East Asia Wrap: Tai Po emerge champions; Marinos defeat Kashima

Mon, 26 May, 2025

East Asia Wrap: Tai Po emerge champions; Marinos defeat Kashima

Hong Kong: Tai Po FC emerged champions of Hong Kong on a dramatic final day while Kashima Antlers stayed top in Japan despite suffering a shock defeat against Yokohama F. Marinos.

Daejeon Hana moved clear in Korea Republic while it remains a two-way race in Macau so join the-AFC.com as we take a look at the past week's domestic action across East Asia.

ASEAN Wrap: Double joy for Buriram; City, Victory set up Melbourne Derby final

Mon, 26 May, 2025

ASEAN Wrap: Double joy for Buriram; City, Victory set up Melbourne Derby final

Kuala Lumpur: Buriram United lifted the Thai FA Cup while in Indonesia, Persib Bandung wrapped up their Liga 1 title-winning campaign with a thrilling 3-2 win over Persis Solo.

Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory booked their places in the A-League Grand Final while Lion City Sailors took a first-leg advantage in their Singapore Cup semi-final.

In Vietnam, pacesetters Nam Dinh will look to close in on the title on Monday, so join the-AFC.com in our weekly wrap of the domestic scene across ASEAN.

West Asia Wrap: Al Gharafa take Amir Cup; Al Shorta move clear

Sun, 25 May, 2025

West Asia Wrap: Al Gharafa take Amir Cup; Al Shorta move clear

Doha: Al Gharafa defeated Al Rayyan SC to lift the Qatar Amir Cup on Saturday.

Al Shorta, meanwhile, opened a three-point lead at the top of the Iraqi Stars League while Al Ittihad continued with their winning ways in Saudi Arabia.

The UAE season came to a close while Safa lead in Lebanon, so join the-AFC.com as we take a look at the past week's domestic action across West Asia.

Asia's finest discover challengers

Mon, 26 May, 2025

Asia's finest discover challengers

Doha: The draw for the expanded FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025 on Sunday promised an exciting tournament.

The 48 teams were drawn into 12 groups with the tournament to be played on November 3-27.

Qatar 2025 Draw finalised

Mon, 26 May, 2025

Qatar 2025 Draw finalised

Doha: The stage is set for an exciting FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2025 following the official draw in Doha on Sunday.

The tournament will take place on December 1-18 where Algeria will be looking to defend their crown, having defeated Tunisia 2-0 at Qatar 2021.

The 16-team tournament will be preceded by a qualifying stage, which will see seven matches.

Central & South Asia Wrap: Hazfi Cup finalists decided; champs Mohammedan falter

Mon, 26 May, 2025

Central & South Asia Wrap: Hazfi Cup finalists decided; champs Mohammedan falter

Dhaka: Champions Mohammedan are without a win in two consecutive matches after claiming the Bangladesh Football Premier League last week while Esteghlal FC and Malavan secured their places in the Hazfi Cup final in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Bhutan, Kyrgyz Republic, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan leagues saw strong performances from the leading teams, so join the-AFC.com as we take a look at the domestic action across Central and South Asia this past week.

Star Chen credits fans for Wuhan Jiangda’s historic triumph

Sun, 25 May, 2025

Star Chen credits fans for Wuhan Jiangda’s historic triumph

Wuhan: Star of the night Chen Chen paid tribute to the fans for their part in Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC historic AFC Women's Champions League™ 2024/25 title win on Saturday.

The goalkeeper felt the presence of the over 18,000 fans in the Wuhan Sports Centre gave the China PR side immense motivation as they came from behind to beat Australia’s Melbourne City FC 5-4 on penalties after the final had finished 1-1 in extra time.

Chang Weiwei: Winning mentality powered Wuhan Jiangda to success

Sun, 25 May, 2025

Chang Weiwei: Winning mentality powered Wuhan Jiangda to success

Wuhan: As China PR’s Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC celebrated clinching the inaugural AFC Women’s Champions League ™ title on Saturday, head coach Chang Weiwei expressed heartfelt gratitude to his players for believing in his system.

