2024–25 AFC Challenge League knockout stage
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The 2024–25 AFC Challenge League knockout stage was played from 5 March to 10 May 2025.[1] A total of 8 teams competed in the knockout stage to decide the champions of the 2024–25 AFC Challenge League.[2]
Qualified teams
The following teams advanced from the group stage:
- The winners of the groups and the best runners-up in the West Region (Groups A–C).
- The winners and runner-ups of each group in the East Region (Groups D–E).
| Region | Group | Winners | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Region | A |  East Bengal |
N/a |
| B |  Arkadag |
 Al-Arabi | |
| C |  Al-Seeb |
N/a | |
| East Region | D |  Shan United |
 Tainan City |
| E |  Madura United |
 Svay Rieng |
Format
In the knockout stage, the eight teams play a single-elimination tournament. Each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis, except the final which is played as a single match. Extra time and penalty shoot-out will be used to decide the winners if necessary. (Regulations Article 10).
| Round | Matchups | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarter-finals |
| ||
| Semi-finals | (First team listed host first leg, second team listed host second leg)
| ||
| Final | (Winners of East Region semi-finals host match)
|
Schedule
After the draw, the schedule of each round is as follows.[1]
| Stage | Round | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knockout stage | Quarter-finals | 5–6 March 2025 | 12–13 March 2025 |
| Semi-finals | 9–10 April 2025 | 16–17 April 2025 | |
| Final | 10 May 2025 | ||
Bracket
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Svay Rieng
| 6 | 1 | 7 | ||||||||||||||
| D1 | Shan United
| 2 | 2 | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Svay Rieng
| 3 | 3 | 6 | |||||||||||||||
| East Region | ||||||||||||||||||
| Madura United
| 0 | 3 | 3 | |||||||||||||||
| D2 | Tainan City
| 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| E1 | Madura United
| 0 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| Svay Rieng
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| Arkadag (a.e.t.)
| 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| B2 | Al-Arabi (a.e.t.)
| 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| C1 | Al-Seeb
| 0 | 2 | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Arabi
| 2 | 0 | 2 | |||||||||||||||
| West Region | ||||||||||||||||||
| Arkadag
| 0 | 3 | 3 | |||||||||||||||
| A1 | East Bengal
| 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| B1 | Arkadag
| 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||||||||
Quarter-finals
Summary
In the quarter-finals, the eight qualified teams played in two ties, with the matchups and order of legs determined by the group stage draw and the identity of the best runners-up in the West region.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Region | ||||
| Al-Arabi | 3–2 | Al-Seeb | 1–0 | 2–2 (a.e.t.) |
| East Bengal | 1–3 | Arkadag | 0–1 | 1–2 |
| East Region | ||||
| Svay Rieng | 7–4 | Shan United | 6–2 | 1–2 |
| Tainan City | 0–3 | Madura United | 0–0 | 0–3 |
West Region
| Al-Arabi | 1–0 | Al-Seeb |
|---|---|---|
Al Salamah  90+1' |
Report |
Al-Arabi won 3–2 on aggregate.
| East Bengal | 0–1 | Arkadag |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Gurbanow 10' |
| Arkadag | 2–1 | East Bengal |
|---|---|---|
| Annadurdyýew 89' (pen.), 90+8' |
Report | Bouli 1' |
Arkadag won 3–1 on aggregate.
East Region
| Shan United | 2–1 | Svay Rieng |
|---|---|---|
|
Report | Moresche 56' (pen.) |
Svay Rieng won 7–4 on aggregate.
Madura United won 3–0 on aggregate.
Semi-finals
Summary
In the semi-finals, the winners of quarter-finals from each region faced each other in a two-legged tie. The winners of each tie advanced to the final.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Region | ||||
| Al-Arabi | 2–3 | Arkadag | 2–0 | 0–3 |
| East Region | ||||
| Svay Rieng | 6–3 | Madura United | 3–0 | 3–3 |
West Region
| Arkadag | 3–0 | Al-Arabi |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
Arkadag won 3–2 on aggregate.
East Region
| Svay Rieng | 3–0 | Madura United |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
| Madura United | 3–3 | Svay Rieng |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
Svay Rieng won 6–3 on aggregate.
Final
In the final, the winners of the each semi-finals played each other, with the host team alternating every season. The winners would be given a direct slot for the 2025–26 AFC Champions League Two group stage, if not already qualified through the domestic performance.
| Svay Rieng | 1–2 (a.e.t.) | Arkadag |
|---|---|---|
| Krya 82' |
Report |
|