2021 AFC Cup

The 2021 AFC Cup will be the 18th edition of the AFC Cup, Asia's secondary club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

2021 AFC Cup
Tournament details
DatesQualifying:
5 January – 24 February 2021
Competition proper:
8 February – 6 November 2021
TeamsCompetition proper: between 36 and 44 (depending on number of groups)
Total (maximum): 57 (from 36 associations)

The winners of the tournament will automatically qualify for the 2022 AFC Champions League, entering the qualifying play-offs, if they have not qualified through their domestic performance.[1]

Association team allocation

The 46 AFC member associations (excluding the associate member Northern Mariana Islands) are ranked based on their clubs' performance over the last four years in AFC competitions (their national team's FIFA World Rankings no longer considered).[2] The slots are allocated by the following criteria according to the Entry Manual:[3]

  • The associations are split into five zones (Article 5.1):
  • Excluding the top five associations in each region for AFC Champions League slot allocation, all other associations are eligible to enter the AFC Cup.
  • The teams from associations ranked 6th, 11th and 12th which are eliminated in the AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs enter the AFC Cup group stage (Article 3.2). The following rules are applied:
    • The associations ranked 6th in both the West Region and the East Region, while allocated one direct slot in the AFC Cup group stage, are not ranked in each zone for AFC Cup slot allocation (Article 5.3).[4]
    • If they advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, the AFC Cup group stage slot is filled by the standby team from their association if such team are available (Article 5.12).
    • The rules above do not apply to the AFC Champions League title holders and AFC Cup title holders which are allocated AFC Champions League play-off slots should they not qualify for the tournament through domestic performance.
  • In the West Asia Zone and the ASEAN Zone, there are three groups in the group stage, including 9 direct slots, with the 3 remaining slots filled through qualifying play-offs (Article 5.2). The slots in each zone are distributed as follows:
    • The associations ranked 1st to 3rd are each allocated two direct slots.
    • The associations ranked 4th to 6th are each allocated one direct slot and one play-off slot.
    • The associations ranked 7th or below are each allocated get one play-off slot.
    • If any zone has an association ranked 6th for AFC Champions League slot allocation, which is allocated one direct slot in the AFC Cup group stage, there are 10 direct slots, with the 2 remaining slots filled through qualifying play-offs.
  • In the Central Asia Zone, the South Asia Zone, and the East Asia Zone, there is one group in the group stage, including 3 direct slots, with the 1 remaining slot filled through qualifying play-offs (Article 5.2). The slots in each zone are distributed as follows:[5]
    • The associations ranked 1st to 3rd are each allocated one direct slot and one play-off slot.
    • The associations ranked 4th or below are each allocated one play-off slot.
    • If any zone has an association ranked 6th for AFC Champions League slot allocation, which is allocated one direct slot in the AFC Cup group stage, there are 4 direct slots, and to ensure equal opportunity in each zone, another group is added to this zone in the group stage, with the 4 remaining slots filled through qualifying play-offs (Article 5.4.1).
    • If any zone has at least 7 play-off slots, to ensure equal opportunity in each zone, another group is added to this zone in the group stage, with the 5 remaining slots filled through qualifying play-offs (Article 5.4.2).
  • If any association with direct slots do not fulfill any one of the AFC Cup criteria, they have all their direct slots converted into play-off slots. The direct slots given up are redistributed to the highest eligible association by the following criteria (Articles 5.7 and 5.8):
    • For each association, the maximum number of total slots is two (Articles 3.4 and 3.5).
    • If any association is allocated one additional direct slot, one play-off slot is annulled and not redistributed.
  • If any association with only play-off slot(s), including those mentioned above, do not fulfill the minimum AFC Cup criteria, the play-off slot(s) are annulled and not redistributed (Articles 5.10 and 5.11).
  • For each association, the maximum number of total slots is one-third of the total number of eligible teams (excluding foreign teams) in the top division (Article 5.6). If this rule is applied, any direct slots given up are redistributed by the same criteria as mentioned above, and play-off slots are annulled and not redistributed (Article 9.10).
  • All participating teams must obtain an AFC club license, and apart from cup winners, finish in the top half of their top division (Articles 7.1 and 9.5). If any association do not have enough teams which satisfy this criteria, any direct slots given up are redistributed by the same criteria as mentioned above, and play-off slots are annulled and not redistributed (Article 9.9).
  • If any team with an AFC club license refuses to participate in the AFC Cup, their slot, either direct or play-off, is annulled and not redistributed (Article 9.11).

