively, to qualify through the qualification play-offs in the West, while Indonesian Liga 1 champions Persib defeated Manila Digger to advance in the East. The defeated sides qualified for AFC Challenge League.

EAST:

Group A:
Al Wasl (UAE)
Esteghlal (IRAN)
Al Muharraq SC (BAHRAIN)
Al Wheat (JORDAN)

Group B:
Al Ahli SC (QATAR)
PFC Andijon (UZBEKISTAN)
FC Arkadag (TURKMENISTAN)
Al Khaldiya (BAHRAIN)

Group C:
Sepahan SC (IRAN)
Al Hussein (JORDAN)
Mohun Bagan Super Giant (INDIA)
Ahal FC (TURKMENISTAN)

Group D:
Al Nassr (SAUDI ARABIA)
Al Zawraa SC (IRAQ)
FC Istiklol (TAJIKISTAN)
FC Goa (INDIA)

EAST:

Group E:
Beijing FC (CHINA)
Macarthur FC (AUSTRALIA)
Tai Po FC (HONG KONG)
Cong An Ha Noi (VIETNAM)

Group F:
Gamba Osaka (JAPAN)
Nam Dinh FC (VIETNAM)
Ratchanburi FC (THAILAND)
Eastern FC (HONG KONG)

Group G:
Bangkok United (THAILAND)
Selangor FC (MALAYSIA)
Lion City Sailors (SINGAPORE)
Persib Bandung (INDONESIA)

Group H:
FC Pohang Steelers (SOUTH KOREA)
BG Pathum United (THAILAND)
Kaya FC-Iloilo (PHILIPPINES)
Tampines Rovers (SINGAPORE)

My two co-hosts and I go over the draws in the most recent episode of the AFC accredited podcast the Asian Football Show podcast, linked below. Check us out!

Cover Photo Credits: AFC