OFFICIAL: AFC Announces Exciting News for Vietnamese Football

AFC expands the Champions League Elite to 32 teams starting from the 2026/27 season, granting Vietnamese football its first-ever playoff spot, opening up the opportunity to participate in the continent's most prestigious competition.

Vietnamese football has just received positive signals from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) as the chance to participate in the continent's most prestigious club-level competition becomes increasingly clear.

Specifically, starting from the 2026/27 season, AFC has decided to expand the number of participating teams in the AFC Champions League Elite to 32 clubs, instead of the previous 24. Both the East Asia and West Asia regions will have 16 slots, creating opportunities for more football nations to participate in the top-tier arena.

Notably, in this new allocation, Vietnam has officially been awarded one playoff participation slot. This is a significant step forward, opening the door for V.League representatives to compete for a ticket into the group stage of the continent's "super competition."

Moreover, being included in the slot allocation list also demonstrates AFC's recognition of the development efforts of V.League 1 in recent years. Vietnam's top league has become one of the few Southeast Asian national leagues to have representatives competing for a ticket to this prestigious event.

Previously, since the competition was restructured and renamed AFC Champions League Elite starting from the 2024/25 season, only two clubs from Southeast Asia have ever participated in the group stage: Johor Darul Ta'zim (Malaysia) and Buriram United (Thailand). This further highlights the fierce competitiveness of the tournament.

Although starting from the playoff round, this is still considered a historic opportunity for Vietnamese clubs to assert their position and narrow the gap with the continent's top football nations. In the context of V.League teams having improved significantly in both professional quality and international competition experience, this ticket brings expectations for a new breakthrough.

If the opportunity is well utilized, Vietnamese football could indeed make its first-ever mark at the continent's most prestigious club-level competition, where the strongest teams from the region gather.