Association ranking

For the 2021 AFC Cup, the associations are allocated slots according to their association ranking which was published on 29 November 2019,[6][7] which takes into account their performance in the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup during the period between 2016 and 2019.

Participation for 2021 AFC Cup
Participating
Not participating
Notes
  1. ^
    Lebanon (LIB): Lebanon are ranked 11th in the West Region for AFC Champions League allocation. If their team participating in the AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs fail to advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, they enter the AFC Cup group stage. If they advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, the AFC Cup group stage slot is filled by the standby team from their association if such team are available.
  2. ^
    Syria (SYR): Syria are ranked 12th in the West Region for AFC Champions League allocation. If their team participating in the AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs fail to advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, they enter the AFC Cup group stage. If they advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, the AFC Cup group stage slot is filled by the standby team from their association if such team are available.
  3. ^
    Uzbekistan (UZB): Uzbekistan are ranked 6th in the West Region for AFC Champions League allocation, and thus are allocated one direct slot in the AFC Cup group stage. If their team participating in the AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs fail to advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, they enter the AFC Cup group stage. If they advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, the AFC Cup group stage slot is filled by the standby team from their association if such team are available.
  4. ^
    Philippines (PHI): The Philippines are ranked 6th in the East Region for AFC Champions League allocation, and thus are allocated one direct slot in the AFC Cup group stage. If their team participating in the AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs fail to advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, they enter the AFC Cup group stage. If they advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, the AFC Cup group stage slot is filled by the standby team from their association if such team are available.
  5. ^
    Myanmar (MYA): Myanmar are ranked 12th in the East Region for AFC Champions League allocation. If their team participating in the AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs fail to advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, they enter the AFC Cup group stage. If they advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, the AFC Cup group stage slot is filled by the standby team from their association if such team are available.
  6. ^
    Hong Kong (HKG): Hong Kong are ranked 11th in the East Region for AFC Champions League allocation. If their team participating in the AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs fail to advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, they enter the AFC Cup group stage. If they advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, the AFC Cup group stage slot is filled by the standby team from their association if such team are available.

Teams

Teams in italics will play in the AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs, and will play in the AFC Cup group stage if they fail to advance to the AFC Champions League group stage. Should they advance to the AFC Champions League group stage, they will not play in the AFC Cup, and will be replaced by the standby team from their association if such team are available.

Note: Only teams assured of a place (including standby teams) are displayed.

Notes
  1. ^
    Bangladesh (BAN): Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh, the 2020 Bangladesh Premier League was cancelled and declared null and void by the Bangladesh Football Federation.[8] The team which will qualify for the 2021 AFC Cup as Bangladesh 1 is yet to be confirmed. Bashundhara Kings, the 2019–20 Bangladesh Federation Cup winners, may qualify as Bangladesh 1.
  2. ^
    India (IND): Originally, Mohun Bagan, the 2019–20 I-League champions (they were already assured of the title before the league was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India), would qualify for the 2021 AFC Cup as India 2, and ATK, the 2019–20 Indian Super League playoffs winners, would qualify for the 2021 AFC Cup as India 3.[9] However, the two teams merged to form ATK Mohun Bagan for the 2020–21 Indian Super League season, and the new team will qualify for the 2021 AFC Cup as India 2. The All India Football Federation decided that Bengaluru FC, the 2019–20 Indian Super League regular season 3rd place (behind FC Goa, which qualified for the 2021 AFC Champions League as India 1, and ATK), will qualify for the 2021 AFC Cup as India 3.[10]
  3. ^
    Indonesia (IDN): Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia, the 2020–21 Liga 1 and the 2020 Piala Indonesia were postponed by the Football Association of Indonesia. The teams from Indonesia playing in the 2021 AFC Cup will be confirmed based on the playing status of the two competitions at the AFC entry deadline.
  4. ^
    Lebanon (LIB): Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Lebanon, the 2019–20 Lebanese Premier League and the 2019–20 Lebanese FA Cup were cancelled and declared null and void by the Lebanese Football Association (the competitions were previously suspended due to domestic issues including protests and financial problems).[11][12] The teams from Lebanon (if any) playing in the 2021 AFC Cup is yet to be confirmed.
  5. ^
    Malaysia (MAS): Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia, the 2020 Malaysia FA Cup was cancelled and declared null and void by the Football Association of Malaysia.[13] As a result, the 2020 Malaysia Cup winners will qualify for the 2021 AFC Cup as Malaysia 2.[14]
  6. ^
    Maldives (MDV): Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Maldives, the 2020 Maldives FA Cup was cancelled and declared null and void by the Football Association of Maldives.[15] As a result, the 2019–20 Dhivehi Premier League runners-up will qualify for the 2021 AFC Cup as Maldives 2.[16]
  7. ^
    Philippines (PHI): Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, the 2020 Copa Paulino Alcantara was cancelled and not organized by the Philippine Football Federation. As a result, the 2020 Philippines Football League runners-up will qualify for the 2021 AFC Cup as Philippines 2, and the 3rd place will qualify for the 2021 AFC Cup as Philippines 3 (standby team).[17]

