The 16 teams in the West will take to the field on Monday and Tuesday, with former continental champions Al Ain, Al Hilal, Al Sadd and Esteghlal among the contenders ahead of what promises to be another scintillating campaign.
Group A
The action gets underway on Monday with Al Jazira, fresh from hosting the FIFA Club World Cup in December, set to welcome an Al Gharafa side who are making their first appearance in the competition since 2013.
Al Jazira have exited at the group stage in the previous two years and will be looking to improve, while all eyes will be on Al Gharafa’s former Real Madrid and Internazionale midfielder Wesley Sneijder (pictured above), who will be making his AFC Champions League debut.
Elsewhere, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Tractorsazi Tabriz return after missing out last year and will take on Saudi Arabia’s Al Ahli, who finished as runners-up in 2012 and reached the quarter-finals last year.
Al Jazira (UAE) v Al Gharafa (QAT)
Venue: Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Kick-off: February 12, 19:30 UTC+4
Tractorsazi Tabriz (IRN) v Al Ahli (KSA)
Venue: Al Seeb Stadium, Seeb
Kick-off: February 12, 19:30 UTC+4
Group B
Also on Monday, Uzbek League champions Lokomotiv will be aiming to improve on their 2017 showing on the continent as they launch their 2018 campaign at home to the United Arab Emirates’ Al Wahda in Group B.
Lokomotiv have enjoyed an impressive rise in recent years to become the Central Asian country’s undoubted powerhouse, but exited at the group stage last year, while Al Wahda’s best performance came in reaching the 2007 semi-finals.
The newly formed Qatari club Al Duhail – a merger of Lekhwiya and El Jaish – open their AFC Champions League account with a home fixture against 2010 runners-up Zobahan of Iran (pictured above), who were eliminated at the group stage in 2017.
Lokomotiv (UZB) v Al Wahda (UAE)
Venue: Lokomotiv Stadium, Tashkent
Kick-off: February 12, 16:00 UTC+5
Al Duhail (QAT) v Zobahan (IRN)
Venue: Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha
Kick-off: February 12, 16:15 UTC+3
Group C
Al Sadd return to continental action for the first time since 2015 but remain the last side from the West to win the competition after defeating Korea Republic’s Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors on penalties in 2011.
The Doha-based club travel to Dubai on Tuesday to face an Al Wasl side making just their second appearance, although it is Al Sadd’s FIFA World Cup-winning star Xavi who is likely to be the centre of attention.
Semi-finalists for the first time last year, Iran’s Persepolis start in Tehran against Uzbekistan’s Nasaf (pictured above) at Azadi Stadium, their imposing home where they remained unbeaten on the continent in 2017.
Persepolis (IRN) v Nasaf (UZB)
Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran
Kick-off: February 13, 17:15 UTC+3:30
Al Wasl (UAE) v Al Sadd (QAT)
Venue: Zabeel Stadium, Dubai
Kick-off: February 13, 19:00 UTC+4
Group D
Three former continental champions take to the stage in Group D on Tuesday in a group that is arguably the strongest in the whole competition.
Al Hilal and Al Ain (pictured above) have come closest to breaking the East’s stranglehold on the trophy in recent times – the sides finished runners-up in 2017 and 2016 respectively – and face off on Matchday One in Riyadh.
Two-time Asian Club Championship winners Esteghlal, meanwhile, start with a trip to Doha to square off against Al Rayyan, who have yet to progress beyond the group stage in seven attempts.
Al Rayyan (QAT) v Esteghlal (IRN)
Venue: Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha
Kick-off: February 13, 18:10 UTC+3
Al Hilal (KSA) v Al Ain (UAE)
Venue: King Saud University Stadium, Riyadh
Kick-off: February 13, 20:25 UTC+3
