42nd edition of premier club football tournament organized by the AFC
International football competition
The 2023–24 AFC Champions League was the 42nd edition of Asia's premier club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 21st and final under the AFC Champions League title, as the competition would be rebranded as the AFC Champions League Elite starting in 2024–25.
This season was the first to have an inter-year schedule from September (autumn-to-spring), instead of an intra-year schedule (spring-to-autumn), since the 2002–03 season.[2] This edition saw an increase in numbers of preliminary players, with 35 players able to be registered; teams were able to field six foreign players in games, where one of these players had to still be from another Asian nation.
The tournament winner qualified for the 2024 FIFA Intercontinental Cup and 2025 FIFA Club World Cup in the United States. Additionally, the winner entered the League stage of the brand-new 2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite if they had not already qualified through their domestic performance.[3]
Urawa Red Diamonds of Japan were the defending champions, but were eliminated in the group stage.
Association team allocation
The 47 AFC member associations were ranked based on their clubs' performance over the last four years in AFC competitions (their national team's FIFA World Rankings no longer considered).[4] The slots were allocated by the following criteria according to the Entry Manual:[5]
- The associations were split into two regions (Article 3.1):
- The top 12 associations in each region could enter the AFC Champions League.
- In each region, five groups were in the group stage, including 16 direct slots, with the four remaining filled through qualifying play-offs (Article 3.2). The slots in each region were distributed as follows:[6][7]
- The associations ranked 1st and 2nd were each allocated three direct slots and one play-off slot.
- The associations ranked 3rd and 4th were each allocated two direct slots and two play-off slots.
- The association ranked 5th was allocated one direct slot and two play-off slots.
- The association ranked 6th was allocated one direct slot and one play-off slot.
- The associations ranked 7th to 10th were each allocated one direct slot.
- The associations ranked 11th and 12th were each allocated one play-off slot.
- The AFC Champions League title holders and AFC Cup title holders were each allocated one play-off slot had they not qualified for the tournament through domestic performance (Article 3.6). The following rules were applied:
- If the AFC Champions League title holders or AFC Cup title holders were from associations ranked 1st to 6th, their association was allocated the same number of play-off slots, and they replace the lowest-seeded team from their association. Otherwise, their association was allocated one additional play-off slot, and they did not replace any team from their association (Articles 3.8, 3.9, and 3.10).
- If both the AFC Champions League title holders and AFC Cup title holders were from the same association, which was allocated only one play-off slot, their association was allocated one additional play-off slot, and only the lowest-seeded team from their association was replaced as a result (Article 3.11).
- The AFC Champions League and AFC Cup title holders were the lowest-seeded teams in the qualifying play-offs if they did not replace any team from their association (Article 3.12).
- If any association ranked 1st to 6th did not fulfill the AFC Champions League criteria, they would have all their direct slots converted into play-off slots. The direct slots given up would be redistributed to the highest eligible association by the following criteria (Articles 3.13 and 3.14):
- For each association, the maximum number of total slots was four, and the maximum number of direct slots was three (Articles 3.4 and 3.5).
- If any association ranked 3rd to 6th was allocated one additional direct slot, one play-off slot was annulled and not redistributed.
- If any association ranked 5th to 6th was allocated two additional direct slots, one play-off slot was annulled and not redistributed.
- If any association ranked 7th to 10th did not fulfill the AFC Champions League criteria, they had their direct slot converted into a playoff slot. The direct slot given up was redistributed to the next association ranked 11th or 12th, whose play-off slot was annulled and not redistributed, or if neither was eligible, the highest eligible association by the same criteria mentioned above (Articles 3.16 and 3.17).
- If any association with only play-off slot(s), including any association ranked 11th to 12th or those mentioned above, did not fulfill the minimum AFC Champions League criteria, the play-off slot(s) was annulled and not redistributed (Articles 3.19 and 3.20).
- The maximum number of total slots for each association was one-third of eligible teams (excluding foreign teams) in the top division (Article 3.4). If this rule was applied, any direct slots given up would be redistributed by the same criteria as mentioned above, and play-off slots would be annulled and not redistributed (Article 9.10).