Schedule

The schedule of the competition is as follows.[18]

Stage Round Draw date First leg Second leg
Preliminary stage Preliminary round No draw 5–6 January 2021 (W, A),
2–3 February 2021 (C, S, E)		 12–13 January 2021 (W, A),
9–10 February 2021 (C, S, E)
Play-off stage Play-off round 19–20 January 2021 (W, A),
16–17 February 2021 (C, S, E)		 26–27 January 2021 (W, A),
23–24 February 2021 (C, S, E)
Group stage Matchday 1 TBA November/December 2020 8–10 February 2021 (W, A), 9–10 March 2021 (C, S, E)
Matchday 2 22–24 February 2021 (W, A), 16–17 March 2021 (C, S, E)
Matchday 3 8–10 March 2021 (W, A), 6–7 April 2021 (C, S, E)
Matchday 4 15–17 March 2021 (W, A), 20–21 April 2021 (C, S, E)
Matchday 5 5–7 April 2021 (W, A), 18–19 May 2021 (C, S, E)
Matchday 6 19–21 May 2021 (W, A), 25–26 May 2021 (C, S, E)
Knockout stage Zonal semi-finals 17–19 May 2021 (W, A) 24–26 May 2021 (W, A)
Zonal finals TBA May/June 2021 3–4 August 2021 (A),
28 September 2021 (W)		 10–11 August 2021 (A),
19 October 2021 (W)
Inter-zone play-off semi-finals 24–25 August 2021 14–15 September 2021
Inter-zone play-off final 29 September 2021 20 October 2021
Final 6 November 2021
gollark: <@304000458144481280> If a vaccine is made it'll apparently take a year or so.
gollark: Soon the UK will meet a terrible fate.
gollark: But so will the viruses.
gollark: If you are on the surface of the sun you physically cannot be infected.
gollark: Also the surface (and corona) of the sun.

See also

References
  1. "More Member Associations to benefit from inclusive AFC Champions League". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 23 November 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  2. "AFC Club Competitions Ranking Mechanics". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation.
  3. "Entry Manual for AFC Club Competitions (2021 Edition)". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation.
  4. "2021-2022 йилги ОЧЛ ва ОФК кубоги мусобақалари учун йўлланмалар тақсимоти эълон қилинди". Uzbekistan Professional Football League. 29 July 2020.
  5. "ОФИЦИАЛЬНО: ЧЕМПИОН ТАДЖИКИСТАНА-2020 ВЫСТУПИТ В ГРУППОВОМ ЭТАПЕ ЛИГИ ЧЕМПИОНОВ АФК-2021!". Tajikistan Football Federation. 9 December 2019.
  6. "AFC Club Competitions Ranking". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation.
  7. "AFC Country Ranking 2019". FootyRankings. 24 November 2019. Archived from the original on 9 June 2019. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  8. "BPL 2019-20 abandonned". Dhaka Tribune. 17 May 2020.
  9. "Clarification over AFC Club Competition slots from 2021 onwards". All India Football Federation. 10 March 2020.
  10. "Bengaluru FC to play in AFC Cup playoffs as AIFF confirms all three continental spots for ISL teams". Scroll.in. 4 June 2020.
  11. "الاتحاد اللبناني لكرة القدم يعلن إلغاء الموسم بسبب كورونا". The New Arab. 28 May 2020.
  12. "Football season called off in Lebanon". Asian Football Confederation. 28 May 2020.
  13. "September restart for M-League". New Strait Times. 1 May 2020.
  14. "'This is a lose-lose situation for everyone'". New Strait Times. 2 May 2020.
  15. "Coronavirus - FAM cancels FA cup and President cup". boalha.mv. 31 March 2020.
  16. "Rejoice for Eagles as AFC cup qualification looms on the horizon". boalha.mv. 31 March 2020.
  17. Saldajeno, Ivan Stewart (28 May 2020). "PFF to submit protocols to GAB for possible PFL return". Philippine News Agency. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  18. "AFC Competitions Calendar 2021". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 5 December 2019.
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