# 2024–25 AFC Women's Champions League

The 2024–25 AFC Women's Champions League is the first edition of the AFC Women's Champions League, Asia's premier club women's football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
This is the first season using a revised format and the new name of AFC Women's Champions League. The winner will qualify for the inaugural FIFA Women's Champions Cup to be held in January and February 2026.

## Association team allocation

Key principles for the competition were released by the AFC on 20 August 2023. There is one entry per participating member association, with allocation based on the FIFA Women's World Ranking as of 15 March 2024. Clubs from the top ranked associations qualified directly to the group stage, with the remaining clubs starting from the preliminary stage.
Originally, 22 (out of 47) member associations applied to enter the competition. However, Naegohyang from North Korea withdrew before the draw.
| Rank | Rank | Member association | Slots | Slots |
| Rank | Rank | Member association | Group stage | Play-off |
| AFC | World | Member association | Group stage | Play-off |
| 1 | 7 | Japan | 1 | 0 |
| 3 | 12 | Australia | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | 19 | China | 1 | 0 |
| 5 | 20 | South Korea | 1 | 0 |
| 6 | 37 | Vietnam | 1 | 0 |
| 7 | 39 | Philippines | 1 | 0 |
| 8 | 40 | Chinese Taipei | 1 | 0 |
| 9 | 47 | Thailand | 1 | 0 |
| 10 | 48 | Uzbekistan | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 54 | Myanmar | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | 61 | Iran | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | 66 | India | 0 | 1 |
| 14 | 74 | Jordan | 0 | 1 |
| 15 | 79 | Hong Kong | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | 93 | Laos | 0 | 1 |
| 18 | 96 | Malaysia | 0 | 1 |
| 19 | 100 | Nepal | 0 | 1 |
| 22 | 114 | United Arab Emirates | 0 | 1 |
| 28 | 137 | Singapore | 0 | 1 |
| 38 | 173 | Bhutan | 0 | 1 |
| 40 | 175 | Saudi Arabia | 0 | 1 |
| Total | Total | Participating associations: 21 | 8 | 13 |
| 21 |||
Associations that did not enter a team:
* Brunei
* Cambodia
* Timor-Leste
* Indonesia
* Afghanistan
* Kyrgyzstan
* Tajikistan
* Turkmenistan
* North Korea (W)
* Guam
* Macau
* Mongolia
* Northern Mariana Islands
* Bangladesh
* Maldives
* Pakistan
* Sri Lanka
* Bahrain
* Iraq
* Kuwait
* Lebanon
* Oman
* Palestine
* Qatar
* Syria
* Yemen

### Legend

* W withdrew before the draw

## Format

The competition comprises:
* a preliminary stage (one group of four and three groups of three teams) in centralised venues
* a main tournament with 12 teams (three groups of four teams) in centralised venues
* quarter-finals hosted by the group winners and the best second-placed team
* semi-finals and final in a centralised venue

### Tiebreakers

Teams in the preliminary stage and the group stage are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If two or more teams are tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings:
* Points in head-to-head matches among the tied teams;
* Goal difference in head-to-head matches among the tied teams;
* Goals scored in head-to-head matches among the tied teams;
* If more than two teams are tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams are still tied, all head-to-head criteria above are reapplied exclusively to this subset of teams;
* Goal difference in all group matches;
* Goals scored in all group matches;
* Penalty shoot-out, if only two teams are tied, and the teams in question have played their last group match against each other;
* Lower disciplinary score (direct red card = 3 points; double yellow card = 3 points; single yellow card = 1 point);
* Drawing of lots.