- All participating teams had to be granted an AFC Champions League license and, apart from cup winners, finish in the top half of their top division (Articles 7.1 and 9.5). In the case that any association did not have enough teams that satisfied this criterion, any direct slots given up would be redistributed by the abovementioned criteria, and play-off slots would be annulled and not redistributed (Article 9.9).
- If any team granted a license refused to participate, their direct or play-off slot was annulled and not redistributed (Article 9.11).
Association ranking
For the 2023–24 AFC Champions League, the associations were allocated slots according to the November 2021 AFC club competitions ranking,[8][9][10] which took into account their performance in the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup during the period between 2018 and 2021.[2020]
- Notes
- ^
Competition in 2020: The 2020 season was not included in the overall ranking due to the cancellation of the remaining matches in the
2020 AFC Cup caused by the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Teams
In the following table, the number of appearances and last appearance count only those since the 2002–03 season (including qualifying rounds), when the competition was rebranded as the AFC Champions League.
- Notes
- ^
Iraq (IRQ): The
2022–23 Iraqi Premier League champions
Al-Shorta were not granted an AFC Champions League license.
[11] - ^
Uzbekistan (UZB): Nasaf Qarshi, the winners of the
2022 Uzbekistan Cup, was already qualified directly to the group stage. Thus, fourth-placed AGMK qualified for the qualifying play-offs.
- ^
South Korea (KOR): Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors was already qualified as the
2022 K League 1 runners-up when they won the
2022 Korean FA Cup. Thus, third-placed
Pohang Steelers qualified directly to the group stage, while the fourth-placed
Incheon United qualified for the qualifying play-offs.
- ^
Japan (JPN): Urawa Red Diamonds qualified as the winners of the
2022 AFC Champions League, replacing
Sanfrecce Hiroshima (the third-placed team of the
2022 J1 League).
- ^
Singapore (SIN): Albirex Niigata (S), the
2022 Singapore Premier League champions, were a team from Japan and thus ineligible to represent Singapore in AFC club competitions. As a result,
Lion City Sailors, the Singapore Premier League runners-up, qualified for the Champions League.
- ^
Thailand (THA): Due to changing the competition date to autumn–spring format, the Thai League decided to split their 2+2 quota to take 1+1 over the next two seasons. This meant that only the winners of the
2021–22 Thai League 1 and the winners of the
2022–23 Thai League 1 would qualify directly for the group stage, while the winners of the
2021–22 Thai FA Cup and the winners of the
2022–23 Thai FA Cup would qualify for the qualifying play-off. As the
2021–22 Thai League 1 champions
Buriram United also won the
2021–22 Thai FA Cup, the slot reserved for the cup winners of the 2021–22 season went to the season's league runners-up
BG Pathum United. Since they also won both the
2022–23 Thai League 1 and the
2022–23 Thai FA Cup, the slot reserved for these two spots went to that season's league runners-up
Bangkok United and third-placed team Port.
[12] - ^
Australia (AUS): Due to the change of the competition date to the autumn–spring format, the Australian Professional Leagues modified the criteria for qualification so that the solitary qualifier was whichever of the
A-League Men premiers for the
2021–22 or the
2022–23 season accrued the most combined points over both seasons.
[13] Melbourne City were premiers for both seasons.
- ^
Hong Kong (HKG): Since the
2022–23 Hong Kong Premier League winners
Kitchee already directly qualified for the group stage as the league winners and
2022–23 Hong Kong FA Cup winners, league third-place
BC Rangers qualified for the qualifying play-offs.
- ^
Vietnam (VIE): Since the
2022 Vietnamese Cup winners
Hanoi already directly qualified for the group stage as the league winners, league runners-up
Haiphong qualified for the qualifying play-offs.
Schedule
The schedule of the competition was as follows.[14]
Qualifying play-offs
Preliminary round
A total of 10 teams played in the preliminary round.
Play-off round
A total of 16 teams played in the play-off round: 11 teams which entered in this round, and 5 winners of the preliminary round.
Group stage
The draw for the group stage was held on 24 August 2023 at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.[15] The 40 teams were drawn into ten groups of four: five groups each in the West Region (Groups A–E) and the East Region (Groups F–J). For each region, teams were seeded into four pots and drawn into the relevant positions within each group, based on their association ranking and their seeding within their association, in consideration of the technical balance between groups. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same group.
