2020 AFC Champions League

The 2020 AFC Champions League is the 39th edition of Asia's premier club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 18th under the current AFC Champions League title.[1]

2020 AFC Champions League
Tournament details
DatesQualifying:
14–28 January 2020
Competition proper:
10 February – TBD
TeamsCompetition proper: 32
Total: 52 (from 23 associations)
Tournament statistics
Matches played27
Goals scored69 (2.56 per match)
Attendance228,093 (8,448 per match)
Top scorer(s) Bafétimbi Gomis
Keijiro Ogawa
Hassan Al-Haydos
(3 goals each)

The winners of the tournament will automatically qualify for the 2021 AFC Champions League, entering the qualifying play-offs if they have not qualified through their domestic performance, the first time since 2008 that an AFC Champions League holders are guaranteed automatic qualification.[2][3] and also earn the right to play in the 2020 FIFA Club World Cup in Qatar. The runners-up will also qualify if the winners are from Qatar. Both finalists are guaranteed to qualify for the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup in China alongside the hosts' representative and the winning club from a playoff involving the losing semi-finalists.[4] The tournament is the last to involve 32 teams during the group stage, with an increase to 40 teams scheduled for the 2021 season.[5]

Al-Hilal of Saudi Arabia are the defending champions.

The competition has been suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic until at least the end of June 2020.[6]

Association team allocation

The 47 AFC member associations are ranked based on their national team's and clubs' performance over the last four years in AFC competitions, with the allocation of slots for the 2019 and 2020 editions of the AFC club competitions determined by the 2017 AFC rankings (Entry Manual Article 2.3):[7]

  • The associations are split into two regions:
  • In each region, there are four groups in the group stage, including a total of 12 direct slots, with the 4 remaining slots filled through play-offs.
  • The top 12 associations in each region as per the AFC rankings are eligible to enter the AFC Champions League, as long as they fulfill the AFC Champions League criteria.
  • The top six associations in each region get at least one direct slot in the group stage, while the remaining associations get only play-off slots (as well as AFC Cup group stage slots):
    • The associations ranked 1st and 2nd each get three direct slots and one play-off slot.
    • The associations ranked 3rd and 4th each get two direct slots and two play-off slots.
    • The associations ranked 5th each get one direct slot and two play-off slots.
    • The associations ranked 6th each get one direct slot and one play-off slot.
    • The associations ranked 7th to 12th each get one play-off slot.
  • The maximum number of slots for each association is one-third of the total number of eligible teams in the top division.
  • If any association gives up its direct slots, they are redistributed to the highest eligible association, with each association limited to a maximum of three direct slots.
  • If any association gives up its play-off slots, they are annulled and not redistributed to any other association.

Association ranking

For the 2020 AFC Champions League, the associations are allocated slots according to their association ranking which was published on 15 December 2017,[8] which takes into account their performance in the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup, as well as their national team's FIFA World Rankings, during the period between 2014 and 2017.[7][9]

Participation for 2020 AFC Champions League
Participating
Not participating
Notes
  1. ^
    Australia (AUS): The top division run by the Football Federation Australia, the A-League, only have nine Australia-based teams in the 2018–19 season, so Australia can only get a maximum of three total slots (Entry Manual 5.4).[7]
  2. ^
    Syria (SYR): Syria does not have any teams which had an AFC Champions League license.[10]

Teams

The following 52 teams from 23 associations enter the competition.

