Ho Chi Minh City Women's Club with Melbourne City (Australia), Suwon FC Women (Korea), Tokyo Verdy Beleza (Japan), defending champion Wuhan Jiangda Women (China), Bam Khatoon (Iran) and an unknown representative from the UAE will be the teams participating in the AFC Champions League for women 2025-2026 from the group stage, along with the 5 teams with the best results in the preliminary round.
The 2025-2026 season marks a significant development as the number of clubs participating in the tournament increases from 21 (first season) to 26 teams, of which 19 clubs will start from the preliminary round.
5 clubs representing each country participating in the continental competition for the first time include: Cambodia, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Guam, the Republic of Kyrgyzstan and Mongolia.
At the preliminary round draw ceremony held on the afternoon of July 3, 19 teams were divided into 5 groups, including 4 groups of 4 teams and 1 group of 3 teams.
The matches in the preliminary round will take place in a concentrated tournament format from August 23 to August 31, 2025. The five teams with the best results will qualify for the official round of the group stage.
After the end of the preliminary round, a draw will continue to be held in September 2025 for 12 clubs eligible to participate in the group stage of the 2025-2026 AFC Champions League for women, scheduled to roll in November.
