2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite
International football competition
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The 2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite (ACL Elite) was the 43rd edition of Asia's premier club football tournament, organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the first since it was rebranded as the AFC Champions League Elite. The revamped format, along with the rebranding, saw 24 teams playing eight games against different opponents in the brand new league phase.[1]
6–13 August 2024
Competition proper:
16 September 2024 – 3 May 2025
Al-Ahli (1st title)
Kawasaki FrontaleThe King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah hosted the final | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | Qualifying: 6–13 August 2024 Competition proper: 16 September 2024 – 3 May 2025 |
| Teams | Competition proper: 24 (from 12 associations) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Al-Ahli (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Kawasaki Frontale |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 111 |
| Goals scored | 334 (3.01 per match) |
| Attendance | 1,677,544 (15,113 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Salem Al-Dawsari (10 goals) |
| Best player |  Roberto Firmino |
| Best goalkeeper |  Édouard Mendy |
2025–26 → | |
The finals was played in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from 25 April to 3 May 2025.[2] The tournament winner, Al-Ahli, qualified for the 2025 FIFA Intercontinental Cup and the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup. Additionally, they entered the league stage of the 2025–26 AFC Champions League Elite, as they had not qualified through domestic performance.[3]
Al-Ain were the defending champions, but were eliminated in the league stage.[4]
Association team allocation
The associations were allocated slots according to their club competitions ranking which was published after the 2022 competitions were completed.[5]
| Participation for 2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite | |
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| Participating | |
| Not participating | |
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Teams
In the following table, the number of appearances and last appearance count since the 2002–03 season, when the competition was rebranded as the AFC Champions League.
- Notes
- ^ China (CHN): Considered to have withdrawn at the final match of the league stage.[6]
- ^ Qatar (QAT): As 2024 Emir of Qatar Cup winners Al-Sadd qualified for the Champions League Elite via their league position, the spot reserved for the Emir of Qatar Cup winners was transferred to the third placed team in the 2023–24 Qatar Stars League.
- ^ South Korea (KOR): As 2023 Korean FA Cup winners Pohang Steelers qualified for the Champions League Elite via their league position, the spot reserved for the Korean FA Cup winners was transferred to the third placed team in the 2023 K League 1.
As both East region finalists in the 2023–24 AFC Champions League and the 2023–24 AFC Cup (Yokohama F. Marinos and the Central Coast Mariners) qualified for the Champions League Elite through their domestic performance, Gwangju FC qualified directly into the League stage rather than the qualifying play-off.[7] - ^ Saudi Arabia (KSA): As 2023–24 King's Cup winners Al-Hilal qualified for the Champions League Elite via their league position, the spot reserved for the King's Cup winners was transferred to the third placed team of the 2023–24 Saudi Pro League.
- ^ United Arab Emirates (UAE): As 2023–24 UAE President's Cup winners Al Wasl qualified for the Champions League Elite via their league position, the spot reserved for the UAE President's Cup winners was transferred to the runners-up of the 2023–24 UAE Pro League.
Schedule
The schedule of the competition was as follows.[8] All matches were played on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, apart from the quarter-finals and final. The quarter-finals, semi-finals and final were played at a centralised venue in Jeddah.