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
  1. ^
    Title holders (TH): Al-Hilal are the title holders.
  2. ^
    Singapore (SIN): DPMM, the 2019 Singapore Premier League champions, is a team from Brunei and thus ineligible to represent Singapore in AFC club competitions. As a result, Tampines Rovers, the league runners-up, enter the qualifying play-offs.
  3. ^
    Vietnam (VIE): Hà Nội, the 2019 V.League 1 champions, failed to obtain an AFC license as their U15 team did not participate in Vietnam National U-15 Youth League.[11] As a result, Hồ Chí Minh City, the league runners-up, enter the qualifying play-offs.
DSA Metropolitan
Al-Ain (p)
Riyadh
Qatar
Tehran
Tashkent
Baghdad
Seoul Capital Area
Shanghai
West Kanto
Port (p)
Kedah (p)
Tai Po (p)
Bali U (p)
Shan U (p)
Baghdad teams
Al-Shorta
Al-Zawraa (p)Tehran teams
Persepolis
Esteghlal (p)Qatar teams
Al-Sadd
Al-Duhail
Al-Sailiya (p)
Al-Rayyan (p)
Riyadh teams
Al-Nassr
Al-HilalDSA Metropolitan teams
Sharjah
Shabab Al-AhliTashkent teams
Pakhtakor Tashkent
Lokomotiv Tashkent (p)
Bunyodkor (p)
Shanghai teams
Shanghai Shenhua
Shanghai SIPG (p)West Kanto teams
Yokohama F. Marinos
FC Tokyo (p)Seoul Capital Area teams
Suwon Samsung Bluewings
FC Seoul (p)
Location of teams of the 2020 AFC Champions League.
West Region; East Region; (p) Qualifying play-off participants

Schedule

The schedule of the competition is as follows.[12]

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the following changes to the schedule had been made:

  • AFC announced on 4 February 2020 that all matches involving Chinese teams on the first three matchdays (except for Chiangrai United versus Beijing FC) had been postponed to 28–29 April, 19–20 and 26–27 May.[13][14]
  • After a meeting with representatives of the member associations from the East Region held on 2 March 2020, it was agreed that:[15]
    • Group stage matches on matchdays 3–6 which could not be played would be moved to 19–20, 26–27 May, 16–17 and 23–24 June.
    • The round of 16 matches were moved from 16–17 and 23–24 June to 11–12 and 25–26 August.
    • The quarter-finals were moved from 25–26 August and 15–16 September to 15–16 and 29–30 September.
    • The semi-finals were moved from 30 September and 21 October to 21 and 28 October.
  • After meetings with representatives of the member associations from the West Region held on 7–8 March 2020, it was agreed that:[16]
    • Group stage matches on matchdays 3–6 which could not be played would be moved to new dates yet to be confirmed.
    • The round of 16 matches were moved from 18–19 and 25–26 May to 10–11 and 24–25 August.
    • The quarter-finals were moved from 24–25 August and 14–15 September to 14–15 and 28–29 September.
    • The semi-finals were moved from 29 September and 20 October to 20 and 27 October.
  • The AFC announced on 14 April 2020 that all matches scheduled for May and June would be postponed until further notice.[6]
Stage Round Draw date First leg Second leg
Preliminary stage Preliminary round 1 No draw 14 January 2020
Preliminary round 2 21 January 2020
Play-off stage Play-off round 28 January 2020
Group stage Matchday 1 10 December 2019[17] 10–12 February 2020, TBC
Matchday 2 17–19 February 2020, TBC
Matchday 3 2–4 March 2020, TBC
Matchday 4 TBC
Matchday 5 TBC
Matchday 6 TBC
Knockout stage Round of 16 TBD TBD
Quarter-finals TBA TBD TBD
Semi-finals TBD TBD
Final TBD TBD

Qualifying play-offs
Main article: 2020 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs

In the qualifying play-offs, each tie was played as a single match. Extra time and penalty shoot-out were used to decide the winner if necessary (Regulations Article 9.2).[1] The bracket of the qualifying play-offs for each region was determined based on the association ranking of each team, with the team from the higher-ranked association hosting the match.[18] Teams from the same association could not be placed into the same tie. The eight winners of the play-off round (four each from both West Region and East Region) advanced to the group stage to join the 24 direct entrants. All losers in each round from associations with only play-off slots entered the AFC Cup group stage.

