2023–24 AFC Cup explained

Tourney Name:AFC Cup
Year:2023–24
Dates:Qualifying:

Competition proper:
Num Teams:Competition proper: 36 Total (maximum): 65
Associations:37
Champion Other: Central Coast Mariners
Count:1
Second Other: Al Ahed
Matches:118
Goals:386
Top Scorer: Marco Túlio (8 goals)
Player: Mikael Doka[1]
Prevseason:2022
Nextseason:2024–25 (ACL Two)

The 2023–24 AFC Cup was the 20th edition of the AFC Cup, Asia's secondary club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the final edition under the AFC Cup title, as the competition was revamped under the name AFC Champions League Two starting in 2024–25.[2] This was the first AFC Cup season to have a two-year (autumn-to-spring) schedule, unlike the previous all-year-round (spring-to-autumn) schedule.[3]

As the title holders, Al-Seeb qualified for the 2023–24 AFC Champions League playoff stage. So they were unable to defend their title.

Central Coast Mariners won the competition for the first time, defeating Al Ahed 1–0 in the final.[4] [5] Central Coast Mariners' victory meant that Australia became the first nation to have had clubs winning both the AFC Champions League and AFC Cup, following Western Sydney Wanderers' victory in the 2014 AFC Champions League.

Association team allocation

The 47 AFC member associations are ranked based on their club's performance over the last four years in AFC competitions (their national team's FIFA World Rankings are no longer considered).[6] The slots are allocated by the following criteria according to the Entry Manual:[7]

Reallocation of Regions

Association ranking

For the 2023–24 AFC Cup, the associations are allocated slots according to the November 2021 AFC club competitions ranking,[10] [11] [12] which takes into account their performance in the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup during the period between 2018 and 2021.

bgcolor=#f7f8ff colspan=2Participation for 2023–24 AFC Cup
bgcolor=#90ee77 width=20Participating
bgcolor=#ffcccc width=20Not participating
+West Asia Zone (3 groups)
RankMember
association		PointsSlots
Group
stage		Play-off
-->
–1046.13110
11335.22320
21823.61820
32218.30720
42516.81211
52712.06111
6316.89411
7345.26401
8410.00000
TotalParticipating associations: 8104
5-->
14
+Central Asia Zone (1 group)
RankMember
association		PointsSlots
Group
stage		Play-off
-->
11237.32311
21627.87111
3325.96211
4410.00000
TotalParticipating associations: 333
3-->
6
+South Asia Zone (1 group)
RankMember
association		PointsSlots
Group
stage		Play-off
-->
11725.29011
22119.45211
3297.85311
4361.51301
5380.78500
6390.61101
7410.00000
TotalParticipating associations: 535
2-->
8
+ASEAN Zone (3 groups)
RankMember
association		PointsSlots
Group
stage		Play-off
-->
–1434.93710
11923.08020
22021.08720
32317.27720
42417.01611
52615.96011
6289.88111
7335.67201
8370.84301
9410.00001
10410.00000
TotalParticipating associations: 10106
6-->
16
+East Asia Zone (1 group)
RankMember
association		PointsSlots
Group
stage		Play-off
-->
11532.28600
2306.98111
3354.07211
4400.34910
5410.00000
6410.00000
TotalParticipating associations: 332
7-->
5
Notes

