List of Asian Club Championship and AFC Champions League finals
AFC Champions League trophy
Founded1967
RegionAsia (AFC)
Number of teams40 (group stage)
2 (finalists)
Current championsJapan Urawa Red Diamonds (3rd title)
Most successful club(s)Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal (4 titles)
2023–24 AFC Champions League

The AFC Champions League is a seasonal association football competition that was established in 1967. It begins in January or February and ends with the finals in November of the same year. The AFC Champions League is open to the league champions and cup winners of Asian Football Confederation member associations, as well as to the clubs finishing in second and third position in the stronger leagues of each zone. Prior to the 2002–03 season, the tournament was named the Asian Club Championship.[1] Originally, only the champions of their respective national league and the defending champion of the competition were allowed to participate. However, this was changed in 2002 to allow the national cup winners to compete as well.

Al-Hilal hold the record for the most victories, with four wins since the competition's inception. Thai Farmers Bank, Pohang Steelers, Suwon Samsung Bluewings and Al-Ittihad are the four teams that managed to win the competition consecutively. Al-Hilal has contested the most finals, nine, winning four and losing five, while Al-Ahli, FC Seoul and Persepolis are the only three clubs to reach the finals more than once without winning. Overall, 24 clubs have won the competition since its inception in 1967. Clubs from South Korea have won the most titles with twelve. Japanese clubs are second with eight, and Saudi Arabian clubs are third with six wins. The current champions are Urawa Red Diamonds, who beat Al-Hilal 2–1 on aggregate in the 2022 edition.

