2018_AFC_Cup_qualifying_play-offs
2018 AFC Cup qualifying play-offs
Asia football competition
The 2018 AFC Cup qualifying play-offs were played from 22 January to 20 February 2018.[1] A total of 13 teams competed in the qualifying play-offs to decide five of the 36 places in the group stage of the 2018 AFC Cup.[2]
The following 13 teams, split into five zones (West Asia Zone, Central Asia Zone, South Asia Zone, ASEAN Zone, East Asia Zone), entered the qualifying play-offs, consisting of two rounds:
- 6 teams entered in the preliminary round.
- 7 teams entered in the play-off round.
| Zone | Teams entering in play-off round | Teams entering in preliminary round |
|---|---|---|
| West Asia Zone | ||
| Central Asia Zone | ||
| South Asia Zone | ||
| ASEAN Zone | ||
| East Asia Zone |
In the qualifying play-offs, each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. The away goals rule, extra time (away goals do not apply in extra time) and penalty shoot-out were used to decide the winner if necessary (Regulations Article 9.3). The five winners of the play-off round advanced to the group stage to join the 31 direct entrants.[2]
The schedule of each round was as follows (W: West Asia Zone; C: Central Asia Zone; S: South Asia Zone; A: ASEAN Zone; E: East Asia Zone).[1]
| Round | W | A | C, S, E | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First leg | Second leg | First leg | Second leg | First leg | Second leg | |
| Preliminary round | Not played | 23 January 2018 | 30 January 2018 | |||
| Play-off round | 22 January 2018 | 29 January 2018 | 29 January 2018 | 2 February 2018 | 13 February 2018 | 20 February 2018 |
The bracket of the qualifying play-offs for each zone was determined by the AFC based on the association ranking of each team, with the team from the higher-ranked association hosting the second leg.[5]
Play-off West Asia
| Play-off round | |||||
 Hilal Al-Quds
| 0 | 1 | 1 | ||
 Al-Suwaiq
| 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
Play-off Central Asia
| Preliminary round | Play-off round | ||||||||||
 Dordoi
| 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||
 Ahal
| 3 | 2 | 5 | ||||||||
| Ahal
| 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||
 Khujand
| 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
Play-off South Asia
| Preliminary round | Play-off round | ||||||||||
 Saif
| 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
 TC Sports
| 1 | 3 | 4 | ||||||||
| TC Sports
| 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||
 Bengaluru
| 3 | 5 | 8 | ||||||||
 Transport United
| 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| Bengaluru
| 0 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||
Play-off ASEAN
Boeung Ket Angkor advanced to Group F.
| Play-off round | |||||
 Boeung Ket Angkor
| 3 | 1 | 4 | ||
 Lao Toyota
| 3 | 0 | 3 | ||
Play-off East Asia
| Play-off round | |||||
 Erchim
| 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
 Hwaebul
| 4 | 3 | 7 | ||
Summary
A total of six teams played in the preliminary round.
Central Asia Zone
Ahal won 5–3 on aggregate.
South Asia Zone
| Bengaluru | 3–0 | Transport United |
|---|---|---|
|
Stats Report |
Bengaluru won 3–0 on aggregate.
TC Sports won 4–1 on aggregate.
Summary
A total of 10 teams played in the play-off round: seven teams which entered in this round, and three winners of the preliminary round.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hilal Al-Quds |
1–2 | Al-Suwaiq |
0–1 | 1–1 |
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahal |
3–0 | Khujand |
1–0 | 2–0 |
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TC Sports |
2–8 | Bengaluru |
2–3 | 0–5 |
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boeung Ket Angkor |
4–3 | Lao Toyota |
3–3 | 1–0 |
West Asia Zone
| Hilal Al-Quds | 0–1 | Al-Suwaiq |
|---|---|---|
| Stats Report |
|
| Al-Suwaiq | 1–1 | Hilal Al-Quds |
|---|---|---|
|
Stats Report |
|
Al-Suwaiq won 2–1 on aggregate.
Central Asia Zone
Ahal won 3–0 on aggregate.
South Asia Zone
Bengaluru won 8–2 on aggregate.
ASEAN Zone
Boeung Ket Angkor won 4–3 on aggregate.
East Asia Zone
| Erchim | 0–4 | Hwaebul |
|---|---|---|
| Stats Report |
|
| Hwaebul | 3–0 | Erchim |
|---|---|---|
|
Stats Report |
Hwaebul won 7–0 on aggregate.
- The identity of the play-off teams from Turkmenistan, Bangladesh and Cambodia was not known at the time of the group stage draw.
- On 14 December 2017, the AFC announced that Lao Toyota, the play-off team from Laos, were ruled ineligible to play in the 2018 AFC Cup due to match manipulation during the 2015 and 2016 AFC Cup.[3] Lao Toyota appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), and on 17 January 2018, CAS ruled Lao Toyota would be eligible to participate.[4]
- "AFC Competitions Calendar 2018". AFC. 11 January 2018.
- "2018 AFC Cup Competition Regulations" (PDF). AFC.
- "Lao Toyota FC ineligible for AFC Cup 2018 because of match manipulation". AFC. 14 December 2017.
- "AFC Cup 2018 draw confirmed". AFC. 6 December 2017.
- AFC Cup, the-AFC.com
- AFC Cup 2018, stats.the-AFC.com