2025–26 AFC Challenge League

2025–26 AFC Challenge League
Tournament details
DatesQualifying:
12 August 2025
Competition proper:
25 October 2025 – 9 May 2026
TeamsCompetition proper: 20 (from 27 associations)
Tournament statistics
Matches played32
Goals scored102 (3.19 per match)
Attendance92,128 (2,879 per match)
Top scorer(s)New Zealand Moses Dyer
Ghana Kwame Peprah
(6 goals each)
All statistics correct as of 5 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
Notes
  1. ^
    AFC Licensing (AFC1): Association did not have a licensed club.[6]
  2. ^
    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]
  3. ^
    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.
  4. ^
    Palestine (PLE): Association did not enter a team.

Teams

Entry round West Region East Region
Group stage Team Qualifying method App. (last) Team Qualifying method App. (last)
Tajikistan Regar-TadAZ Tursunzoda 2025–26 AFC Champions League Two qualifying round losers 5th (2009) Philippines Manila Digger 2025–26 AFC Champions League Two qualifying round loser 1st
Oman Al-Seeb 2nd (2024–25) Indonesia Dewa United Banten 2024–25 Liga 1 runners-up 1st
Oman Al-Shabab 2024–25 Sultan Qaboos Cup winners 1st Cambodia PKR Svay Rieng 2024–25 Cambodian Premier League champions 3rd (2024–25)
Turkmenistan Altyn Asyr 2024 Ýokary Liga third place[Note TKM] 1st Myanmar Shan United 2024–25 Myanmar National League champions 4th (2024–25)
Lebanon Al-Ansar 2024–25 Lebanese Premier League champions 1st
Lebanon Safa 2024–25 Lebanese Premier League runners-up[Note LBN] 1st
Kuwait Al-Kuwait 2024–25 Kuwaiti Premier League champions 1st
Qualifying play-off participants Kuwait Al-Arabi 2024–25 Kuwaiti Premier League runners-up[Note KUW] 2nd (2024–25) Cambodia Phnom Penh Crown 2024–25 Hun Sen Cup winners 5th (2012)
Bangladesh Dhaka Abahani 2024–25 Bangladesh Premier League runners-up[Note BAN] 6th (2013) Myanmar Yangon United 2025 MNL League Cup winners 1st
Bangladesh Bashundhara Kings 2024–25 Bangladesh Federation Cup winners 2nd (2024–25) Chinese Taipei Tainan City 2024 Taiwan Football Premier League champions
2025 Taiwan President FA Cup winners 		2nd (2024–25)
Syria Al-Karamah 2024–25 Syrian Premier League runners-up [Note SYR] 1st Chinese Taipei Taichung Futuro 2024 Taiwan Football Premier League runners-up[Note TPE] 1st
Syria Hutteen 2024–25 Syrian Premier League third-place[Note SYR] 1st Mongolia SP Falcons 2024–25 Mongolian Premier League champions 2nd (2024–25)
Kyrgyzstan Abdysh-Ata Kant 2024 Kyrgyz Premier League champions 2nd (2024–25) Mongolia Khangarid 2024–25 Mongolian Premier League runners-up[Note MGL] 1st
Kyrgyzstan Muras United 2024 Kyrgyzstan Cup winners 1st Laos Ezra 2024–25 Lao League 1 champions 1st
Maldives Maziya 2023 Dhivehi Premier League champions[Note MDV] 2nd (2024–25) Brunei Kasuka 2024–25 Brunei Super League champions 1st
Bhutan Paro 2024 Bhutan Premier League champions 2nd (2024–25)
Afghanistan Abu Muslim 2024–25 Afghanistan Champions League champions 1st
Notes
  1. ^
    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.
  2. ^
    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.
  3. ^
    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.
  4. ^
    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.
  5. ^
    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]
  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.
  7. ^
    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]
  8. ^
    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 1ScoreTeam 2
West Region
Dhaka Abahani Bangladesh0–2Kyrgyzstan Muras United
Al-Karamah Syria0–1Bangladesh Bashundhara Kings
Abdysh-Ata Kyrgyzstan5–2Syria Hutteen
Maziya Maldives0–4Kuwait Al-Arabi
Paro Bhutan1–0Afghanistan Abu Muslim
East Region
Tainan City Chinese Taipei4–1Mongolia Khangarid
SP Falcons Mongolia3–1Chinese Taipei Taichung Futuro
Yangon United Myanmar1–1 (3–5 p)Laos Ezra
Kasuka Brunei0–6Cambodia Phnom Penh Crown