| Stage | Round | Draw date | West region | East region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preliminary stage | Preliminary round 1 | No draw[a] | 6 August 2024 | |
| Preliminary round 2 | 13 August 2024 | |||
| League stage | Matchday 1 | 16 August 2024 | 16–17 September 2024 | 17–18 September 2024 |
| Matchday 2 | 30 September–1 October 2024 | 1–2 October 2024 | ||
| Matchday 3 | 21–22 October 2024 | 22–23 October 2024 | ||
| Matchday 4 | 4–5 November 2024 | 5–6 November 2024 | ||
| Matchday 5 | 25–26 November 2024 | 26–27 November 2024 | ||
| Matchday 6 | 2–3 December 2024 | 3–4 December 2024 | ||
| Matchday 7 | 3–4 February 2025 | 11–12 February 2025 | ||
| Matchday 8 | 17–18 February 2025 | 18–19 February 2025 | ||
| Round of 16[b] | No draw[a] | 3–4 and 10–11 March 2025 | 4–5 and 11–12 March 2025 | |
| Finals[c] | Quarter-finals | 17 March 2025 | 25–27 April 2025 | |
| Semi-finals | 29–30 April 2025 | |||
| Final | 3 May 2025 at King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah | |||
- Notes
Qualifying play-offs
The two winners of the play-off round (one from West Region and one from East Region) advanced to the league stage to join the 22 direct entrants. The losers of the qualifying play-offs entered the group stage of the 2024–25 AFC Champions League Two.[9]
Preliminary round
A total of 2 teams played in the preliminary round.
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
Sepahan  | 1–4 (a.e.t.) |  Shabab Al-Ahli |
Play-off round
A total of 4 teams played in the play-off round: 3 teams which entered in this round, and 1 winners of the preliminary round.
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| West Region | ||
Al-Gharafa SC  | 1–0 | Shabab Al-Ahli |
| East Region | ||
Shandong Taishan  | 1–1 (a.e.t.) (4–3 p) |  Bangkok United |
League stage
Orange: East Region; 
Blue: West RegionWest Region
- Table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Al-Hilal |
8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 26 | 7 | +19 | 22 | Advance to round of 16 |
| 2 | Al-Ahli |
8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 8 | +13 | 22 | |
| 3 | Al-Nassr |
8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 17 | 6 | +11 | 17 | |
| 4 | Al-Sadd |
8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 9 | +1 | 12 | |
| 5 | Al Wasl |
8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 12 | −4 | 11 | |
| 6 | Esteghlal |
8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 9 | −1 | 9 | |
| 7 | Al-Rayyan |
8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 12 | −4 | 8 | |
| 8 |  Pakhtakor |
8 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 7 | |
| 9 | Persepolis |
8 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 10 | −4 | 7 | |
| 10 | Al-Gharafa |
8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 18 | −8 | 7 | |
| 11 |  Al-Shorta |
8 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 17 | −10 | 6 | |
| 12 | Al Ain |
8 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 11 | 22 | −11 | 2 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) number of matches won; 5) penalty shoot-out if only two teams remain tied and played each other on the final matchday 6) fair play ranking; 7) drawing of lots
- Results
East Region
- Table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yokohama F. Marinos |
7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 21 | 7 | +14 | 18 | Advance to round of 16 |
| 2 | Kawasaki Frontale |
7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 4 | +9 | 15 | |
| 3 |  Johor Darul Ta'zim |
7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 16 | 8 | +8 | 14 | |
| 4 |  Gwangju |
7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 15 | 9 | +6 | 14 | |
| 5 | Vissel Kobe |
7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 9 | +5 | 13 | |
| 6 | Buriram United |
8 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 12 | −5 | 12 | |
| 7 | Shanghai Shenhua |
8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 13 | 12 | +1 | 10 | |
| 8 | Shanghai Port |
8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 10 | 18 | −8 | 8 | |
| 9 | Pohang Steelers |
7 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 17 | −8 | 6 | |
| 10 | Ulsan HD |
7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 16 | −12 | 3 | |
| 11 |  Central Coast Mariners |
7 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 18 | −10 | 1 | |
| 12 | Shandong Taishan |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Withdrawn, record expunged[a] |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) number of matches won; 5) penalty shoot-out if only two teams remain tied and played each other on the final matchday 6) fair play ranking; 7) drawing of lots
Notes:
- Shandong Taishan were considered to have withdrawn from the AFC Champions League Elite after the club confirmed that it did not intend to report for their league stage match against Ulsan HD on 19 February 2025.[6] Their remaining fixture was cancelled, with their seven played matches being expunged.[10]
- Results
Knockout stage
Bracket