List of finals

Key
# Finals not played
‡ Ties decided on away goals
† Matches won after extra time
* Matches decided on penalties
Asian Champion Club Tournament era (1967–1972)
Year Winners Score Runners-up Venue Attendance
1967 Hapoel Tel Aviv Israel 2–1 Malaysia Selangor Supachalasai National Stadium, Bangkok
1969 Maccabi Tel Aviv Israel 1–0† South Korea Yangzee FC Supachalasai National Stadium, Bangkok
1970 Taj Tehran Iran 2–1 Israel Hapoel Tel Aviv Amjadieh Stadium, Tehran 35,000[3]
1971 Maccabi Tel Aviv Israel w/o[A]# Iraq Aliyat Al-Shorta Supachalasai National Stadium, Bangkok
1972 Cancelled
Asian Club Championship era (1985–2002)
1985–86 Daewoo Royals South Korea 3–1† Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium, Jeddah
1986 Furukawa Electric Japan RR[B] Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal N/A
Year Home team Score Away team Venue Attendance
1987 Al-Hilal Saudi Arabia w/o Japan Yomiuri FC Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, Riyadh N/A
Yomiuri FC Japan w/o Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal Ajinomoto Field Nishigaoka, Tokyo N/A
Yomiuri FC won the title.[C]#
1988–89 Al-Rasheed Iraq 3–2 Qatar Al-Sadd Al-Shaab Stadium, Baghdad 10,000
Al-Sadd Qatar 1–0 Iraq Al-Rasheed Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Doha 5,000
Al-Sadd won 3–3 on away goals.‡
1989–90 Nissan Yokohama FC Japan 1–2 China Liaoning Mitsuzawa Stadium, Yokohama
Liaoning China 1–1 Japan Nissan Yokohama FC Tiexi New District Sports Center, Shenyang
Liaoning won 3–2 on aggregate.
Year Winners Score Runners-up Venue Attendance
1990–91 Esteghlal Iran 2–1 China Liaoning Bangabandhu National Stadium, Dhaka
1991 Al-Hilal Saudi Arabia 1–1*[D] Iran Esteghlal Khalifa International Stadium, Doha
1992–93 PAS Tehran Iran 1–0 Saudi Arabia Al-Shabab Al Ahli Stadium, Manama
1993–94 Thai Farmers Bank Thailand 2–1 Oman Oman Club Supachalasai National Stadium, Bangkok
1994–95 Thai Farmers Bank Thailand 1–0 Qatar Al-Arabi Supachalasai National Stadium, Bangkok
1995 Ilhwa Chunma South Korea 1–0† Saudi Arabia Al-Nassr King Fahd Stadium, Riyadh
1996–97 Pohang Steelers South Korea 2–1† South Korea Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma Bukit Jalil National Stadium, Kuala Lumpur
1997–98 Pohang Steelers South Korea 0–0*[E] China Dalian Wanda Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong
1998–99 Júbilo Iwata Japan 2–1 Iran Esteghlal Azadi Stadium, Tehran 121,000[4]
1999–2000 Al-Hilal Saudi Arabia 3–2† Japan Júbilo Iwata King Fahd Stadium, Riyadh 40,000
2000–01 Suwon Samsung Bluewings South Korea 1–0 Japan Júbilo Iwata Suwon World Cup Stadium, Suwon
2001–02 Suwon Samsung Bluewings South Korea 0–0*[F] South Korea Anyang LG Cheetahs Azadi Stadium, Tehran
AFC Champions League era (2002–present)
Year Home team Score Away team Venue Attendance
2002–03 Al-Ain United Arab Emirates 2–0 Thailand BEC Tero Sasana Tahnoun Bin Mohamed Stadium, Al Ain
BEC Tero Sasana Thailand 1–0 United Arab Emirates Al-Ain Rajamangala Stadium, Bangkok
Al-Ain won 2–1 on aggregate.
2004 Al-Ittihad Saudi Arabia 1–3 South Korea Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium, Jeddah
Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma South Korea 0–5 Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad Seongnam Stadium, Seongnam
Al-Ittihad won 6–3 on aggregate.
2005 Al-Ain United Arab Emirates 1–1 Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad Tahnoun Bin Mohamed Stadium, Al Ain
Al-Ittihad Saudi Arabia 4–2 United Arab Emirates Al-Ain Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium, Jeddah
Al-Ittihad won 5–3 on aggregate.
2006 Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors South Korea 2–0 Syria Al-Karamah Jeonju World Cup Stadium, Jeonju 25,830
Al-Karamah Syria 2–1 South Korea Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors Khaled bin Walid Stadium, Homs 40,000
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors won 3–2 on aggregate.
2007 Sepahan Iran 1–1 Japan Urawa Red Diamonds Foolad Shahr Stadium, Fuladshahr 30,000
Urawa Red Diamonds Japan 2–0 Iran Sepahan Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama 59,034
Urawa Red Diamonds won 3–1 on aggregate.
2008 Gamba Osaka Japan 3–0 Australia Adelaide United Osaka Expo '70 Stadium, Suita, Osaka 21,000[5]
Adelaide United Australia 0–2 Japan Gamba Osaka Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide 17,000[6]
Gamba Osaka won 5–0 on aggregate.
Year Winners Score Runners-up Venue Attendance
2009 Pohang Steelers South Korea 2–1 Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad National Stadium, Tokyo 25,743[7]
2010 Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma South Korea 3–1 Iran Zob Ahan National Stadium, Tokyo 27,308[8]
2011 Al-Sadd Qatar 2–2*[G] South Korea Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors Jeonju World Cup Stadium, Jeonju 41,805[9]
2012 Ulsan Hyundai South Korea 3–0 Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium, Ulsan 42,153[10]
Year Home team Score Away team Venue Attendance
2013 FC Seoul South Korea 2–2 China Guangzhou Evergrande Seoul World Cup Stadium, Seoul 55,501[11]
Guangzhou Evergrande China 1–1 South Korea FC Seoul Tianhe Stadium, Guangzhou 55,847[12]
3–3 on aggregate, Guangzhou Evergrande won on away goals.‡
2014 Western Sydney Wanderers Australia 1–0 Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal Parramatta Stadium, Sydney 20,053[13]
Al-Hilal Saudi Arabia 0–0 Australia Western Sydney Wanderers King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh 66,225[14]
Western Sydney Wanderers won 1–0 on aggregate.
2015 Al-Ahli United Arab Emirates 0–0 China Guangzhou Evergrande Al-Rashid Stadium, Dubai 9,480[15]
Guangzhou Evergrande China 1–0 United Arab Emirates Al-Ahli Tianhe Stadium, Guangzhou 42,499[16]
Guangzhou Evergrande won 1–0 on aggregate.
2016 Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors South Korea 2–1 United Arab Emirates Al-Ain Jeonju World Cup Stadium, Jeonju 36,158[17]
Al-Ain United Arab Emirates 1–1 South Korea Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain 23,239[18]
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors won 3–2 on aggregate.
2017 Al-Hilal Saudi Arabia 1–1 Japan Urawa Red Diamonds King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh 59,136[19]
Urawa Red Diamonds Japan 1–0 Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama 57,727[20]
Urawa Red Diamonds won 2–1 on aggregate.
2018 Kashima Antlers Japan 2–0 Iran Persepolis Kashima Soccer Stadium, Kashima 35,022[21]
Persepolis Iran 0–0 Japan Kashima Antlers Azadi Stadium, Tehran 100,000[22][23]
Kashima Antlers won 2–0 on aggregate.
2019 Al-Hilal Saudi Arabia 1–0 Japan Urawa Red Diamonds King Saud University Stadium, Riyadh 22,549[24]
Urawa Red Diamonds Japan 0–2 Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama 58,109[25]
Al-Hilal won 3–0 on aggregate.
Year Winners Score Runners-up Venue Attendance
2020 Ulsan Hyundai South Korea 2–1 Iran Persepolis Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah 8,517[26]
2021 Al-Hilal Saudi Arabia 2–0 South Korea Pohang Steelers King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh 50,171[27]
Year Home team Score Away team Venue Attendance
2022 Al-Hilal Saudi Arabia 1–1 Japan Urawa Red Diamonds King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh 50,881[28]
Urawa Red Diamonds Japan 1–0 Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama 53,574[29]
Urawa Red Diamonds won 2–1 on aggregate.

