AFC Women’s Champions League Group Stage Draw Set For Thursday At AFC House

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has revealed that the draw for the AFC Women’s Champions League 2025/26 Group Stage will occur on Thursday at 3 pm. This event will take place at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, where 12 teams will be split into three groups. These teams will compete in a centralised league format from 9th to 23rd November.

China PR’s Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC, the reigning champions, will return to defend their title. Eight clubs are making their Group Stage debuts: Tokyo Verdy Beleza, ISPE WFC, Lion City Sailors FC, PFC Nasaf, East Bengal FC, Suwon FC Women, Stallion Laguna FC and Naegohyang Women’s FC. The last four are also new to Continental competition.

The teams have been seeded according to the Competition Ranking. Wuhan Jiangda holds the top seed position. The three host clubs are placed in a separate pot for the draw. Matches in Myanmar are scheduled from 9th to 15th November. Vietnam will host games between 13th and 19th November, while China will see action from 17th to 23rd November.

Six of the participating teams come from the top clubs in Asia based on the AFC Women’s Club Competition Ranking for 2024/25. The remaining six qualified through a Preliminary Stage that featured a record number of 19 teams.

After the Group Stage concludes, eight clubs will move forward to the Knockout Stage. This includes the top two teams from each group and the two best third-placed teams overall. The Quarter-final pairings will be determined by another draw and played as single-leg matches in March 2026.

The upcoming tournament promises exciting matches as new clubs join seasoned competitors in this prestigious league. Fans can look forward to seeing how these diverse teams perform on an international stage.

With inputs from WAM