Ecstatic after the historic title-winning campaign, Chang also acknowledged the unwavering support of the fans who powered Wuhan Jiangda to a dramatic 5-4 penalty shootout victory over Australia’s Melbourne City FC after the tie ended 1-1.

Matricciani proud of Melbourne City’s character

Sun, 25 May, 2025

Matricciani proud of Melbourne City’s character

Wuhan: Melbourne City FC head coach Michael Matricciani heaped praise on his players after they finished as runners-up in the AFC Women’s Champions League™ 2024/25 final, falling 5-4 in a penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw after 120 minutes.

Taking the lead in the 76th minute through Shelby McMahon’s effort, the Australian side conceded a penalty in the final minute of regulation time and then had a goal disallowed, pushing the game to a tie-breaker, with China PR’s Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC going to lift the inaugural title. 

#AWCL trailblazers Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC applauded by Shaikh Salman

Sun, 25 May, 2025

#AWCL trailblazers Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC applauded by Shaikh Salman

Wuhan: As the inaugural revamped Continental club season drew to a close, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa has congratulated Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC on clinching the first-ever AFC Women's Champions League™ crown with the Chinese side defeating Melbourne City FC 5-4 on penalties after the final ended 1-1 at the Wuhan Sports Centre Stadium on Saturday.

Youngster Shelby McMahon netted the opener for Melbourne but a Wang Shuang stoppage time penalty sent the match into extra time and eventually a shootout with goalkeeper Chen Chen emerging the hero with two saves.

#AFCU23 draw to set stage for Saudi Arabia 2026 Qualifiers

Mon, 19 May, 2025

#AFCU23 draw to set stage for Saudi Arabia 2026 Qualifiers

The 44 teams eyeing a place at the AFC U23 Asian Cup™ Saudi Arabia 2026 will discover their qualifying journey on Thursday afternoon when the Qualifiers Draw takes place at 3pm.

The ceremony, to be held at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, will sort the cast into 11 groups to do battle for the Qualifiers, which will take place between September 1 and 9, 2025.

#ACLElite Match Predictor: The Recap

Mon, 19 May, 2025

#ACLElite Match Predictor: The Recap

Kuala Lumpur: Following the conclusion of the AFC Champions League Elite™ Finals Jeddah 2025, we look back on the Match Predictor competition over what was a fantastic first edition of the continental competition in its new format.  

Al Ahli Saudi FC were crowned champions of Asia for the first time after beating Kawasaki Frontale 2-0 in the final to conclude an unbeaten campaign while there were numerous memorable matches along the way.  
 
From the opening round of fixtures in September to the final in Jeddah in early May, we highlight the standout numbers from the Match Predictor.  

#ACLElite 2024/25 Fantasy Football: And that’s a wrap!

Mon, 19 May, 2025

#ACLElite 2024/25 Fantasy Football: And that’s a wrap!

Kuala Lumpur: The curtain came down on the AFC Champions League Elite™ 2024/25 when Jeddah giants Al Ahli Saudi FC were crowned the Kings of Asian Football after beating Kawasaki Frontale in the final. 

The final also brought an end to our inaugural AFC Champions League Elite™ 2024/25 Fantasy Football campaign. Thanks to all who played – we hope you had fun and we look forward to seeing you again next season.  
 
But before we break for the off-season, here’s a look back at some of the standout stats from a tournament that will live long in the memory.  

#ACLTwo - Facts & Figures

Tue, 20 May, 2025

#ACLTwo - Facts & Figures

Singapore: The curtains came down on a thrilling AFC Champions League Two™ 2024/25 with Sharjah FC defeating Lion City Sailors 2-1 in the final at the Bishan Stadium on Sunday.

It was a tournament that had it all and as we wait in anticipation for the next edition, the-AFC.com highlights some key facts and figures from the season just past.