2020 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs

The 2020 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs were played from 14 to 28 January 2020.[1] A total of 28 teams competed in the qualifying play-offs to decide the remaining eight of the 32 places in the group stage of the 2020 AFC Champions League.[2]

Teams

The following 28 teams, split into two regions (West Region and East Region), entered the qualifying play-offs, consisting of three rounds:

  • 8 teams entered in the preliminary round 1.
  • 12 teams entered in the preliminary round 2.
  • 8 teams entered in the play-off round.
Region Teams entering in play-off round Teams entering in preliminary round 2 Teams entering in preliminary round 1
West Region
East Region

Format

In the qualifying play-offs, each tie was played as a single match. Extra time and a penalty shoot-out were used to decide the winner if necessary (Regulations Article 9.2).[2]

Schedule

The schedule of each round was as follows.[1][3]

Round Match date
Preliminary round 1 14 January 2020
Preliminary round 2 21 January 2020
Play-off round 28 January 2020

Bracket

The bracket of the qualifying play-offs for each region was determined based on the association ranking of each team, with the team from the higher-ranked association hosting the match.[4] Teams from the same association could not be placed into the same tie. The eight winners of the play-off round (four each from both West Region and East Region) advanced to the group stage to join the 24 direct entrants. All losers in each round from associations with only play-off slots entered the AFC Cup group stage.

Play-off West 1
Preliminary round 1 Preliminary round 2 Play-off round
     
             
             
          Al-Ain 1
          Bunyodkor 0
        Bunyodkor 4
        Al-Zawraa 1    
     

Play-off West 2
Preliminary round 1 Preliminary round 2 Play-off round
     
             
             
          Al-Ahli 1
          Istiklol 0
        Lokomotiv Tashkent 0
        Istiklol 1    
     

Play-off West 3
Preliminary round 1 Preliminary round 2 Play-off round
     
             
             
          Al-Sailiya 0 (4)
          Shahr Khodro (p) 0 (5)
        Shahr Khodro 2
Chennai City 0     Al-Riffa 1    
Al-Riffa 1  

Play-off West 4
Preliminary round 1 Preliminary round 2 Play-off round
     
             
             
          Al-Rayyan 0
          Esteghlal 5
        Esteghlal 3
Al-Faisaly 1     Al-Kuwait 0    
Al-Kuwait (a.e.t.) 2  

Play-off East 1
Preliminary round 1 Preliminary round 2 Play-off round
     
             
             
          FC Seoul 4
          Kedah 1
        Kedah 5
        Tai Po 1    
     

Play-off East 2
Preliminary round 1 Preliminary round 2 Play-off round
     
             
             
          Shanghai SIPG 3
          Buriram United 0
        Buriram United 2
        Hồ Chí Minh City 1    
     

Play-off East 3
Preliminary round 1 Preliminary round 2 Play-off round
     
             
             
          FC Tokyo 2
          Ceres–Negros 0
        Port 0
Ceres–Negros 3     Ceres–Negros 1    
Shan United 2  

Play-off East 4
Preliminary round 1 Preliminary round 2 Play-off round
     
             
             
          Kashima Antlers 0
          Melbourne Victory 1
        Melbourne Victory 5
Tampines Rovers 3     Bali United 0    
Bali United (a.e.t.) 5  

Preliminary round 1

Summary

A total of eight teams played in the preliminary round 1.

Team 1  Score  Team 2
West Region
Chennai City 0–1 Al-Riffa
Al-Faisaly 1–2 (a.e.t.) Al-Kuwait
Team 1  Score  Team 2
East Region
Ceres–Negros 3–2 Shan United
Tampines Rovers 3–5 (a.e.t.) Bali United

West Region
Chennai City 0–1 Al-Riffa
Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 1,227
Referee: Sherzod Kasimov (Uzbekistan)
Al-Faisaly 1–2 (a.e.t.) Al-Kuwait
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 54
Referee: Yusuke Araki (Japan)

East Region
Ceres–Negros 3–2 Shan United
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 3,704
Referee: Ali Al-Samahiji (Bahrain)
Tampines Rovers 3–5 (a.e.t.) Bali United
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 1,400
Referee: Ahmad Yacoub Ibrahim (Jordan)

Preliminary round 2

Summary

A total of 16 teams played in the preliminary round 2: twelve teams which entered in this round, and the four winners of the preliminary round 1.

