The 2025–26 AFC Challenge League group stage was played from 25 October to 1 November 2025. The top two teams from each group qualified for the knockout stage.
Draw
The draw for the group stage took place on 28 August at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The 20 teams were drawn into five groups: three comprising four teams from the West each (Groups A–C) and two involving four teams from the East each (Groups D–E). Teams were seeded into pots: four pots for West region and East region, and drawn into the relevant positions within each group, based on their association ranking. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same group.
The following 20 teams entered the group stage draw, which included the 11 direct entrants, three losers from the AFC Champions League Two qualifying play-offs and the two winners of the preliminary stage.
RegionGroupsPot 1 Pot 2Pot 3Pot 4A–C ParoPS Al-SeebACL2 Al-Shabab Al-ArabiPS Al-KuwaitACL2 Al-Ansar Abdysh-Ata KantPS Muras UnitedPS Altyn Asyr Safa Bashundhara KingsPSD–E Manila DiggerACL2PSPS PKR Svay Rieng Shan UnitedPS EzraPS Legend ACL2: AFC Champions League Two qualifying play-off losers PS: Preliminary stage winners
Format In the group stage, each group will be played in a single round-robin format on a centralised venue. Eight teams will progress to the quarter-finals of the knockout stage : the three group winners and best-ranked runners-up from the West, and the group winners and runner-ups of each group from the East.
Tiebreakers
The teams were ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If tied on points, tiebreakers were applied in the following order (Regulations Article 8.3): Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams; Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams; Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams; If more than two teams were tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams were still tied, all head-to-head criteria above were 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 playing each other in the last round of the group are tied; Disciplinary points (yellow card = 1 point, red card as a result of two yellow cards = 3 points, direct red card = 3 points, yellow card followed by direct red card = 4 points); Drawing of lots.
Schedule The schedule of the group stage is as follows.
RoundDates (West region)Dates (East region)Matchday 125 October 202526 October 2025Matchday 228 October 202529 October 2025Matchday 331 October 20251 November 2025
Groups The detailed schedule was announced on 28 August 2025 after the draw ceremony.
West Region Group A
Group B
Group C
Ranking of runners-up teams
East Region Group D
Group E
Notes
See also 2025–26 AFC Champions League Elite league stage 2025–26 AFC Champions League Two group stage
References
External links