Preliminary round 1
Team 1  Score  Team 2
West Region
Chennai City 0–1 Al-Riffa
Al-Faisaly 1–2 (a.e.t.) Al-Kuwait
Team 1  Score  Team 2
East Region
Ceres–Negros 3–2 Shan United
Tampines Rovers 3–5 (a.e.t.) Bali United

Preliminary round 2
Team 1  Score  Team 2
West Region
Bunyodkor 4–1 Al-Zawraa
Lokomotiv Tashkent 0–1 Istiklol
Shahr Khodro 2–1 Al-Riffa
Esteghlal 3–0 Al-Kuwait
Team 1  Score  Team 2
East Region
Kedah 5–1 Tai Po
Buriram United 2–1 Hồ Chí Minh City
Port 0–1 Ceres–Negros
Melbourne Victory 5–0 Bali United

Play-off round
Team 1  Score  Team 2
West Region
Al-Ain 1–0 Bunyodkor
Al-Ahli 1–0 Istiklol
Al-Sailiya 0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–5 p)		 Shahr Khodro
Al-Rayyan 0–5 Esteghlal
Team 1  Score  Team 2
East Region
FC Seoul 4–1 Kedah
Shanghai SIPG 3–0 Buriram United
FC Tokyo 2–0 Ceres–Negros
Kashima Antlers 0–1 Melbourne Victory

Group stage
Main article: 2020 AFC Champions League group stage

The draw for the group stage was held in 10 December 2019, 16:30 MYT (UTC+8), at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.[19] The 32 teams were drawn into eight groups of four: four groups each in the West Region (Groups A–D) and the East Region (Groups E–H). Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same group. In the group stage, each group is played on a home-and-away round-robin basis. The winners and runners-up of each group advance to the round of 16 of the knockout stage.

Group A
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification AHL WAH EST SHO
1 Al-Ahli 2 1 1 0 3 2 +1 4[lower-alpha 1] Round of 16 — TBD 2–1 TBD
2 Al-Wahda 2 1 1 0 2 1 +1 4[lower-alpha 1] 1–1 — TBD TBD
3 Esteghlal 2 0 1 1 2 3 −1 1[lower-alpha 2] TBD TBD — TBD
4 Al-Shorta 2 0 1 1 1 2 −1 1[lower-alpha 2] TBD 0–1 1–1 —
Updated to match(es) played on 17 February 2020. Source: AFC
Notes:
  1. Head-to-head away goals: Al-Ahli 1, Al-Wahda 0.
  2. Head-to-head away goals: Esteghlal 1, Al-Shorta 0.

Group B
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification PAK HIL SAH SHK
1 Pakhtakor 2 2 0 0 5 1 +4 6 Round of 16 — TBD 2–1 3–0
2 Al-Hilal 2 2 0 0 4 1 +3 6 TBD — TBD 2–0
3 Shabab Al-Ahli 2 0 0 2 2 4 −2 0 TBD 1–2 — TBD
4 Shahr Khodro 2 0 0 2 0 5 −5 0 TBD TBD TBD —
Updated to match(es) played on 17 February 2020. Source: AFC

Group C
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification TAW DUH PRS SHJ
1 Al-Taawoun 2 2 0 0 3 0 +3 6 Round of 16 — 2–0 TBD TBD
2 Al-Duhail 2 1 0 1 2 2 0 3 TBD — 2–0 TBD
3 Persepolis 2 0 1 1 2 4 −2 1[lower-alpha 1] TBD TBD — TBD
4 Sharjah 2 0 1 1 2 3 −1 1[lower-alpha 1] 0–1 TBD 2–2 —
Updated to match(es) played on 18 February 2020. Source: AFC
Notes:
  1. Head-to-head away goals: Persepolis 2, Sharjah 0.

