The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has approved the “Olympic” stadium in Ashgabat as the home venue for Turkmenistan's “Arkadag” for the first leg of the AFC Champions League Round of 16 tie against Saudi Arabia's “Al-Nassr”, the organization's press service reported.

The Ashgabat Olympic stadium, with a capacity of 45 thousand spectators, is the largest sports venue in Central Asia. The arena was built for the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games. The upcoming match will be the stadium's first official football match.

Until now, “Arkadag” had been playing its home matches at its eponymous stadium in Arkadag, which has a capacity of 10 thousand.

The AFC also decided to postpone matches involving Iranian clubs. The matches involving “Sepahan” and “Esteghlal” will be held at neutral venues; the exact locations will be announced later.

AFC Champions League Round of 16 Match Schedule:

West Zone:

“Arkadag” (Turkmenistan) vs. “Al-Nasr” (Saudi Arabia)

“Al-Zawraa” (Iraq) vs. “Al-Wasl” (UAE)

“Sepahan” (Iran) vs. “Al-Ahli” (Qatar)

“Esteghlal” (Iran) vs. “Al-Hussein” (Jordan)

East Zone:

“Pohang Steelers” (Republic of Korea) vs. “Gamba Osaka” (Japan)

“Ratchaburi” (Thailand) vs. “Persib Bandung” (Indonesia)

“Bangkok United” (Thailand) vs. “Macarthur” (Australia)

“Cong An Hanoi” (Vietnam) vs. “Tampines Rovers” (Singapore)

The tournament regulations provide for substantial bonuses for playoff participants. Clubs will receive 160 thousand USD for reaching the quarterfinals, and 240 thousand USD for reaching the semifinals. The tournament finalist is guaranteed 1 million USD, and the AFC Champions League II winner will earn 2,5 million USD.

Earlier, the Ashgabat mayor's office announced the launch of online ticket sales for the upcoming game on the official website www.ashgabat.gov.tm.