2025–26 AFC Challenge League
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | Qualifying: 12 August 2025 Competition proper: 25 October 2025 – 9 May 2026 |
| Teams | Competition proper: 20 (from 27 associations) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 34 |
| Goals scored | 109 (3.21 per match) |
| Attendance | 105,532 (3,104 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Moses Dyer (7 goals) |
← 2024–25 2026–27 →
All statistics correct as of 12 March 2026. | |
The 2025–26 AFC Challenge League is the 12th edition of the Asia's third-tier continental club football competition, organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the second under the AFC Challenge League title.[1][2]
Arkadag are the reigning champions, but will not defend their title as the winner of the Challenge League automatically qualifies for the Champions League Two group stage.
The winner will be given a direct slot for the 2026–27 AFC Champions League Two group stage, if they have not already qualified through their domestic performance.[3]
Association team allocation
The associations are allocated slots according to their club competitions ranking which was published after the 2023–24 competitions were completed.[4][5]
| Participation for 2025–26 AFC Challenge League | |
|---|---|
| Participating | |
| Not participating | |
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- Notes
- ^ AFC Licensing (AFC1): Association did not have a licensed club.[6]
- ^ AFC Slots (AFC2): The indirect slot of one of the Member Associations that did not enter a team was redistributed to the next highest eligible Member Association. However, for the East Region, the fifth slot – which was to be reallocated to either Laos or Brunei – had to be forfeited, since both member associations had only one licensed team.[6][7]
- ^ Lebanon (LBN): The team with the additional indirect slot received a bye in the play-off round due to an insufficient number of participating teams.
- ^ Palestine (PLE): Association did not enter a team.
Teams
- Notes
- ^ Bangladesh (BAN): Mohammedan, winner of the 2024–25 Bangladesh Premier League champions, failed to obtain an AFC license. Instead, the runners-up, Abahani Dhaka, qualified for the Challenge League qualifying playoffs.
- ^ Chinese Taipei (TPE): As 2025 Taiwan President FA Cup winners Tainan City TSG already qualified for the Challenge League playoffs via their league position, the spot reserved for the Taiwan President FA Cup winners was transferred to the 2024 Taiwan Football Premier League runners-up, Futuro.
- ^ Lebanon (LBN): Since the 2024–25 Lebanese FA Cup could not take place due to escalation of the conflict in the south with Israel,[8] the AFC Challenge League playoff spot was passed to the Premier League runners-up, Safa.
- ^ Kuwait (KUW): Since the 2024–25 Kuwait Emir Cup could not be completed in time for due to tightness of schedules, the AFC Challenge League playoff spot was passed to the Premier League runners-up, Al-Arabi.
- ^ Maldives (MDV): The 2024 Dhivehi Premier League was not held. The teams from Maldives are determined by the results of the 2023 Dhivehi Premier League. Thus Maziya, the 2023 Dhivehi Premier League champions, participate in the AFC Challenge League group stage.[6]
- ^ Mongolia (MGL): Since the 2024-25 MFF Cup could not be completed in time for due to tightness of schedules and delays, the AFC Challenge League playoff spot will be passed to the Premier League runners-up, Khangarid.
- ^ Syria (SYR): Since the 2024–25 Syrian Cup could not take place due to the ongoing political situation and hostilities in Syria, the AFC Challenge League playoff spots were awarded based on the Premier League standings.[9] Al-Ittihad Ahli, winner of the 2024–25 Syrian Premier League champions, failed to obtain an AFC license. Instead, the runners-up, Al-Karamah and third-place, Hutteen, qualified for the Challenge League qualifying playoffs.[6]
- ^ Turkmenistan (TKM): Arkadag, winner of the 2024 Ýokary Liga and 2024 Turkmenistan Cup, also won the 2024–25 AFC Challenge League and qualified for the Champions League Two group stage. The 2024 Ýokary Liga runners-up Ahal and third place Altyn Asyr qualify for the Champions League Two qualifying playoffs and Challenge League group stage respectively.