## Schedule

| Stage | Round | Draw date | Dates |
| Preliminary stage | Matchday 1 | 18 July 2024 | 25 August 2024 |
| Preliminary stage | Matchday 2 | 18 July 2024 | 28 August 2024 |
| Preliminary stage | Matchday 3 | 18 July 2024 | 31 August 2024 |
| Group stage | Matchday 1 | 18 July 2024 | 3–12 October 2024 |
| Group stage | Matchday 2 | 18 July 2024 | 3–12 October 2024 |
| Group stage | Matchday 3 | 18 July 2024 | 3–12 October 2024 |
| Knockout stage | Quarter-finals | 8 January 2025 | 22–23 March 2025 |
| Knockout stage | Semi-finals | 8 January 2025 | 21 May 2025 |
| Knockout stage | Final | 8 January 2025 | 24 May 2025 |

## Teams

Clubs from the top eight member associations qualified directly to the group stage, while the remaining 13 clubs entered at the preliminary stage.
Group stage direct entrants :
| Team | Qualifying method |
| Urawa Red Diamonds | 2023–24 WE League champions |
| Melbourne City | 2023–24 A-League Women premiers |
| Wuhan Jiangda | 2023 Chinese Women's Super League champions |
| Incheon Red Angels | 2023 WK League champions |
| Hồ Chí Minh City | 2023 Vietnamese Women's National League champions |
| Kaya–Iloilo | 2023 PFF Women's League champions |
| Taichung Blue Whale | 2023 Taiwan Mulan Football League champions |
| College of Asian Scholars | 2024 Thai Women's League 1 champions |
Preliminary stage participants :
| Team | Qualifying method |
| Nasaf | 2024 Uzbekistan Women's League champions |
| Myawady | 2023 Myanmar Women's League champions |
| Bam Khatoon | 2023–24 Kowsar Women Football League champions |
| Odisha | 2023–24 Indian Women's League champions |
| Etihad | 2023 Jordan Women's Pro League champions |
| Kitchee | 2023–24 Hong Kong Women League champions |
| Young Elephants | 2023 Lao Women League champions |
| Sabah | 2023 Malaysia National Women's League champions |
| APF | 2022 Nepalese National Women's League champions |
| Abu Dhabi Country Club | 2023–24 UAE Women's Football League champions |
| Lion City Sailors | 2023 Women's Premier League champions |
| Royal Thimphu College | 2023–24 Women's National League champions |
| Al-Nassr | 2023–24 Saudi Women's Premier League champions |

## Preliminary stage

Bhutan, Jordan, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia were the hosts of each group in the Preliminary stage.

### Seedings

| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
| Nasaf Myawady Bam Khatoon Odisha | Etihad (H) Kitchee Young Elephants Sabah (H) | APF Abu Dhabi Country Club Lion City Sailors Royal Thimphu College (H) | Al-Nassr (H) |
(H) Hosts

### Group A

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Abu Dhabi Country Club | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 9 | Advance to group stage |
| 2 | Al-Nassr (H) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 6 | |
| 3 | Young Elephants | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 5 | −1 | 3 | |
| 4 | Myawady | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | −7 | 0 | |

### Group B

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Odisha | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 6 | Advance to group stage |
| 2 | Etihad (H) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 3 | |
| 3 | Lion City Sailors | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 9 | −8 | 0 | |

### Group C

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Sabah (H) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 4 | Advance to group stage |
| 2 | Nasaf | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | |
| 3 | APF | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 1 | |

### Group D

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Bam Khatoon | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 6 | Advance to group stage |
| 2 | Kitchee | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 3 | |
| 3 | Royal Thimphu College (H) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 0 | |

## Group stage

The group stage was played from 6 to 12 October 2024. The four teams in each of the three groups played one another in a centralised single round-robin format. The top two finishers in each group, together with the two best third-placed teams, advanced to the knockout stage. China, Thailand and Vietnam were the hosts of the three groups.