West Region

Dhaka Abahani Bangladesh0–2Kyrgyzstan Muras United
AFC Report
GSA Report
Attendance: 3,628
Referee: Torphong Somsing (Thailand)
Al-Karamah Syria0–1Bangladesh Bashundhara Kings
AFC Report
GSA Report
Attendance: 2,667
Referee: Firdavs Norsafarov (Uzbekistan)
Abdysh-Ata Kyrgyzstan5–2Syria Hutteen
 AFC Report
GSA Report
Attendance: 3,856
Referee: Ngô Duy Lân (Vietnam)
Maziya Maldives0–4Kuwait Al-Arabi
AFC Report
GSA Report		 Iwuala 3'
Ngoy 41'
John 55'
Ashkanani 87'
Attendance: 500
Referee: Ahmed Faisal Al-Ali (Jordan)
Paro Bhutan1–0Afghanistan Abu Muslim
 AFC Report
GSA Report
Attendance: 3,200
Referee: Clifford Daypuyat (Philippines)

East Region

Tainan City Chinese Taipei4–1Mongolia Khangarid
 AFC Report
GSA Report
Attendance: 1,079
Referee: Zayniddin Alimov (Kyrgyzstan)
SP Falcons Mongolia3–1Chinese Taipei Taichung Futuro
 AFC Report
GSA Report
Attendance: 846
Referee: Abdullo Davlatov (Tajikistan)
Kasuka Brunei0–6Cambodia Phnom Penh Crown
AFC Report
GSA Report
Attendance: 1,263
Referee: Virendha Rai (Bhutan)

Group stage

Main article: 2025–26 AFC Challenge League group stage
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

West Region

Group A

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification ALS ATA AAK PAR
1 Oman Al-Shabab 3 3 0 0 6 2 +4 9 Advance to Quarter-finals 3–1 2–1 1–0
2 Turkmenistan Altyn Asyr 3 2 0 1 5 4 +1 6 1–0 3–1
3 Kyrgyzstan Abdysh-Ata Kant 3 0 1 2 4 6 −2 1 3–3
4 Bhutan Paro (H) 3 0 1 2 4 7 −3 1
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification ALK ALA ASB BSK
1 Kuwait Al-Kuwait (H) 3 2 1 0 6 3 +3 7 Advance to Quarter-finals 3–2 1–1 2–0
2 Lebanon Al-Ansar 3 2 0 1 7 4 +3 6 2–1 3–0
3 Oman Al-Seeb 3 1 1 1 5 5 0 4 3–2
4 Bangladesh Bashundhara Kings 3 0 0 3 2 8 −6 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts

Group C

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MRU AAR SSC RTT
1 Kyrgyzstan Muras United (H) 3 1 2 0 3 1 +2 5 Advance to Quarter-finals 1–1 2–0 0–0
2 Kuwait Al-Arabi 3 1 2 0 5 4 +1 5 2–2 2–1
3 Lebanon Safa 3 1 1 1 4 5 −1 4 2–1
4 Tajikistan Regar-TadAZ Tursunzoda 3 0 1 2 2 4 −2 1
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts

Ranking of second-placed teams

Pos Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 B Lebanon Al-Ansar 3 2 0 1 7 4 +3 6 Advance to Quarter-finals
2 A Turkmenistan Altyn Asyr 3 2 0 1 5 4 +1 6
3 C Kuwait 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

East Region

Group D

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SVR MDF SPF EZR
1 Cambodia PKR Svay Rieng (H) 3 2 1 0 8 2 +6 7 Advance to Quarter-finals 2–2 3–0 3–0
2 Philippines Manila Digger 3 2 1 0 7 3 +4 7 2–0 3–1
3 Mongolia SP Falcons 3 1 0 2 3 6 −3 3 3–1
4 Laos Ezra 3 0 0 3 2 9 −7 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts

Group E

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification DUB PPC TNC SNU
1 Indonesia Dewa United Banten (H) 3 2 1 0 9 2 +7 7 Advance to Quarter-finals 1–1 4–0 4–1
2 Cambodia Phnom Penh Crown 3 2 1 0 7 4 +3 7 3–2 3–1
3 Chinese Taipei Tainan City 3 1 0 2 4 8 −4 3 2–1
4 Myanmar Shan United 3 0 0 3 3 9 −6 0
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts

Knockout stage

Main article: 2025–26 AFC Challenge League knockout stage

Bracket

Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
          
Lebanon Al-Ansar
Kyrgyzstan Muras United
Winner QF1
West Region
Winner QF2
Oman Al-Shabab
Kuwait Al-Kuwait
Winner SF1
Winner SF2
Cambodia Phnom Penh Crown 1
Cambodia PKR Svay Rieng 4
Cambodia Winner QF3
East Region
Winner QF4
Philippines Manila Digger 1
Indonesia Dewa United Banten 0

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 and 5 March, and the second legs played on 11and 12 March 2026.