Teams

West Asia Zone
Group stage direct entrants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
Al-Wehdat2022 Jordan FA Cup winners
2022 Jordanian Pro League runners-up		12th
Al-Zawraa2022–23 Iraqi Premier League third place5th
Al-Kahrabaa2022–23 Iraqi Premier League fifth place1st
Al-Ahed2022–23 Lebanese Premier League champions12th
Nejmeh2022–23 Lebanese Premier League runners-up11th
Al-Kuwait2021–22 Kuwaiti Premier League champions and 2022–23 Kuwaiti Premier League champions12th
Al-Arabi2022–23 Kuwaiti Premier League runners-up3rd
Al-Riffa2021–22 Bahraini Premier League champions7th
Al-Fotuwa2022–23 Syrian Premier League champions1st
Jabal Al-Mukaber2022–23 West Bank Premier League champions1st
Qualifying play-off participants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
Al-Khaldiya2021–22 Bahraini King's Cup champions1st
Al-Ittihad2021–22 Syrian Cup champions5th
Shabab Al-Khalil2022–23 West Bank Premier League third place3rd
Al-Nahda2022–23 Oman Professional League champions 4th
South Asia Zone
Group stage direct entrants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
OdishaWinners of additional playoff between 2021–22 I-League champions and 2023 Super Cup champions1st
Bashundhara Kings2021–22 Bangladesh Premier League champions4th
Maziya2022 Dhivehi Premier League champions
2022 Maldives FA Cup winners		9th
Qualifying play-off participants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
Mohun Bagan SGWinners of additional playoff between 2021–22 and 2022–23 Indian Super League playoffs winners (as ATK Mohun Bagan)7th
Dhaka Abahani2021–22 Bangladesh Premier League runners-up6th
Club Eagles2022 Dhivehi Premier League runners-up2nd
Machhindra2023 Martyr's Memorial A-Division League runners-up2nd
Paro2022 Bhutan Premier League champions3rd
Central Asia Zone
Group stage direct entrants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
Ravshan Kulob2022 Tajikistan Higher League runners-up4th
Altyn Asyr2022 Ýokary Liga runners-up9th
Abdysh-Ata Kant2022 Kyrgyz Premier League champions and 2022 Kyrgyzstan Cup winners1st
Qualifying play-off participants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
Khujand2022 Tajikistan Higher League third place7th
Merw Mary2022 Ýokary Liga third place2nd
Alay Osh2022 Kyrgyz Premier League runners-up7th
ASEAN Zone (including Australia)
Group stage direct entrants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
Haiphong2022 V.League 1 runners-up1st
DH Cebu2022–23 Philippines Football League runners-up1st
Stallion Laguna2022–23 Philippines Football League third place1st
Terengganu2022 Malaysia Super League runners-up3rd
Sabah2022 Malaysia Super League third place1st
Macarthur FC2022 Australia Cup winners1st
Central Coast Mariners2022–23 A-League Men runners-up1st
Hougang United2022 Singapore Cup winners3rd
Bali UnitedWinner of additional playoff between 2021–22 and 2022–23 Liga 1 champion5th
Shan United2022 Myanmar National League champions4th
Qualifying play-off participants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
Tampines Rovers2022 Singapore Premier League third place14th
PSM MakassarLoser of additional playoff between 2021–22 and 2022–23 Liga 1 champion4th
Yangon United2022 Myanmar National League runners-up8th
Phnom Penh Crown2022 Cambodian Premier League champions3rd
Young Elephants2022 Lao League 1 champions2nd
DPMM2022 Brunei FA Cup winners1st
East Asia Zone
Group stage direct entrants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
Chao Pak Kei2022 Liga de Elite champions and 2022 Taça de Macau winners2nd
Taiwan Steel2022 Taiwan Premier League champions3rd
FC Ulaanbaatar2022–23 Mongolian National Premier League champions1st
Qualifying play-off participants
width=25%Teamwidth=60%Qualifying methodwidth=15%
Monte Carlo2022 Liga de Elite runners-up1st
Taichung Futuro2022 Taiwan Premier League runners-up1st
Notes

Schedule

The schedule of the competition is as follows.[13]

StageRoundDraw dateFirst legSecond leg
Preliminary stagePreliminary round 1No draw8 August 2023
Preliminary round 215–16 August 2023
Play-off stagePlay-off round22–23 August 2023
Group stageMatchday 124 August 202318–21 September 2023
Matchday 22–5 October 2023
Matchday 323–26 October 2023
Matchday 46–9 November 2023
Matchday 527–30 November 2023
Matchday 611–14 December 2023
Knockout stageZonal semi-finals28 December 202312–13 February 2024 (A)
12–13 February 2024 (W)19–20 February 2024 (W)
Zonal finals22 February 2024 (A)
16 April 2024 (W)23 April 2024 (W)
Inter-zone play-off semi-finals6–7 March 202413–14 March 2024
Inter-zone play-off final17 April 202424 April 2024
Final5 May 2024 at Sultan Qaboos Stadium, Muscat
Notes:

Qualifying play-offs

See main article: 2023–24 AFC Cup qualifying play-offs.

