The pathway towards the inaugural AFC Champions League Two™ (ACL Two) season was unveiled today by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), with 32 teams competing for top honours in the Continent’s brand-new second-tier men’s club competition.
In accordance with the finalised AFC Club Competitions 2024/25 slot allocations and club licensing requirements, 27 teams from across 21 Member Associations (MAs) – 12 from the West region and 15 from the East – qualify directly to the Group Stage, along with the three teams (two West, one East) that will be eliminated from the Preliminary Stage of the AFC Champions League Elite™.
Four teams will undergo the Preliminary Stage between July 31 and August 14 to fill the remaining two ACL Two Group Stage berths in the West: India’s East Bengal FC will face Turkmenistan’s Altyn Asyr FC, while Bahrain’s Al Ahli battles Kuwait’s Kuwait SC.
The two winners will complete the 32-strong cast for the 2024/25 campaign, where they are divided evenly into eight groups to contest a round-robin, home-and-away format from September 17 to December 5.
The full list of clubs, along with their respective MA rankings and slot allocations, can be found below:
West
| Rank | Member Association | Club | |
| Direct | Indirect | ||
| 1 | Saudi Arabia | Al Taawoun FC | – |
| 2 | Qatar | Al Wakrah | – |
| 3 | Islamic Republic of Iran | TBC | – |
| 4 | United Arab Emirates | Sharjah FC | – |
| 5 | Uzbekistan | FC Nasaf | – |
| 6 | Iraq | TBC | – |
| 7 | Jordan | Al Hussein | TBC* |
| 8 | Tajikistan | FC Istiklol | FC Ravshan * |
| 9 | India | Mohun Bagan Super Giant | East Bengal FC |
| 10 | Bahrain | Al Khaldiya SC | Al Ahli |
| 11 | Kuwait | – | Kuwait SC |
| 12 | Turkmenistan | – | Altyn Asyr FC |
Note: In addition to the above, two teams that are eliminated from the ACL Elite 2024/25 Preliminary Stage (West) will qualify directly for the ACL Two 2024/25 Group Stage (West)
*Teams directly qualified to Group Stage
East
| Rank | Member Association | Club | |
| Direct | Indirect | ||
| 1 | Japan | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | – |
| 2 | Korea Republic | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors FC | – |
| 3 | China PR | Zhejiang FC | – |
| 4 | Thailand | Port FC | – |
| 5 | Australia | Sydney FC | – |
| 6 | Malaysia | Selangor FC | – |
| 7 | Vietnam | TBC | TBC* |
| 8 | Hong Kong, China | Lee Man | Eastern* |
| 9 | Philippines | TBC | TBC* |
| 10 | Singapore | Lion City Sailors FC | Tampines Rovers FC* |
| 12 | Indonesia | – | Persib Bandung* |
Note: In addition to the above, one team that is eliminated from the ACL Elite 2024/25 Preliminary Stage (East) will qualify directly for the ACL Two 2024/25 Group Stage (East)
*Teams directly qualified to Group Stage
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