New ASEAN Club Championship launched with 14 top regional football clubs set to vie for annual honours
Competition to be named Shopee Cup, and will feature league champions of Southeast Asia as well as cup winners or league runners-up
The ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) has launched a inaugural ASEAN Club Championship on Thursday (4 April), with 14 of ASEAN's leading clubs set to compete in the brand new tournament.
The competition will be named the Shopee Cup, after the online marketplace Shopee was announced as the presenting partner of AFF's major ASEAN championships.
"The Shopee Cup will be pivotal in creating an exciting future for ASEAN club football and transforming the game in the region," said AFF president Khiev Sameth during the inauguration ceremony at Raffles Hotel in Singapore.
"This landmark tournament will nurture the aspiration for the region’s leading clubs to become the ASEAN champion and to perform successfully in Asia."
Format of the Shopee Cup
The Shopee Cup is set to be an annual tournament, to be played in a league format with qualifying play-offs and a group stage, with the 14 clubs competing in 40 matches from 17 July to 21 May next year.
It is set to feature league champions and cup winners or runners-up of Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam (two teams per country). For the Philippines and Singapore, they will provide only the league-winning teams for the group stage.
Meanwhile, the league champions from Brunei, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar will compete for two group-stage places via a qualifying play-off round.
The 12 clubs will be drawn into two groups, and the 30 group-stage matches will be played on a home or away basis over five matchdays. The first- and second-placed teams of each group will advance into the semi-finals. The semi-finals and final will be played on a home-and-away basis.
Further details about the competition format, the season schedule and participating clubs will be revealed at the official draw to be held in the first week of May.
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