Preliminary round 2

|+South Asia Zone|}|+Central Asia Zone|}|+ASEAN Zone|}

Play-off round

|+West Asia Zone|}|+South Asia Zone|}|+Central Asia Zone|}|+ASEAN Zone|}|+East Asia Zone|}

Group stage

See main article: 2023–24 AFC Cup group stage.

Ranking of runner-up teams

ASEAN Zone

Knockout stage

See main article: 2023–24 AFC Cup knockout stage.

Final

See main article: article and 2024 AFC Cup final. In the final, the winners of the West Asia Zonal final and the winners of the Inter-zone play-off final will play each other, with the host team (winners of the West Zone) alternated from the previous season's final.

Top scorers

RankPlayerTeamTotal
1 Marco Túlio Central Coast Mariners32128
2 Phnom Penh Crown13217
322116
24
5 Ange Kouamé Taiwan Steel1315
Kayrat Zhyrgalbek uulu Abdysh-Ata Kant1121
7 Ulises Dávila Macarthur FC11114
Mikael Doka Central Coast Mariners121
Jed Drew Macarthur FC112
Mourtada Fall Odisha211
Valère Germain Macarthur FC121
Hashim Sayed Isa Al-Riffa112
Đorđe Maksimović Hougang United211
Magamed Uzdenov Abdysh-Ata Kant1111

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Doka named MVP . AFC . 5 May 2024 . 5 May 2024.
  2. Web site: 14 August 2023 . AFC Executive Committee approves biggest prize purse in Asian club football history from 2024/25; announces AFC Women's Champions League . AFC. 14 August 2023.
  3. Web site: AFC Executive Committee unveils dynamic enhancements to the AFC Club Competitions. 25 February 2022. 25 February 2022. the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. en. 9 March 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220309100419/https://www.the-afc.com/en/about_afc/committees/executive_committee/news/afc_executive_committee_unveils_dynamic_enhancements_to_the_afc_club_competitions.html. live.
  4. Web site: 5 May 2024 . Kuol strike secures Central Coast Mariners historic title . 5 May 2024 . the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation.
  5. Web site: 5 May 2024 . Australia's Central Coast Mariners beat Al Ahed to lift final AFC Cup title . 5 May 2024 . The Olympics.
  6. Web site: AFC Club Competitions Ranking Mechanics. the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 2021-11-08. 2019-04-21. https://web.archive.org/web/20190421024129/http://www.the-afc.com/afc/documents/PdfFiles/afc-club-competitions-ranking-mechanics. live.
  7. Web site: Entry Manual for AFC Club Competitions (2021 Edition). the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 2021-11-08. 2020-11-01. https://web.archive.org/web/20201101034325/https://www.the-afc.com/documents/entry-manual-for-afc-club-competitions-2021-edition. live.
  8. Web site: 2021-2022 йилги ОЧЛ ва ОФК кубоги мусобақалари учун йўлланмалар тақсимоти эълон қилинди. Uzbekistan Professional Football League. 29 July 2020. 8 November 2021. 27 October 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201027181308/https://www.pfl.uz/uz/news/detail/12218. live.
  9. Web site: ОФИЦИАЛЬНО: ЧЕМПИОН ТАДЖИКИСТАНА-2020 ВЫСТУПИТ В ГРУППОВОМ ЭТАПЕ ЛИГИ ЧЕМПИОНОВ АФК-2021!. Tajikistan Football Federation. 9 December 2019. 8 November 2021. 27 October 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201027042344/http://fft.tj/ofitsialno-chempion-tadzhikistana-2020-vystupit-v-gruppovom-etape-ligi-chempionov-afk-2021/. live.
  10. Web site: Slot allocation for AFC Champions League and AFC Cup 2023 confirmed . AFC . 2022-03-22 . 2021-12-30 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211230152919/https://www.the-afc.com/en/about_afc/cfed/news/slot_allocation_for_afc_champions_league_and_afc_cup_2023_confirmed.html . live .
  11. Web site: AFC Club Competitions Ranking. the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 2021-12-10. 2022-01-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20220107182849/https://www.the-afc.com/en/more/afc_ranking.html/. live.
  12. Web site: AFC Country Ranking 2021. FootyRankings. 24 November 2021. 10 December 2021. 2 September 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210902060747/https://footyrankings.com/crank2021/. live.
  13. Web site: Asian Football Calendar (Aug 2023 - Jul 2024) . 4 August 2023 . The AFC.

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