Location of the
2023–24 AFC Champions League group stage teams
Brown: Group A;
Cyan: Group B;
Orange: Group C;
Yellow: Group D;
Pink: Group E;
Green: Group F;
Blue: Group G;
Red: Group H;
Turquoise: Group I;
Purple: Group J
Group A
Group B
- ^ a b Ranked on head-to-head points: Al Sadd 4, Sharjah 1.
Group C
- ^ a b Ranked on head-to-head points: Sepahan 4, Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya 1.
- ^ The match was abandoned after Al-Ittihad walked off in protest due to the presence of a sculpture of Qasem Soleimani on the pitch.[16] The match was awarded a 3–0 win to Al-Ittihad, with Sepahan also being fined $200,000 and banned from hosting its next three Asian Champions League matches at home.[17][18]
Group D
Group E
Group F
Group G
- ^ a b c Head-to-head goal difference: Yokohama F. Marinos +1, Shandong Taishan 0, Incheon United −1.
Group H
Group I
Group J
Ranking of second-placed teams
West Region
Source: AFC
East Region
Source: AFC
Knockout stage
Bracket
Round of 16
The first legs were played on 13–15 February, and the second legs were played on 20–22 February 2024.
Quarter-finals
The first legs were played on 4–6 March 2024, and the second legs were played on 11–13 March 2024.
Semi-finals
The first legs were played on 17 April, and the second legs were played on 23 and 24 April 2024.
Final
The East Region team hosted the first leg as pre-determined on a rotation basis.
Top scorers
Team eliminated for this round.
Player is not in the team but the team is still active for this round.
- Note
- Goals scored in the qualifying play-offs and matches voided by AFC are not counted when determining top scorer (Regulations Article 64.4)
See also
References
- ^ "Al Ain's Rahimi wins MVP, Top Scorer awards". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 25 May 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- ^ "AFC Executive Committee unveils dynamic enhancements to the AFC Club Competitions". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. 25 February 2022. Archived from the original on 9 March 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ^ "More Member Associations to benefit from inclusive AFC Champions League". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 23 November 2019. Archived from the original on 27 November 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
- ^ "AFC Club Competitions Ranking Mechanics". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 10 October 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
- ^ "Entry Manual for AFC Club Competitions (2021 Edition)". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
- ^ "More Member Associations to benefit from inclusive AFC Champions League". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 23 November 2019. Archived from the original on 27 November 2019. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
- ^ "Four Thailand clubs in AFC Champions League 2021; Philippines, Vietnam, Singapore also get group stage entry – Reports". Fox Sports Asia. 4 December 2019. Archived from the original on 6 December 2019. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
- ^ "Slot allocation for AFC Champions League and AFC Cup 2023 confirmed". AFC. Archived from the original on 30 December 2021. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
- ^ a b c "AFC Club Competitions Ranking". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
- ^ "AFC Country Ranking 2021". FootyRankings. 24 November 2021. Archived from the original on 2 September 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
- ^ "List of Licensed Clubs for the 2023/24 AFC Champions League" (PDF). the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
- ^ TL Central (21 May 2022). "Thai League decides to split the 2+2 quota to take 1+1 over the next two seasons". Twitter. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
- ^ "A big AFC change has sparked a new A-Leagues table scramble: How it works". Australian Professional Leagues. 30 March 2023. Archived from the original on 2 April 2023. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ^ "Asian Football Calendar (Aug 2023 - Jul 2024)". The AFC. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
- ^ "#ACL: Teams learn the path to glory". AFC. 24 August 2023. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
- ^ Blow, Tom (2 October 2023). "Al-Ittihad match cancelled as they refuse to play in Iran due to statue by pitch". The Mirror. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
- ^ "Iranian club Sepahan penalized over canceled ACL match after Saudi team's walkout". AP News. 2 November 2023. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
- ^ "Al-Ittihad's match against Iran's Sepahan 3-0 for saudi side due to Qassem Soleimani busts in stadium". Arab News. 2 October 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
External links
Cyan: Group B; 
Orange: Group C; 
Yellow: Group D; 
Pink: Group E;
Green: Group F; 
Blue: Group G; 
Red: Group H; 
Turquoise: Group I; 
Purple: Group J