Increasing the number of Emirati club seats in the AFC Champions League

The Asian Football Confederation adopted a new package of amendments to club competitions, during the second meeting of the Professional Football Committee held in Jeddah, headed by South Korean Park Ji-sung, as part of a comprehensive development plan aimed at enhancing professional standards and raising the level of continental competitions.

The meeting witnessed the approval of amendments to the regulations for entering club competitions (version 2025) and licensing regulations (version 2024), in addition to the adoption of updated versions for the 2026 season, in a step that reflects the AFC’s approach to developing the organizational structure of competitions on the continent level.
In the most notable changes, the AFC decided to increase the number of elite AFC Champions League clubs from 24 to 32 teams, starting from the 2026-2027 season, in addition to redistributing the seats of the national federations, in line with the rapid growth of Asian football.
In this context, the AFC revealed through its official website the distribution of club seats, as the UAE obtained 5 continental seats, with 3 direct seats in the AFC Champions League for the elite, in addition to a seat in the qualifying rounds, in addition to a direct seat in the AFC Champions League 2, after last season there were 3 direct seats for the elite and one for the AFC Champions League 2.
This distribution confirms the continued presence of Emirati football among the Asian elite, in light of the competition with the most prominent federations, especially with the new system that gives clubs greater opportunities for continental participation.
The amendments also included a mandatory application of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology in the local leagues of the federations participating in the elite AFC Champions League, starting from the 2027-2028 season, as part of new eligibility criteria aimed at raising the quality of arbitration and enhancing competitive justice.
The updates also included reorganizing the standards of local competitions, setting the minimum number of matches for clubs, in addition to creating an additional opportunity for the AFC Challenge League runner-up to participate in the AFC Champions League 2 through the preliminary round.
The committee reviewed reports on the number of participants in club competitions for the 2025-2026 season, in addition to the progress of work on the club competitions evaluation report, expected to be issued in August 2026, in addition to updates to local players’ regulations, licensing systems, and stadium management development initiatives.
It is expected that all decisions will be presented to the Executive Office of the AFC for final approval, before being officially circulated to the national federations during the coming period.