Group D
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SAD NAS SEP AIN
1 Al-Sadd 2 1 1 0 5 2 +3 4[lower-alpha 1] Round of 16 — TBD 3–0 TBD
2 Al-Nassr 2 1 1 0 4 3 +1 4[lower-alpha 1] 2–2 — TBD TBD
3 Sepahan 2 1 0 1 4 3 +1 3 TBD TBD — TBD
4 Al-Ain 2 0 0 2 1 6 −5 0 TBD 1–2 0–4 —
Updated to match(es) played on 18 February 2020. Source: AFC
Notes:
  1. Head-to-head away goals: Al-Sadd 2, Al-Nassr 0.

Group E
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SEO BEI MVC CHI
1 FC Seoul 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1 3[lower-alpha 1] Round of 16 — TBD 1–0 TBD
2 Beijing FC 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1 3[lower-alpha 1] TBD — TBD TBD
3 Melbourne Victory 2 1 0 1 1 1 0 3[lower-alpha 1] TBD TBD — 1–0
4 Chiangrai United 2 0 0 2 0 2 −2 0 TBD 0–1 TBD —
Updated to match(es) played on 18 February 2020. Source: AFC
Notes:
  1. Head-to-head points, goal differences: FC Seoul 3 (+1), Beijing FC 0 (0), Melbourne Victory 0 (–1).

Group F
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification TOK ULS SSH PRG
1 FC Tokyo 2 1 1 0 2 1 +1 4 Round of 16 — TBD TBD 1–0
2 Ulsan Hyundai 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 1–1 — TBD TBD
3 Shanghai Shenhua 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 TBD TBD — TBD
4 Perth Glory 1 0 0 1 0 1 −1 0 TBD TBD TBD —
Updated to match(es) played on 18 February 2020. Source: AFC

Group G
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification VIS JDT GZE SUW
1 Vissel Kobe 2 2 0 0 6 1 +5 6 Round of 16 — 5–1 TBD TBD
2 Johor Darul Ta'zim 2 1 0 1 3 6 −3 3 TBD — TBD 2–1
3 Guangzhou Evergrande 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 TBD TBD — TBD
4 Suwon Samsung Bluewings 2 0 0 2 1 3 −2 0 0–1 TBD TBD —
Updated to match(es) played on 3 March 2020. Source: AFC

Group H
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification YOK JEO SYD SSI
1 Yokohama F. Marinos 2 2 0 0 6 1 +5 6 Round of 16 — TBD 4–0 TBD
2 Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors 2 0 1 1 3 4 −1 1[lower-alpha 1] 1–2 — TBD TBD
3 Sydney FC 2 0 1 1 2 6 −4 1[lower-alpha 1] TBD 2–2 — TBD
4 Shanghai SIPG 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 TBD TBD TBD —
Updated to match(es) played on 4 March 2020. Source: AFC
Notes:
  1. Head-to-head away goals: Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors 2, Sydney FC 0.

Knockout stage

Round of 16
Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
West Region
Group A runners-up R16 West 1 Group B winners 10 Aug 24 Aug
Group B runners-up R16 West 2 Group A winners 10 Aug 24 Aug
Group C runners-up R16 West 3 Group D winners 11 Aug 25 Aug
Group D runners-up R16 West 4 Group C winners 11 Aug 25 Aug
Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
East Region
Group E runners-up R16 East 1 Group F winners 11 Aug 25 Aug
Group F runners-up R16 East 2 Group E winners 11 Aug 25 Aug
Group G runners-up R16 East 3 Group H winners 12 Aug 26 Aug
Group H runners-up R16 East 4 Group G winners 12 Aug 26 Aug

Quarter-finals
Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
West Region
TBD QF1 TBD 14 Sep 28 Sep
TBD QF2 TBD 15 Sep 29 Sep
Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
East Region
TBD QF3 TBD 15 Sep 29 Sep
TBD QF4 TBD 16 Sep 30 Sep