Schedule
The quarter-finals for the West region have been postponed due to the impacts from the 2026 Iran War.[10]
The schedule of the competition is as follows.[11]
| Stage | Round | Draw date | West region | East region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preliminary stage | No draw[a] | 12 August 2025 | ||
| Group stage | Matchday 1 | 28 August 2025 | 25 October 2025 | 26 October 2025 |
| Matchday 2 | 28 October 2025 | 29 October 2025 | ||
| Matchday 3 | 31 October 2025 | 1 November 2025 | ||
| Knockout stage | Quarter-finals | No draw[b] | TBD[c] | 5 and 12 March 2026 |
| Semi-finals | 7 and 15 April 2026 | 9 and 16 April 2026 | ||
| Final | 9 May 2026 | |||
Preliminary stage
The bracket of the preliminary stage was determined based on each team's seeding, with the team with higher seeding hosting the match. Teams from the same association could not be placed into the same tie. The winners of the preliminary stage (five from West and four from East) will advance to the group stage and join the 11 direct entrants.[12]
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| West Region | ||
| Dhaka Abahani | 0–2 | Muras United |
| Al-Karamah | 0–1 | Bashundhara Kings |
| Abdysh-Ata | 5–2 | Hutteen |
| Maziya | 0–4 | Al-Arabi |
| Paro | 1–0 | Abu Muslim |
| East Region | ||
| Tainan City | 4–1 | Khangarid |
| SP Falcons | 3–1 | Taichung Futuro |
| Yangon United | 1–1 (3–5 p) | Ezra |
| Kasuka | 0–6 | Phnom Penh Crown |
West Region
| Dhaka Abahani | 0–2 | Muras United |
|---|---|---|
| AFC Report GSA Report |
|
| Abdysh-Ata | 5–2 | Hutteen |
|---|---|---|
| AFC Report GSA Report |
|
| Maziya | 0–4 | Al-Arabi |
|---|---|---|
| AFC Report GSA Report |
Iwuala 3' Ngoy 41' John 55' Ashkanani 87' |
| Paro | 1–0 | Abu Muslim |
|---|---|---|
|
AFC Report GSA Report |
East Region
| Tainan City | 4–1 | Khangarid |
|---|---|---|
|
AFC Report GSA Report |
|
| SP Falcons | 3–1 | Taichung Futuro |
|---|---|---|
|
AFC Report GSA Report |
|
| Yangon United | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Ezra |
|---|---|---|
|
AFC Report GSA Report |
|
| Penalties | ||
|
3–5 | |
| Kasuka | 0–6 | Phnom Penh Crown |
|---|---|---|
| AFC Report GSA Report |
|
Group stage
Kuwait
Seeb
Beirut
Location of the 2025–26 AFC Challenge League group stage teams
Brown: Group A; Green: Group B; Orange: Group C;
Yellow: Group D; Pink: Group E
Brown: Group A; Green: Group B; Orange: Group C;
Yellow: Group D; Pink: Group E
West Region
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | ALS | ATA | AAK | PAR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Al-Shabab | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 9 | Advance to Quarter-finals | 3–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | ||
| 2 | Altyn Asyr | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 6 | 1–0 | 3–1 | ||||
| 3 | Abdysh-Ata Kant | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 1 | 3–3 | |||||
| 4 | Paro (H) | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | −3 | 1 |
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | ALK | ALA | ASB | BSK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Al-Kuwait (H) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 7 | Advance to Quarter-finals | 3–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | ||
| 2 | Al-Ansar | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 6 | 2–1 | 3–0 | ||||
| 3 | Al-Seeb | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 3–2 | |||||
| 4 | Bashundhara Kings | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 8 | −6 | 0 |
Group C
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | MRU | AAR | SSC | RTT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Muras United (H) | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 5 | Advance to Quarter-finals | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | ||
| 2 | Al-Arabi | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 5 | 2–2 | 2–1 | ||||
| 3 | Safa | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | −1 | 4 | 2–1 | |||||
| 4 | Regar-TadAZ Tursunzoda | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 1 |
Ranking of second-placed teams
| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | Al-Ansar | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 6 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 2 | A | Altyn Asyr | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 6 | |
| 3 | C | Al-Arabi | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 5 |
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) fair play ranking; 5) drawing of lots
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) fair play ranking; 5) drawing of lots
East Region
Group D
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | SVR | MDF | SPF | EZR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PKR Svay Rieng (H) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 2 | +6 | 7 | Advance to Quarter-finals | 2–2 | 3–0 | 3–0 | ||
| 2 | Manila Digger | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 7 | 2–0 | 3–1 | ||||
| 3 | SP Falcons | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 3 | 3–1 | |||||
| 4 | Ezra | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 9 | −7 | 0 |
Group E
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | DUB | PPC | TNC | SNU | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dewa United Banten (H) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 2 | +7 | 7 | Advance to Quarter-finals | 1–1 | 4–0 | 4–1 | ||
| 2 | Phnom Penh Crown | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 7 | 3–2 | 3–1 | ||||
| 3 | Tainan City | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 3 | 2–1 | |||||
| 4 | Shan United | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 9 | −6 | 0 |
Knockout stage
Bracket
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||||||
| Al-Ansar | |||||||||||||||
| Muras United | |||||||||||||||
| Winner QF1 | |||||||||||||||
| West Region | |||||||||||||||
| Winner QF2 | |||||||||||||||
| Al-Shabab | |||||||||||||||
| Al-Kuwait | |||||||||||||||
| Winner SF1 | |||||||||||||||
| Winner SF2 | |||||||||||||||
| Phnom Penh Crown | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||||||||||||
| PKR Svay Rieng | 4 | 2 | 6 | ||||||||||||
| PKR Svay Rieng | |||||||||||||||
| East Region | |||||||||||||||
| Manila Digger | |||||||||||||||
| Manila Digger | 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Dewa United Banten | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||||||||||||
Quarter-finals
The West regions quarter-finals fixtures were postponed indefinitely by the AFC due to the impacts from the 2026 Iran conflict.[13][14] The first legs were originally scheduled to be played on 4–5 March, with the second legs on 11–12 March.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Region | ||||
| Al Ansar | QF1 | Muras United | TBD | TBD |
| Al-Shabab | QF2 | Al-Kuwait | TBD | TBD |
| East Region | ||||
| Phnom Penh Crown | 2–6 | PKR Svay Rieng | 1–4 | 1–2 |
| Manila Digger | 3–2 | Dewa United Banten | 1–0 | 2–2 |
Semi-finals
The first legs were originally scheduled to be played on 8–9 April, with the second legs on 15–16 April 2026.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Region | ||||
| Winner QF1 | SF1 | Winner QF2 | 8 Apr | 15 Apr |
| East Region | ||||
| PKR Svay Rieng | SF2 | Manila Digger | 9 Apr | 16 Apr |
Final
The final is scheduled to take place on 9 May 2025, with the team from the West Region hosting the final. The winners will also qualify for the 2026–27 AFC Champions League Two group stage, unless they have already qualified for the Champions League Two through their league performance.
