Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: The AFC has confirmed the draw mechanism for upcoming knockout stages draw of the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup. The draw takes place in AFC House on June 14 which will be streamed live on www.the-afc.com.
The draw kicks off with the AFC Cup draw at 1500 hours (Malaysia local time), followed by the AFC Champions League draw at 1600 hours.
Eight quarter-finalists in the ranks of Al Ahli, Al Ittihad, Al Hilal, Sepahan, Adelaide United, Bunyodkor, Gaungzhou Evergrande and Ulasn Hyundai will know their fate in the draw which will also determine the potential semi-final (first leg and second leg) as well as potential identification of the venue for the final depending on the result in the quarter-final.
All the first clubs drawn in the quarter-final draw (the first-drawn clubs of Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4) will host the first leg of the quarter-final while the winners of the quarter-final 1 and quarter-final 2 will host the first leg of the semi-final.
There will be a separate draw to choose the potential host for the final between the winner of Semi-final 1 and Semi-final 2.
The ACL quarter-finals will take place on September 19 (first leg) and October 2 and 3 (second leg) while the first leg of the semi-final will be staged on October 24 with second leg to be played on October 31. The final will be played on November 9 or 10 depending on the sporting factors and marketing or broadcast obligations.
Similar procedures will be followed for the AFC Cup, which features Arbil, Al Wehdat, Al Ettifaq, Kuwait SC, Al Shorta, Kelantan, Chonburi and Arema Indonesia.
The two-legged quarter-finals will be played in 18 and 25 September and the semi-final has been scheduled October 2 and 23 with the final slated to take place Saturday November 3.