Performances

By club

Performances in the Asian Club Championship and AFC Champions League by club
Club 		Title(s) Runners-up Seasons won Seasons runner-up
Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal 4 5 1991, 1999–2000, 2019, 2021 1986, 1987, 2014, 2017, 2022
South Korea Pohang Steelers 3 1 1996–97, 1997–98, 2009 2021
Japan Urawa Red Diamonds 3 1 2007, 2017, 2022 2019
Iran Esteghlal 2 2 1970, 1990–91 1991, 1998–99
South Korea Seongnam FC 2 2 1995, 2010 1996–97, 2004
Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad 2 1 2004, 2005 2009
South Korea Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors 2 1 2006, 2016 2011
Israel Maccabi Tel Aviv1 2 0 1969, 1971 —
Qatar Al-Sadd 2 0 1988–89, 2011 —
Thailand Thai Farmers Bank2 2 0 1993–94, 1994–95 —
South Korea Suwon Samsung Bluewings 2 0 2000–01, 2001–02 —
South Korea Ulsan HD 2 0 2012, 2020 —
China Guangzhou 2 0 2013, 2015 —
Japan Júbilo Iwata 1 2 1998–99 1999–2000, 2000–01
United Arab Emirates Al-Ain 1 2 2002–03 2005, 2016
Israel Hapoel Tel Aviv1 1 1 1967 1970
China Liaoning2 1 1 1989–90 1990–91
South Korea Busan IPark 1 0 1985–86 —
Japan JEF United Chiba 1 0 1986 —
Japan Tokyo Verdy 1 0 1987 —
Iran PAS Tehran2 1 0 1992–93 —
Japan Gamba Osaka 1 0 2008 —
Australia Western Sydney Wanderers 1 0 2014 —
Japan Kashima Antlers 1 0 2018 —
Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli 0 2 — 1985–86, 2012
South Korea FC Seoul 0 2 — 2001–02, 2013
Iran Persepolis 0 2 — 2018, 2020
Malaysia Selangor 0 1 — 1967
South Korea Yangzee2 0 1 — 1969
Iraq Aliyat Al-Shorta 0 1 — 1971
Iraq Al-Rasheed2 0 1 — 1988–89
Japan Yokohama F. Marinos 0 1 — 1989–90
Saudi Arabia Al-Shabab 0 1 — 1992–93
Oman Oman Club 0 1 — 1993–94
Qatar Al-Arabi 0 1 — 1994–95
Saudi Arabia Al-Nassr 0 1 — 1995
China Dalian Shide2 0 1 — 1997–98
Thailand Police Tero 0 1 — 2002–03
Syria Al-Karamah 0 1 — 2006
Iran Sepahan 0 1 — 2007
Australia Adelaide United 0 1 — 2008
Iran Zob Ahan 0 1 — 2010
United Arab Emirates Shabab Al-Ahli 0 1 — 2015

1 In 1974, the Israel Football Association was expelled from the Asian Football Confederation due to political pressure, and became a full UEFA member in 1994. As a result, Israeli clubs no longer participate in AFC tournaments but in their UEFA counterparts instead.
2 Teams that no longer exist.


By nation

Performances in finals by nation
Nation Titles Runners-up Total
 South Korea 12 7 19
 Japan 8 4 12
 Saudi Arabia 6 10 16
 Iran 3 6 9
 China 3 2 5
 Israel 3 1 4
 Qatar 2 1 3
 Thailand 2 1 3
 United Arab Emirates 1 3 4
 Australia 1 1 2
 Iraq 0 2 2
 Malaysia 0 1 1
 Oman 0 1 1
 Syria 0 1 1

See also

Notes

A. ^ The final was scratched and Maccabi Tel Aviv were awarded the championship after Aliyat Al-Shorta refused to play the Israeli side for political reasons.[30]

