The hunt for ultimate success in the AFC Women’s Champions League (AWCL) begins on November 1 when the Group Stage comes to life with the opening matchday.
A cast of 12 contenders will be on show at the third edition of the Continent’s premier women’s club competition and has been split into three groups of four clubs each to contest a single round-robin centralised league that runs until November 7.
Six clubs qualified directly—defending champions Naegohyang Women’s FC and the top-ranked quintet of Melbourne City FC, Hwacheon KSPO WFC, INAC Kobe Leonessa, Beijing Jingtan Football Club and Ho Chi Minh City Women’s FC—and were joined by the six group winners from the Preliminary Stage, which concluded in August.
The trio of Bam Khatoon FC, Ho Chi Minh City and Melbourne City are the only sides to feature in every edition, while five others are making their AFC competition debuts: Hwacheon KSPO, Kobe Leonessa, Beijing Jingtan, 4.25 SC and Ayeyawady FC – Women.
Eight clubs—comprising the three group winners, three group runners-up and two overall best-ranked third placed teams—will advance to the Quarter-finals, which will be played in March 2027 as single-leg ties. The Semi-finals and Final are then contested in a centralised venue in May, where the new queens of Asia will be crowned.
Group A
Myanmar | Thuwunna Stadium, Yangon
INAC Kobe Leonessa ended a four-year wait for a second league trophy in 2025/26 to earn their place here and the Japanese side will face experienced campaigners Bam Khatoon FC. Advancing via the Preliminary Stage from Group E, Iranian heavyweights are making their fifth appearance in AFC competition – the most of any women’s club in Asia. Winners of a 12th league title and fifth in a row—both records—in 2025/26, they will aim to surpass their last-eight finish from 2024/25.
Having become the first women’s club from North Korea to participate in an AFC competition last time out, Naegohyang Women’s FC went on to create more history by emerging as champions. As the only club from the East Asian nation to win a Continental title, the two-time league champions—who finished second last season—kickstart their quest to become the first-ever back-to-back winners against Ayeyawady FC – Women. The hosts cruised through Group F in the preliminaries with a perfect record, scoring 13 times while conceding none to progress. It is the latest achievement for a side that was founded only in 2024 and lifted their maiden league crown in dramatic fashion on the final day, winning 12 of their 16 matches amid an unbeaten 2025/26 campaign.
Group B
India | Kishore Bharati Krirangan Stadium, Kolkata
After the heartbreak of finishing as runners-up in the season before last, Korea’s Hwacheon KSPO FC finally tasted league success for the first time in 2025. Becoming the fourth different side to win the domestic title, their opener comes against 4.25 SC, who surged through Group D in the preliminaries with 29 goals en-route to winning all three matches. They secured a ninth league crown in the most recent domestic campaign—a first since 2022/23—by one point and their qualification makes North Korea the first-ever Member Association with two club representatives in a single AWCL season.
Runs to the Semi-finals and Quarter-finals in the first two AWCL editions have established Ho Chi Minh City Women’s FC as a force in the region to go along with their domestic dominance. Champions for a 14th time and seventh in a row—both records—in 2025, the Vietnamese giants added a fourth cup triumph to complete a double and will start their Continental journey against India’s East Bengal FC, the reigning two-time league champions. The Indian side swept aside their Group A opposition in the Preliminary Stage with 20 goals from three wins to follow up their AWCL debut last season with a second straight appearance.
Group C
Uzbekistan | Markaziy Stadium, Qarshi
A remarkable victory against the leaders in their final league match of 2025 saw Beijing Jingtan Football Club pip their rivals to the crown by one point, which ended a 23-year drought since their second crown in 2002. The China PR outfit take on Kaya FC-Iloilo after the latter topped Group B in the Preliminary Stage via goal difference to lock in a second appearance. Remarkably, the Filipino side also won a second league title on the final day of their 2025 campaign – with a superior goal difference.
Another side that powered through the preliminaries, PFC Nasaf plundered 21 goals and kept shutouts in all three Group C matches to seal consecutive involvements, having reached last season’s Quarter-finals. Domestically, the hosts’ unbeaten league run spans the last four seasons—with 92 wins from 98 games—and they clinched a double in 2025 with a 17th league title and 15th cup triumph – both records. The Uzbekistan club entertain Melbourne City FC of Australia, with the visitors landing both the Grand Final and Premiership in 2025/26 – each for a joint-record fifth occasion. Runners-up in 2024/25 and semi-finalists last season, they will look to go all the way this time around.
