2026–27 AFC Champions League Elite
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Teams | Competition proper: 24 (from 12 associations) |
← 2025–26 | |
The 2026–27 AFC Champions League Elite (ACL Elite) will be the 45th edition of Asia's premier club football tournament, organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the third under the AFC Champions League Elite title.
The tournament winner will qualify for the 2027 FIFA Intercontinental Cup and 2029 FIFA Club World Cup. Additionally, the winner will enter the league stage of the 2027–28 AFC Champions League Elite, if they have not already qualified through domestic performance.[1]
Association team allocation
The associations are allocated slots according to their club competitions ranking which was published after the 2024–25 competitions were completed.[2]
| Participation for 2025–26 AFC Champions League Elite | |
|---|---|
| Participating | |
| Not participating | |
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Teams
The following teams will also qualify to the West or East region unless they have already qualified via their domestic performance.
| Team | Qualifying method | App. (last) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025–26 AFC Champions League Elite winners | ||
| 2025–26 AFC Champions League Two winners |
- Notes
- ^ Japan (JPN): There will be a different format for Japan, involving a new 2026 J1 100 Year Vision League competition, due to the transition of J1 League to a September to May season calendar.[3][4]
- ^ South Korea (KOR): As the 2025 K League 1 third-placed team, Gimcheon Sangmu is ineligible to qualify for AFC competitions; the spot reserved for the K League 1 third-placed team was transferred to the fourth-placed in the league.
See also
References
- ^ "More Member Associations to benefit from inclusive AFC Champions League". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 23 November 2019. Archived from the original on 27 November 2019. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
- ^ "AFC Club Competitions Ranking". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
- ^ "What is the ?". JLeague.co (in Japanese). Japan Professional Football League. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
- ^ "Club Nomination for ACLE 2026/27 and ACL2 2026/27". JFA.jp (in Japanese). Japan Football Association. 17 December 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2025.