| Round of 16 | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||||||||||
| W8 | Pakhtakor | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 25 April – Jeddah | ||||||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Al-Hilal | 0 | 4 | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Al-Hilal | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||
| E4 | Gwangju FC | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||
| E5 | Vissel Kobe | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| 29 April – Jeddah | ||||||||||||||||||||
| E4 | Gwangju FC (a.e.t.) | 0 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Al-Hilal | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Al-Ahli | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
| W7 | Al-Rayyan | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 26 April – Jeddah | ||||||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Al-Ahli | 3 | 2 | 5 | ||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Al-Ahli | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
| E6 | Buriram United | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||
| E6 | Buriram United | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 3 May – Jeddah | ||||||||||||||||||||
| E3 | Johor Darul Ta'zim | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Al-Ahli | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Kawasaki Frontale | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||
| E8 | Shanghai Port | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 26 April – Jeddah | ||||||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Yokohama F. Marinos | 1 | 4 | 5 | ||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Yokohama F. Marinos | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Al-Nassr | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||
| W6 | Esteghlal | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| 30 April – Jeddah | ||||||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Al-Nassr | 0 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Al-Nassr | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Kawasaki Frontale | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
| E7 | Shanghai Shenhua | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 27 April – Jeddah | ||||||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Kawasaki Frontale | 0 | 4 | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Kawasaki Frontale (a.e.t.) | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
| W4 | Al-Sadd | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| W5 | Al-Wasl | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| W4 | Al-Sadd | 1 | 3 | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
Round of 16
A total of 16 teams qualified for the knockout stage, with eight teams in each region. The first legs were played on 3–5 March, and the second legs were played on 10–12 March 2025.
| Team 1 | Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Region | ||||
| Pakhtakor | 1–4 | Al-Hilal | 1–0 | 0–4 |
| Al-Rayyan | 1–5 | Al-Ahli | 1–3 | 0–2 |
| Esteghlal | 0–3 | Al-Nassr | 0–0 | 0–3 |
| Al-Wasl | 2–4 | Al-Sadd | 1–1 | 1–3 |
| East Region | ||||
| Shanghai Port | 1–5 | Yokohama FM | 0–1 | 1–4 |
| Shanghai Shenhua | 1–4 | Kawasaki Frontale | 1–0 | 0–4 |
| Buriram United | 1–0 | Johor Darul Ta'zim | 0–0 | 1–0 |
| Vissel Kobe | 2–3 | Gwangju FC | 2–0 | 0–3 (a.e.t.) |
Finals
The quarter-finals, semi-finals and final, all as single-legged ties, were held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from 25 April to 3 May 2025.
Quarter-finals
| Al-Hilal | 7–0 | Gwangju FC |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
Semi-finals
| Al-Hilal | 1–3 | Al-Ahli |
|---|---|---|
S. Al-Dawsari  42' |
Report |
|
Final
Top scorers
| Rank | Player | Team | MD1 | MD2 | MD3 | MD4 | MD5 | MD6 | MD7 | MD8 | R16-1 | R16-2 | QF | SF | F | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Salem Al-Dawsari |
Al-Hilal |
1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | ||||||
| 2 |  Riyad Mahrez |
Al-Ahli |
1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 9 | ||||||
 Jasir Asani |
Gwangju FC |
3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | ||||||||||
| 4 |  Cristiano Ronaldo |
Al-Nassr |
1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | |||||||
| Anderson Lopes |
Yokohama F. Marinos |
1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |||||||||
| 6 |  Aleksandar Mitrović |
Al-Hilal |
1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |||||||||
| Roberto Firmino |
Al-Ahli |
2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||
 Ivan Toney |
Al-Ahli |
2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||
| 9 | Akram Afif |
Al-Sadd |
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||||||||
| Arif Aiman |
Johor Darul Ta'zim |
2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||
 Matías Vargas |
Shanghai Port |
1 | 1 | 3 | ||||||||||||
- Note
- Goals scored in the qualifying play-offs and matches voided by AFC are not counted when determining top scorer (Regulations Article 64.4)
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