FOOTBALL – BAHRAIN’S Muharraq and Al Khaldiya were yesterday drawn in a pair of tough groups for the preliminary round of the 2025-26 AFC Champions League (ACL) Two.
The tournament’s official draw ceremony was conducted by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) at InterContinental Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, with former Muharraq and Bahrain national team star Mahmood Abdulrahman selected by the AFC as a draw assistant. He was tasked to pick the clubs from the pots featuring the ACL Two’s West Asian sides.
Abdulrahman was part of the Muharraq team that clinched the ACL Two title in 2008, when the tournament was known as the AFC Cup. Muharraq, who also clinched the crown in 2021, are the only former winners competing this season, which is the second year in a row the competition is being held in its current format.
Attending yesterday’s draw as representatives of Muharraq were club officials Mohammed Ebrahim Yassine and Abdulla Yousef Abdulla, while present for Khaldiya were officials Jumaa Al Mahmood and Batool Al Sayed Abdulla.
The ACL Two is the second-tier club championship of the AFC – one level below the AFC Champions League Elite and one above the AFC Challenge League.
Muharraq and Khaldiya are amongst a 32-strong cast representing 22 member associations from across the continent who will be playing in a home-and-away round-robin format, starting on September 16.
Muharraq were drawn in Group A alongside Al Wasl FC of the UAE, Esteghlal FC of Iran, and Al Wehdat of Jordan. Khaldiya, meanwhile, are in Group B, which features Al Ahli SC of Qatar, PFC Andijon of Uzbekistan, and FC Arkadag of Turkmenistan.
Both groups are part of the ACL Two’s West Asia region, which also features Foolad Mobarakeh Sepahan SC of Iran, Al Hussein of Jordan, Mohun Bagan Super Giant of India, and Ahal FC of Turkmenistan in Group C; and Al Nassr Club of Saudi Arabia, Al Zawraa SC of Iraq, FC Istiklol of Tajikistan, and FC Goa of India in Group D.
Groups E to H feature four East Asian clubs apiece. They are from China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, South Korea, the Philippines, and Australia.
The ACL Two group stage is scheduled to continue until December 24 before moving into the round of 16 between February 10 and 19 in 2026. The quarter-finals and semis will then be held in March and April, respectively, with the final pencilled in for May 16.
Muharraq earned their spot in this season’s ACL Two as champions of the 2024-25 Nasser Bin Hamad Bahrain Premier League, while Khaldiya have their berth as winners of the 2024-25 His Majesty the King’s Cup.
Muharraq are set to participate in the ACL Two in its new form for the first time, while Khaldiya are returning for a second straight season.
Both Bahraini sides are currently in Izmit, Türkiye, holding training camps ahead of their new domestic campaigns, which get underway next month.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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