The 1996–97 Asian Club Championship was the 16th edition of the annual international club football competition held in the AFC region (Asia). It determined that year's club champion of association football in Asia.
Pohang Steelers of South Korea won the final and became Asian champions for the first time after beating Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma in the first ever Asian top club tournament that ended in a one-country final.
First round
West Asia
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
FK Neftchy Farg'ona 
|
8–2 |  Pamir Dushanbe
|
4–1 | 4–1 |
AiK Bishkek 
|
3–6 |  Yelimay Semipalatinsk
|
2–4 | 1–2 |
Köpetdag Aşgabat 
|
0–1 |  Persepolis
|
0–0 | 0–1 |
Kazma 
|
10–1 |  Dhofar
|
9–0 | 1–1 |
West Riffa 
|
2-4 |  Nejmeh
|
2–1 | 0–3 |
Al-Nassr 
|
w/o1 |  Al-Sharjah
|
||
Al-Rayyan 
|
bye | |||
Al-Zawraa 
|
bye |
1 Al-Sharjah withdrew.
East Asia
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Shanghai Shenhua 
|
9–2 |  Instant-Dict FC
|
7–1 | 2–1 |
Công an Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh 
|
1–2 |  Johor F.C.
|
0–1 | 1–1(a.e.t.) |
JCT FC 
|
2–2 (4–2p) |  New Road Team
|
1–1 | 1–1 |
PSM Makassar 
|
1–4 |  Pohang Steelers
|
1–0 | 0–4 |
New Radiant 
|
1–0 |  Pettah United SC
|
1–0 | n/p1 |
Yokohama Marinos 
|
w/o2 |  GD Artilheiros
|
||
Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma 
|
bye | |||
Thai Farmers Bank FC 
|
bye |
1 The 2nd leg was cancelled due to political violence in Sri Lanka.
2 GD Artilheiros withdrew.
Second round
West Asia
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Zawraa
|
3–1 | FK Neftchy Farg'ona
|
1–0 | 2–1 |
| Yelimay Semipalatinsk
|
3–5 | Persepolis
|
3–0 | 0–5 |
| Nejmeh
|
1–4 | Al-Nassr
|
1–0 | 0–4 |
| Al-Kazma
|
1–2 | Al-Rayyan
|
0–1 | 1–1 |
East Asia
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma
|
1–0 | Shanghai Shenhua
|
0–0 | 1–0 |
| Yokohama Marinos
|
3–1 | Johor F.C.
|
2–0 | 1–1 |
| JCT FC
|
1–2 | New Radiant
|
1–0 | 0–2 |
| Thai Farmers Bank FC
|
1–5 | Pohang Steelers
|
1–3 | 0–2 |
Quarterfinals
West Asia
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persepolis
|
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 6 |
| Al-Zawraa
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 4 |
| Al-Nassr
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Al-Rayyan
|
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | −2 | 3 |
Source: [citation needed]
| Al-Nassr | 3–2 | Persepolis |
|---|---|---|
Kennedy  70', 87', 89' |
Referee: Saad Kamil Al-Fadhli (Kuwait)
East Asia
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma
|
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 2 | +10 | 7 |
| Pohang Steelers
|
3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 2 | +6 | 5 |
| Yokohama Marinos
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 5 | +9 | 4 |
| New Radiant
|
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 25 | −25 | 0 |
Source: [citation needed]
| Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma | 9–0 | New Radiant |
|---|---|---|
|
| Pohang Steelers | 2–2 | Yokohama Marinos |
|---|---|---|
|
Knockout Stage
Bracket
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| 7 March – Shah Alam | ||||||
| Persepolis | 1 | |||||
| 9 March – Shah Alam | ||||||
| Pohang Steelers | 3 | |||||
| Pohang Steelers (a.s.d.e.t.) | 2 | |||||
| 7 March – Shah Alam | ||||||
| Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma | 1 | |||||
| Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma | 1 | |||||
| Al-Zawraa | 0 | |||||
| Third place play-off | ||||||
| 9 March – Shah Alam | ||||||
| Persepolis | 4 | |||||
| Al-Zawraa | 1 | |||||
Semifinals
| Persepolis | 1–3 | Pohang Steelers |
|---|---|---|
| Azizi 88' |
|
Third place match
| Persepolis | 4–1 | Al-Zawraa |
|---|---|---|
|
Fawzi 8' |
Final
Source:[1]
| Pohang Steelers | 2–1 (a.s.d.e.t.) | Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Awards
| Award[2] | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| Sanyo Most Valuable Player | An Ik-Soo
|
Pohang Steelers
|
| Coca-Cola Best Defender | An Ik-Soo
|
Pohang Steelers
|
| Diadora Top Goalscorer | Park Tae-Ha
|
Pohang Steelers
|
| Snickers Fair Play Award | — | Al-Zawraa
|
References
- ^ "Pohang's golden goal tilts it". New Straits Times. 10 March 1997. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
- ^ "1996 ASIAN CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP". Asian Football Confederation. 7 July 1997. Archived from the original on 7 July 1997.
- Asian Club Competitions 1997 at RSSSF.com