Team 1Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
West Region
Al Ansar LebanonQF1Kyrgyzstan Muras UnitedTBDTBD
Al-Shabab OmanQF2Kuwait Al-KuwaitTBDTBD
East Region
Phnom Penh Crown CambodiaQF3Cambodia PKR Svay Rieng1–412 Mar
Manila Digger PhilippinesQF4Indonesia Dewa United Banten1–012 Mar

Semi-finals

The first legs will played on 8–9 April, and the second legs will be played on 15–16 April 2026.

Team 1Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
West Region
Winner QF1SF1Winner QF28 Apr15 Apr
East Region
Winner QF3 CambodiaSF2Winner QF49 Apr16 Apr

Final

Main article: 2026 AFC Challenge League 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 5 March 2026
Rank Player Team MD1 MD2 MD3 QF1 QF2 SF1 SF2 F Total
1 New Zealand Moses Dyer Cambodia Phnom Penh Crown 1 2 2 1 6
Ghana Kwame Peprah Cambodia PKR Svay Rieng 2 1 3
3 The Gambia Ousman Gai Philippines Manila Digger 1 1 2 4
4 Oman Abdul Aziz Al-Muqbali Oman Al-Seeb 1 1 1 3
Palestine Mohamad Hebous Lebanon Al Ansar 1 1 1
Japan Riku Ichimura Bhutan Paro 1 2
Indonesia Egy Maulana Vikri Indonesia Dewa United Banten 1 1 1
Argentina Alexis Messidoro Indonesia Dewa United Banten 2 1
9 Oman Hatem Al-Rushadi Oman Al-Shabab 2 2
Ukraine Artem Bilyi Kyrgyzstan Abdysh-Ata 1 1
Cameroon Tidiane Camara Lebanon Safa 1 1
Nigeria Anayo Iwuala Kuwait Al-Arabi 1 1
Algeria Hichem Khalfallah Lebanon Al Ansar 1 1
Ethiopia Kenean Markneh Oman Al-Shabab 1 1
Turkmenistan Rahman Myratberdiyew Turkmenistan Altyn Asyr 2
Kuwait Yousef Nasser Kuwait Al-Kuwait 1 1
Japan Takashi Odawara Cambodia PKR Svay Rieng 1 1
Brazil Patrick Robson Cambodia 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

Notes

  1. ^ Pre-determined format. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same tie.
  2. ^ Pre-determined format. Teams are placed in the bracket based on their group stage results.
  3. ^ Postponed due to the impacts from the 2026 Iran War.[10]
  4. ^ Al-Karamah was required to play their home match at a neutral venue due to security concerns relating to the Israeli invasion of Syria.
  5. ^ 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

  1. ^ "Asian Champions League to relaunch with fewer teams and more prize money in 2024–25 season". Associated Press. August 14, 2023.
  2. ^ "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.
  3. ^ "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.
  4. ^ "AFC Club Competitions Ranking". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  5. ^ "AFC Club Competitions Ranking 2024". FootyRankings. 26 May 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  6. ^ a b c d "List of Licensed Clubs - AFC Club Competitions 2025/26" (PDF). 5 June 2025. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
  7. ^ "FC Club Competitions – Entry Regulations" (PDF). 5 March 2025. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
  8. ^ "Lebanon indefinitely postpones all football matches amid Israel's attacks". Aljazeera. 26 September 2024.
  9. ^ "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.
  10. ^ a b "Statement on AFC Club Competitions". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. 1 March 2026. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
  11. ^ "AFC Competitions Committee approves key decisions on reformatted competitions". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. 1 July 2023.
  12. ^ "2025/26 AFC Challenge League Official Match Schedule - Preliminary Stage" (PDF). AFC. 10 June 2025. Retrieved 27 June 2025.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference 1 March update was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ "Second-leg knockout ties of AFC Club Competitions postponed". Asian Football Confederation. Asian Football Confederation. 3 March 2026. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025%E2%80%9326_AFC_Challenge_League