B. ^ The championship was decided in a final group round-robin of four teams.

C. ^ The final was scratched and Yomiuri FC were awarded the championship as Al-Hilal was unable to field a team after several of their starting players were selected for the Saudi national team's preparation camp, which clashed with the first leg.[31]

D. ^ Score was 1–1 after 90 minutes and extra time. Al-Hilal won the penalty-shootout 4–3.[32]

E. ^ Score was 0–0 after 90 minutes and extra time. Pohang Steelers won the penalty-shootout 6–5.[33]

F. ^ Score was 0–0 after 90 minutes and extra time. Suwon Samsung Bluewings won the penalty-shootout 4–2.[34]

G. ^ Score was 2–2 after 90 minutes and extra time. Al-Sadd won the penalty-shootout 4–2.[35]

References

  1. ^ "AFC Champions League: The drama, the glory..." the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 17 February 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  2. ^ "AFC Champions League Official Programme". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 27 February 2013.
  3. ^ احمدی, مهدی. "روایتی جذاب از اولین قهرمانی تاج در آسیا/ آقایی در قاره کهن با شکست غولی به نام هاپوئل!". استقلال نیوز (in Persian). Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  4. ^ "رکورد بیشترین تعداد تماشاگر بازی‌های باشگاهی آسیا همچنان در اختیار استقلال". yjc.news (in Persian). Retrieved 14 September 2022.[unreliable source?]
  5. ^ "Gamba Osaka – Adelaide United 3:0 (AFC Champions League 2008, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  6. ^ "Adelaide United – Gamba Osaka 0:2 (AFC Champions League 2008, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  7. ^ "Al Ittihad – Pohang Steelers 1:2 (AFC Champions League 2009, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  8. ^ "Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma – FC Zob Ahan 3:1 (AFC Champions League 2010, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  9. ^ "Jeonbuk FC – Al Sadd 2:4 (AFC Champions League 2011, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  10. ^ "Ulsan Hyundai – Al Ahli SFC 3:0 (AFC Champions League 2012, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  11. ^ "FC Seoul – Guangzhou Evergrande 2:2 (AFC Champions League 2013, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  12. ^ "Guangzhou Evergrande – FC Seoul 1:1 (AFC Champions League 2013, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  13. ^ "Western Sydney Wanderers – Al Hilal 1:0 (AFC Champions League 2014, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  14. ^ "Al Hilal – Western Sydney Wanderers 0:0 (AFC Champions League 2014, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  15. ^ "Al Ahli Dubai – Guangzhou Evergrande 0:0 (AFC Champions League 2015, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  16. ^ "Guangzhou Evergrande – Al Ahli Dubai 1:0 (AFC Champions League 2015, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  17. ^ "Jeonbuk FC – Al Ain FC 2:1 (AFC Champions League 2016, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  18. ^ "Al Ain FC – Jeonbuk FC 1:1 (AFC Champions League 2016, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  19. ^ "Al Hilal – Urawa Red Diamonds 1:1 (AFC Champions League 2017, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  20. ^ "Urawa Red Diamonds – Al Hilal 1:0 (AFC Champions League 2017, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  21. ^ "Kashima Antlers – Persepolis 2:0 (AFC Champions League 2018, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  22. ^ "Persepolis – Kashima Antlers 0:0 (AFC Champions League 2018, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  23. ^ "Match Report of Persepolis FC vs Kashima Antlers". globalsportsarchive.com. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  24. ^ "Al Hilal – Urawa Red Diamonds 1:0 (AFC Champions League 2019, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  25. ^ "Urawa Red Diamonds – Al Hilal 0:2 (AFC Champions League 2019, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  26. ^ "Persepolis – Ulsan Hyundai 1:2 (AFC Champions League 2020, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  27. ^ "Al Hilal – Pohang Steelers 2:0 (AFC Champions League 2021, Final)". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  28. ^ "Final – 1st Leg: Urawa Reds fight back to hold Al Hilal". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 29 April 2023. Archived from the original on 29 April 2023. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
  29. ^ "Urawa Reds edge Al Hilal for historic third title". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 6 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  30. ^ "Champions' Cup 1971". RSSSF. 26 December 2000. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  31. ^ "الزعيم تاريخ عريق من الانتصارات الآسيوية". al-jazirah.com (in Arabic). 7 March 2001. Archived from the original on 11 April 2020. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  32. ^ "Champions' Cup 1991/92". RSSSF. 2 August 2004. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  33. ^ "Champions' Cup 1997/98". RSSSF. 16 October 2014. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  34. ^ "Champions' Cup 2001/02". RSSSF. 17 March 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  35. ^ "Going the distance: A look back at the 2011 ACL final". the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. 3 November 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
Categories