AFC Champions League
AFC Champions League is a club tournament to determine the No.1 club in Asia. The winner of the tournament is given the opportunity to represent Asia in the "FIFA Club World Cup presented by TOYOTA".
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Tournament Format
The top 2 club teams from the group stage advance to the knockout stage where the No. 1 club team in Asia will be determined.
・Group Stage The 32 club teams are put into 8 groups of 4 clubs each. Each club plays all of the other clubs in its group both at home and away from March to May. The clubs that finish in the top 2 spots in each group advance to the knockout stage. ・Knockout Stage The top 2 teams of each group will play in tournament format. The Round of 16 and the Final will be played in a single match. The Quarter Final and Semi Final will be played in home and away matches.
Participating Club Teams
32 club teams in total （30 clubs from 13 AFC member countries and 2 clubs from playoff matches）
・East Asia Australia, Korea, Thailand, China, Japan ・West Asia Iran, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE
Past Finalists
| Year | Winning team | Second place team |
|---|---|---|
| 2002-03 | Al-Ain(UAE) | BaBEC Tero Sasana(THA) |
| 2004 | Al-Ittihad(KSA) | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma(KOR) |
| 2005 | Al-Ittihad(KSA) | Al-Ain(UAE) |
| 2006 | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors(KOR) | Al-Karamah(SYR) |
| 2007 | Urawa Red Diamonds(JPN) | Sepahan F.C. (IRN) |
| 2008 | Gamba Osaka(JPN) | Adelaide United(AUS) |
| 2009 | Pohang Steelers(KOR) | Al-Ittihad(KSA) |
| 2010 | Seongnam Ilhwa(KOR) | Zobahan(IRN) |
| 2011 | Al-Sadd(QAT) | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors(KOR) |
History of the Championships
| 1967～1971 | The competition started as the Asian Champion Club Tournament in 1967. The tournament was held every year until 1971 except in 1968. |
|---|---|
| 1972～1985 | The tournament was not held during this period. |
| 1985～2002 | In 1985, the competition started again with a new name, Asia Club Championship. It was held 17 times until 2001. |
| 2003～ | AFC Champions League is started as a tournament to determine No. 1 club team in Asia, merging 3 competitions including Asian Champions Cup, Asian Cup Winners Cup, and Asian Super Cup. |
| 2004～ | As a subordinate of the AFC Champions League tournament, AFC Cup began in 2004 |
| 2005～ | AFC President's Cup started in 2005. Winner of the Cup will gain a spot for the AFC Cup. |
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