On Thursday, August 24, Kuala Lumpur will host the draw for the group stage of the AFC Champions League-2023/24 in the West and East zones, which will determine the opponents of the Turkmen Ahal. The ceremony will begin at 13:00 Ashgabat time.
According to the results of the draw, ten groups of four teams each will be formed. The group round of the main club tournament in Asia will consist of six rounds and will begin on September 18 and end on December 13. All teams will play three matches at home and away.
It is worth noting that before the draw for the new season of the AFC Champions League, Ahal was in the third pot along with the clubs Al-Faisaly (Jordan), Istiklol (Tajikistan), Mumbai City (India) and Al-Shorta (Iraq). This means that the champion of Turkmenistan will definitely not play with these clubs in the group stage of the tournament.
According to the tournament regulations, according to the results of the group stage, the winners of five groups from each zone, as well as three teams that took second places in their quartets with the best results, will advance to the 1/8 finals of the 2023/24 AFC Champions League.
In the group stage of the Asian Champions League, in particular, Al-Ittihad, Al-Hilal and Al-Nasr from Saudi Arabia will play, which include world football stars - Frenchman Karim Benzema, Brazilian Neymar and Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo. And on a happy occasion, one of them can become a rival of "Ahal".
Pots before the 2023/24 AFC Champions League group stage draw:
Zone West.
- Pot 1: Al-Ittihad (Saudi Arabia), Persepolis (Iran), Al-Sadd (Qatar), Pakhtakor (Uzbekistan), Al-Hilal (Saudi Arabia).
- Pot 2: Sepahan (Iran), Al Duhayl (Qatar), Nasaf (Uzbekistan), Al Feiha (Saudi Arabia), Nassaji Mazandaran (Iran).
- Pot 3: Al-Faisali (Jordan), Istiklol (Tajikistan), Al-Shorta (Iraq), Ahal (Turkmenistan), Mumbai City (India).
- Pot 4: Al-Ain (UAE), Al-Nasr (Saudi Arabia), Sharjah (UAE), AGMK (Uzbekistan), Navbakhor (Uzbekistan).
