Saudi media outlets reported that the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is planning a new historic change to the AFC Champions League Elite system, starting next season.
The 2026 AFC Champions League will be the second edition under the new system, which closely resembles the UEFA Champions League in its league-stage format, but differs significantly in the knockout stages. This is part of the AFC’s efforts to positively develop the most important competition in Asia.
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The Current AFC Champions League Elite System
The number of participating teams in the AFC Champions League Elite has been reduced to 24, with 12 teams from the East Zone and 12 from the West Zone.
The 24 teams are divided into two groups, one for the West and one for the East. Each team plays eight rounds, with the top eight teams from each group advancing to the Round of 16.
The East-West division remains in place at this stage, and the Round of 16 matchups are determined by the group stage standings: first place plays eighth, second place plays seventh, third place plays sixth, and fourth place plays fifth.
In the Round of 16, each team plays a home-and-away tie, as is customary. Four teams from each geographical region then advance to the quarterfinals.
Starting from the quarterfinals onwards, matches are played as single-leg ties at neutral venues. For the first time, teams from the East and West will meet here, a format previously reserved for the final.
Saudi Arabia hosted the quarterfinals of the previous edition, which was won by Al-Ahli. Due to the war, the Round of 16 matches for the West were also played in Jeddah this year, following the same format.
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New Change to the AFC Champions League Elite Format
The Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported that the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is considering a new change to the AFC Champions League Elite format, increasing the number of participating teams to 32.
There would be 16 teams in the East Zone and 16 in the West Zone. Only the top six teams from each group would qualify directly for the Round of 16. Teams finishing seventh through tenth would then play an additional knockout stage to determine the remaining qualifiers, similar to the UEFA Champions League.
There is also talk that this knockout stage will not be implemented starting next season due to the congested season schedule and time constraints, but will be introduced in the 2027-28 edition.
The matter is expected to be decided at the AFC’s next meeting in approximately 10 days, where the allocation of slots, both in terms of number and qualification method, will be determined.
Saudi Arabia and Japan stand to benefit the most
According to the report, the additional slots will most likely go to the Saudi League in the West Zone and to the Japanese League in the East Zone, given that recent successes in the competition have all come from these two countries.
Saudi Arabia currently has three slots available for the AFC Champions League.
However, last season, with Al-Ahli winning the title, the second and third slots went to the champions and runners-up of the Roshan League, Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal.
Al-Nassr, who finished third in the Saudi League last season, moved to the AFC Champions League 2.
It’s worth noting that Saudi clubs have won the AFC Champions League title three times since 2019, and since then, no other Arab club has won the title except for a Roshan League club.