### Seedings

| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
| Urawa Red Diamonds Melbourne City Wuhan Jiangda (H) | Incheon Red Angels Hồ Chí Minh City (H) Kaya–Iloilo | Taichung Blue Whale College of Asian Scholars (H) | Abu Dhabi Country Club Odisha Sabah Bam Khatoon |
(H) Hosts

### Group A

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Incheon Red Angels | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 2 | +5 | 7 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 2 | Abu Dhabi Country Club | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 5 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 3 | Wuhan Jiangda (H) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 4 | +4 | 3 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 4 | Sabah | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 12 | −10 | 1 | |

### Group B

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Melbourne City | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | +8 | 9 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 2 | Bam Khatoon | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 3 | Kaya–Iloilo | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 2 | |
| 4 | College of Asian Scholars (H) | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 1 | |

### Group C

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Urawa Red Diamonds | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | +21 | 9 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 2 | Hồ Chí Minh City (H) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 | +2 | 6 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 3 | Taichung Blue Whale | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 4 | Odisha | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 24 | −23 | 0 | |

### Ranking of second-placed teams

| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | C | Hồ Chí Minh City | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 | +2 | 6 | Seeded in Quarter-finals draw |
| 2 | A | Abu Dhabi Country Club | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 5 | Unseeded in Quarter-finals draw |
| 3 | B | Bam Khatoon | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 | Unseeded in Quarter-finals draw |

### Ranking of third-placed teams

| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | A | Wuhan Jiangda | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 4 | +4 | 3 | Advance to Quarter-finals (unseeded) |
| 2 | C | Taichung Blue Whale | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 | Advance to Quarter-finals (unseeded) |
| 3 | B | Kaya–Iloilo | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 2 | |

## Knockout stage

The knockout stage will be played in a single-leg knockout format. The semi-finals and the final match will be played in a centralised location.

### Draw

The draw was held on 8 January 2025. For the quarter-finals, teams were seeded based on their performance in the group stage. The three group winners and the best second-placed team were seeded and will be the hosts for the match. Teams from the same group were not drawn against each other.
| Seeded | Unseeded |
| Urawa Red Diamonds Melbourne City Incheon Red Angels Hồ Chí Minh City | Abu Dhabi Country Club Bam Khatoon Wuhan Jiangda Taichung Blue Whale |

### Bracket

| Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 22 March - Incheon | 22 March - Incheon | | |
| Incheon Red Angels | | | |
| Incheon Red Angels | | 21 May | 21 May | |
| Bam Khatoon | | 21 May | 21 May |
| 23 March - Melbourne | 23 March - Melbourne | | | |
| Melbourne City | | | |
| Melbourne City | | | | 24 May | 24 May |
| Taichung Blue Whale | | | | 24 May | 24 May |
| 23 March - Kumagaya | 23 March - Kumagaya | | | | |
| Urawa Red Diamonds | | | | | |
| Urawa Red Diamonds | | 21 May | 21 May | | |
| Wuhan Jiangda | | 21 May | 21 May | | |
| 22 March - Ho Chi Minh City | 22 March - Ho Chi Minh City | | | | |
| Hồ Chí Minh City | | | |
| Abu Dhabi Country Club | | | |

### Final
## Top scorers

    As of 12 October 2024
| Rank | Player | Team | MD1 | MD2 | MD3 | Total |
| 1 | Terry Engesha | Incheon Red Angels | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| 2 | Miki Ito | Urawa Red Diamonds | 4 | | | 4 |
| 2 | Yuzuho Shiokoshi | Urawa Red Diamonds | 3 | 1 | | 4 |
| 4 | Lourdes Bosch | Melbourne City | | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 4 | Deng Mengye | Wuhan Jiangda | | 3 | | 3 |
| 4 | Huỳnh Như | Hồ Chí Minh City | 2 | 1 | | 3 |
| 4 | Mei Shimada | Urawa Red Diamonds | 2 | | 1 | 3 |
| 4 | Mariana Speckmaier | Melbourne City | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 9 | Zahra Ghanbari | Bam Khatoon | | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 9 | Chen Jin-wen | Taichung Blue Whale | | | 2 | 2 |
| 9 | Naeema Juma | Abu Dhabi Country Club | 2 | | | 2 |
| 9 | Kabange Mupopo | Wuhan Jiangda | 1 | 1 | | 2 |
| 9 | Ririka Tanno | Urawa Red Diamonds | 1 | 1 | | 2 |
| 9 | Fuka Tsunoda | Urawa Red Diamonds | 1 | | 1 | 2 |

### Note

* Goals scored in the qualifying play-offs and matches voided by AFC are not counted when determining top scorer.