Venues for AFC Champions League 2021 group stage announced
The AFC has finally announced the venues that will host the Champions League group stage fixtures following consultation with member associations and stakeholders.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has announced the venues set to host the Champions League group stage matches, with Western region matches scheduled between 14-30 April to be played in Saudi Arabia, UAE, and India.
Saudi Arabia will host the games of groups A and C in Riyadh, along with group D matches in Jeddah. Sharjah in the UAE is set to be the venue for group B games, while group E games will be staged in India.
Venues for the Eastern region
In the Eastern region, the AFC has decided to postpone the Group Stage matches initially scheduled for April 21 - May 7 to June/July 2021, due to the existing travel restrictions and quarantine challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Thailand has been selected to be the venue for the fixtures of the Eastern region's groups F, G, and J, whereas the matches of groups H and I, as well as the exact dates for all Groups will be decided and communicated in due course. The Preliminary and Playoff ties of the AFC Champions League 2021 (East) have been also postponed and are planned to be staged in with the centralization system.
Dato’ Windsor John, the AFC General Secretary, thanked all member associations on behalf of the AFC for showing interest in hosting the event and the commitment they showed to help facilitate the organization of the event.
“The AFC is most grateful for the support of the AFC Competitions Committee and our commercial partners and we will continue to safeguard the interests of all stakeholders as we strive to ensure a safe and successful 2021 club football season,” Windsor John noted.