Team 1  Score  Team 2
West Region
Bunyodkor 4–1 Al-Zawraa
Lokomotiv Tashkent 0–1 Istiklol
Shahr Khodro 2–1 Al-Riffa
Esteghlal 3–0 Al-Kuwait
Team 1  Score  Team 2
East Region
Kedah 5–1 Tai Po
Buriram United 2–1 Hồ Chí Minh City
Port 0–1 Ceres–Negros
Melbourne Victory 5–0 Bali United

West Region
Bunyodkor 4–1 Al-Zawraa
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 594
Lokomotiv Tashkent 0–1 Istiklol
Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 4,256
Referee: Hussein Abo Yehia (Lebanon)
Shahr Khodro 2–1 Al-Riffa
 Live Report
Stats Report
  • Saeid  35'
Attendance: 50
Referee: Kim Dae-yong (South Korea)

East Region
Kedah 5–1 Tai Po
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 19,803
Referee: Saoud Al-Adba (Qatar)
Buriram United 2–1 Hồ Chí Minh City
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 14,190
Referee: Nivon Robesh Gamini (Sri Lanka)
Port 0–1 Ceres–Negros
Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 6,234
Referee: Yu Ming-hsun (Chinese Taipei)
Melbourne Victory 5–0 Bali United
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 5,387
Referee: Mohammed Al-Hoish (Saudi Arabia)

Play-off round

Summary

A total of 16 teams played in the play-off round: eight teams which entered in this round, and the eight winners of the preliminary round 2.

Team 1  Score  Team 2
West Region
Al-Ain 1–0 Bunyodkor
Al-Ahli 1–0 Istiklol
Al-Sailiya 0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–5 p)		 Shahr Khodro
Al-Rayyan 0–5 Esteghlal
Team 1  Score  Team 2
East Region
FC Seoul 4–1 Kedah
Shanghai SIPG 3–0 Buriram United
FC Tokyo 2–0 Ceres–Negros
Kashima Antlers 0–1 Melbourne Victory

West Region
Al-Ain 1–0 Bunyodkor
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 4,424
Al-Ahli 1–0 Istiklol
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 10,942
Al-Rayyan 0–5 Esteghlal
Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 1,811
Referee: Minoru Tōjō (Japan)

East Region
FC Seoul 4–1 Kedah
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 5,373
Referee: Omar Al-Yaqoubi (Oman)
Shanghai SIPG 3–0 Buriram United
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 1[note 5]
Referee: Aziz Asimov (Uzbekistan)
FC Tokyo 2–0 Ceres–Negros
 Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 6,630
Referee: Masoud Tufayelieh (Syria)
Kashima Antlers 0–1 Melbourne Victory
Live Report
Stats Report
Attendance: 4,275

Notes
  1. The identity of the second play-off team from Japan was not known at the time of the group stage draw.
  2. Chennai City played their home match at The Arena, Ahmedabad, instead of their regular home stadium Nehru Stadium, Coimbatore.
  3. The match between Bunyodkor and Al-Zawraa, originally to be played on 21 January 2020, was re-scheduled to 22 January 2020, to avoid a clash with the match between Lokomotiv Tashkent and Istiklol, also to be played in Tashkent, on the same day.[5]
  4. The Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran received a letter from the Asian Football Confederation on 17 January 2020 announcing that teams from Iran would not be allowed to host their home matches in their country due to security concerns.[6][7] The four AFC Champions League teams from Iran announced on 18 January 2020 that they would withdraw from the tournament if the ban was not reversed.[8][9] As a result, the two preliminary round 2 matches which the Iranian teams were supposed to host, Shahr Khodro against Al-Riffa and Esteghlal against Al-Kuwait, were not played as scheduled on 21 January 2020 (at 16:20 UTC+3:30 at Imam Reza Stadium, Mashhad and at 18:00 UTC+3:30 at Azadi Stadium, Tehran respectively), and the AFC announced on 22 January 2020 that the matches were re-scheduled to 25 January 2020 in the United Arab Emirates.[10][11]
  5. The match between Shanghai SIPG and Buriram United was played without spectators due to the COVID-19 pandemic in China.[12][13]

References
  1. "AFC Competitions Calendar 2020". AFC. 6 December 2019.
  2. "2020 AFC Champions League Competition Regulations" (PDF). Asian Football Confederation.
  3. "AFC Champions League 2020 Official Match Schedule". AFC.
  4. "AFC Champions League 2020 At A Glance". AFC.
  5. "«Ал Завра»га қарши ўйин ҳақида". FC Bunyodkor. 11 January 2020.
  6. "اطلاعیه روابط عمومی". Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran. 17 January 2020.
  7. "Another blow to Iranian sport as AFC ban country from hosting Champions League football". Inside The Games. 17 January 2020.
  8. "Iranian football teams stand against AFC's decision". Tehran Times. 18 January 2020.
  9. "Iran: 'Clubs to quit AFC Champions League over home game ban'". BBC Sport. 18 January 2020.
  10. "AFC Statement". AFC. 22 January 2020.
  11. "AFC moves Champions League matches out of Iran". Reuters. 22 January 2020.
  12. "官方：上港的亚冠资格赛将在大年初四正常举行，比赛将空场" (in Chinese). Dongqiudi. 25 January 2020.
  13. "Shanghai SIPG FC AFC Champions League Preliminary Round match". AFC. 26 January 2020.
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