Semi-finals
Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
West Region
Winners of QF1 SF1 Winners of QF2 20 Oct 27 Oct
Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
East Region
Winners of QF3 SF2 Winners of QF4 21 Oct 28 Oct

Final
Winners of SF2 (East Region) v Winners of SF1 (West Region)
Winners of SF1 (West Region) v Winners of SF2 (East Region)

Top scorers
As of 4 March 2020
  Team eliminated / inactive for this round.
  Player is not in the team but team still active for this round.
Rank Player Team MD1 MD2 MD3 MD4 MD5 MD6 2R1 2R2 QF1 QF2 SF1 SF2 F1 F2 Total
1 Hassan Al-Haydos Al-Sadd 12 3
Bafétimbi Gomis Al-Hilal 12
Keijiro Ogawa Vissel Kobe 3
4 Salman Al-Moasher Al-Ahli 2 2
Ali Alipour Persepolis 2
Kyogo Furuhashi Vissel Kobe 11
Abderrazak Hamdallah Al-Nassr 11
Teruhito Nakagawa Yokohama F. Marinos 2
Ado Onaiwu Yokohama F. Marinos 2
Igor Sergeev Pakhtakor 2

Note: Goals scored in the qualifying play-offs are not counted when determining top scorer (Regulations Article 64.4).[1]

Toyota Player of the Week awards
Stage Matchday Player of the Week Team Ref.
Group stage Matchday 1 Keijiro Ogawa Vissel Kobe [20]
Matchday 2 Teruhito Nakagawa Yokohama F. Marinos [21]
Matchday 3 Terry Antonis Suwon Samsung Bluewings [22]
Matchday 4
Matchday 5
Matchday 6

See also

References
  1. "2020 AFC Champions League Competition Regulations" (PDF). Asian Football Confederation.
  2. "More Member Associations to benefit from inclusive AFC Champions League". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 23 November 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  3. "ACL 2020 to kick-off in Singapore and Philippines". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 13 January 2020. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  4. "AFC Executive Committee enhances future AFC Asian Cups". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  5. "AFC to invest in new era of national team and club competitions". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 26 October 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  6. "AFC extends postponement of all matches and competitions". AFC. 14 April 2020.
  7. "Entry Manual: AFC Club Competitions 2017–2020" (PDF). the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation.
  8. "AFC Club Competitions Ranking (as of 15 December 2017)" (PDF). the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation.
  9. "AFC Club Competitions Ranking Mechanics (2017 version)" (PDF). the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation.
  10. "List of Licensed Clubs for AFC Champions League 2020" (PDF). Asian Football Confederation.
  11. "SỐC: Hà Nội FC mất suất tham dự AFC Champions League 2020 và AFC Cup 2020" (in Vietnamese). Fox Sports Vietnam. 8 October 2019.
  12. "AFC Competitions Calendar 2020". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 4 April 2018.
  13. "Decisions of AFC Emergency Meeting in Kuala Lumpur". AFC. 4 February 2020.
  14. "ACL 2020 Schedule Emergency Meeting Revised Match Dates". AFC. 4 February 2020.
  15. "East Zone teams agree to new dates". AFC. 2 March 2020.
  16. "AFC Emergency Meetings conclude in Doha and Dubai". AFC. 8 March 2020.
  17. "Excitement builds ahead of star-studded #ACL2020 draw". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 9 December 2019.
  18. "AFC Champions League 2020 At A Glance". AFC.
  19. "ACL2020 draw sets stage for spectacular affair". AFC. 10 December 2019.
  20. "ACL2020 MD1 Toyota Player of the Week: Keijiro Ogawa". Asian Football Confederation. 14 February 2020.
  21. "ACL2020 MD2 Toyota Player of the Week: Teruhito Nakagawa". Asian Football Confederation. 21 February 2020.
  22. "ACL2020 Toyota Player of the Week: Terry Antonis". Asian Football Confederation. 6 March 2020.
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