Asian Football Confederation to Launch Women’s Champions League From Next Season

Sydney: The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has announced the launch of an Asian women’s Champions League, set to kick off in 2024. The competition will feature 12 teams divided into three groups of four, with the top two teams from each group plus the two best third-placed teams advancing to the quarter-finals.

The competition’s preliminary rounds are scheduled to begin in August 2024, followed by a dynamic 12-team group stage in October of the same year. The AFC, during its women’s football committee meeting in Sydney, revealed this timeline just hours prior to the World Cup final.

The format for the first four editions will feature 12 teams divided into three groups of four. The matches will adopt a centralized single round-robin format within each group. The top two teams, along with the two best third-placed teams, will progress to the quarter-finals. The AFC noted that these dates are tentative and subject to adjustment.

Participating member associations will have one entry each from the 2024/25 to 2027/28 seasons, with their direct slots for group stages determined by their FIFA rankings. The precise prize money allocation for the AFC Women’s Champions League is yet to be disclosed. Notably, the AFC also recently revealed a significant increase in prize money for the men’s Champions League to $12 million in 2024/25.

In addition to this development, the AFC Women’s Asian Cup will undergo a change in schedule. The tournament will now be held in non-FIFA World Cup odd years. Following the upcoming Women’s Asian Cup in 2026, the subsequent edition will take place in 2029, deviating from the previous plan of 2030.