Top scorers
Team eliminated / inactive for this round
- As of 12 March 2026
| Rank | Player | Team | MD1 | MD2 | MD3 | QF1 | QF2 | SF1 | SF2 | F | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moses Dyer | Phnom Penh Crown | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |||
| 2 | Kwame Peprah | PKR Svay Rieng | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | |||||
| 3 | Ousman Gai | Manila Digger | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | ||||
| 4 | Takashi Odawara | PKR Svay Rieng | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | |||||
| 5 | Abdul Aziz Al-Muqbali | Al-Seeb | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |||||
| Mohamad Hebous | Al Ansar | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||||
| Riku Ichimura | Paro | 1 | 2 | ||||||||
| Egy Maulana Vikri | Dewa United Banten | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||||
| Alexis Messidoro | Dewa United Banten | 2 | 1 | ||||||||
| 10 | Hatem Al-Rushadi | Al-Shabab | 2 | 2 | |||||||
| Artem Bilyi | Abdysh-Ata | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| Tidiane Camara | Safa | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| Anayo Iwuala | Al-Arabi | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| Hichem Khalfallah | Al Ansar | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| Kenean Markneh | Al-Shabab | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| Rahman Myratberdiyew | Altyn Asyr | 2 | |||||||||
| Yousef Nasser | Al-Kuwait | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| Patrick Robson | PKR Svay Rieng | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
- 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
- 2025–26 AFC Champions League Elite
- 2025–26 AFC Champions League Two
- 2025–26 AFC Women's Champions League
Notes
- ^ Pre-determined format. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same tie.
- ^ Pre-determined format. Teams are placed in the bracket based on their group stage results.
- ^ Postponed due to the impacts from the 2026 Iran War.[10]
- ^ Al-Karamah was required to play their home match at a neutral venue due to security concerns relating to the Israeli invasion of Syria.
- ^ Paro played their home match at Changlimithang Stadium, Thimphu, instead of their regular home stadium Woochu Sports Arena in Paro, which did not meet AFC requirements.
References
- ^ "Asian Champions League to relaunch with fewer teams and more prize money in 2024–25 season". Associated Press. August 14, 2023.
- ^ "AFC Executive Committee approves biggest prize purse in Asian club football history from 2024/25; announces AFC Women's Champions League". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation.
- ^ "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 12 October 2024.
- ^ "AFC Club Competitions Ranking". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
- ^ "AFC Club Competitions Ranking 2024". FootyRankings. 26 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
- ^ a b c d "List of Licensed Clubs - AFC Club Competitions 2025/26" (PDF). 5 June 2025. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ^ "FC Club Competitions – Entry Regulations" (PDF). 5 March 2025. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ^ "Lebanon indefinitely postpones all football matches amid Israel's attacks". Aljazeera. 26 September 2024.
- ^ "الاتحاد العربي السوري يحدد آلية اختيار الأندية التي ستشارك في بطولة كأس التحدي الآسيوي لموسم 2026/2025" [The Syrian Arab Federation determines the mechanism for selecting the clubs that will participate in the 2025–26 AFC Challenge Cup]. Retrieved 2025-06-27 – via Facebook.
- ^ a b "Statement on AFC Club Competitions". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. 1 March 2026. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
- ^ "AFC Competitions Committee approves key decisions on reformatted competitions". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. 1 July 2023.
- ^ "2025/26 AFC Challenge League Official Match Schedule - Preliminary Stage" (PDF). AFC. 10 June 2025. Retrieved 27 June 2025.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
1 March updatewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Second-leg knockout ties of AFC Club Competitions postponed". Asian Football Confederation. Asian Football Confederation. 3 March 2026. Retrieved 3 March 2026.