AFC Cup 2015

AFC Cup 2015
Cup winners	Johor Darul Ta'zim FC (1st title)
Beginning	February 9, 2015
final	October 31, 2015
Final stadium	Pamir Stadium
Teams	32 (41 with qualifying rounds)
Games	117  (including 3 criminally verified)
Gates	324  (ø 2.77 per game) (excluding verified games)
spectator	448,832  (ø 3,836 per game) (excluding criminally verified games)
Top scorer	Daniel McBreen ( South China AA ) Riste Naumov ( Ayeyawady United )
yellow cards	341  (ø 2.91 per game)
Yellow and red cards	9  (ø 0.08 per game)
Red cards	9  (ø 0.08 per game)
← AFC Cup 2014 AFC Cup 2016 →
↑ AFC Champions League 2015

The AFC Cup 2015 was the 12th season of the second most important Asian competition for club teams in football after the Champions League since it was founded in the 2004 season . 41 clubs from 23 regional associations took part in the competition.

The season began with the qualifying round on February 9th and ended with the final at Pamir Stadium on October 31st, 2015. There the Johor Darul Ta'zim FC defeated the hosts FC Istiklol 1-0 and was able to win his first title. Defending champion al Qadsia Kuwait had been disqualified by the suspension of the Kuwaiti Football Association after the semi-final first leg.

The top scorer was the Australian Daniel McBreen from South China AA and the Macedonian Riste Naumov from Ayeyawady United with eight goals each. The Malaysian Mohd Safiq Rahim of Johor Darul Ta'zim FC was named the best player of the competition .

Qualified countries

The following allocation of the clubs to the individual qualifying rounds or the group phase was determined from the AFC access list , which is composed after the performance of the respective football association during the last four years in AFC competitions. The clubs are considered to 70 percent and the national teams to 30 percent (maximum 100 points). The following conditions apply to both regions (West and East Asia):

• The associations in positions 7 to 12 of the access list received a qualifying place in the Champions League.
  • If these teams reached the group stage of the Champions League, they were replaced in the AFC Cup by another team from the same association.
  • If these teams did not reach the group stage of the Champions League, they continued to play in the group stage of the AFC Cup.
  • The seventh and eighth placed association also received a direct starting place.
  • The ninth to twelve-placed associations also received a qualification place.
• The associations in places 13 to 16 received a direct starting place and a qualifying place.
• The remaining associations (17th to 23rd place), most of them (possible) participants in the President's Cup to date , were not taken into account.

West asia rank Association member Points Starting places CL qual Group phase qualification region Ges. Play-off Round 1 06th 10  Iraq 47.106 0 2 0 0 07th 11  Kuwait 45.225 1 1 0 0 08th 12  Jordan 44,309 1 1 0 0 09 14th  Oman 30,586 1 0 1 0 10 16  Bahrain 25,547 1 0 1 0 11 17th  Lebanon 25,488 0 1 1 0 12 19th  Syria 22,883 0 1 1 0 13 25th  Palestine 15,911 0 1 0 1 14th 28  Tajikistan 11,761 0 1 0 1 15th 29  Afghanistan 11,464 0 0 0 0 16 30th  Turkmenistan 10,554 0 0 0 2 17th 32  Kyrgyzstan 08,761 0 0 0 1 18th 35  Yemen 05,249 0 0 0 1 19th 36  Sri Lanka 04,071 0 0 0 0 20th 37  Bangladesh 03,643 0 0 0 1 21st 38  Nepal 03,268 0 0 0 1 22nd 39  Pakistan 02,732 0 0 0 0 23 46  Bhutan 00.000 0 0 0 0 Total 4th 8th 4th 8th 12

East asia rank Association member Points Starting places CL qual Group phase qualification region Ges. Play-off Round 1 07th 18th  Indonesia 25.004 1 1 0 0 08th 20th  Hong Kong 20,077 1 1 0 0 09 21st  Myanmar 18,282 1 1 0 0 10 22nd  Malaysia 18,153 1 1 0 0 11 23  India 16,756 1 1 0 0 12 24  Singapore 16.097 1 1 0 0 13 26th  Maldives 15,884 0 1 1 0 14th 27  Philippines 12,268 0 1 1 0 15th 31  North Korea 09,000 0 0 0 0 16 33  Laos 07,554 0 1 0 0 17th 34  Guam 05,946 0 0 0 0 18th 39  East Timor 02,732 0 0 0 0 19th 41  Macau 02,625 0 0 0 0 20th 42  Cambodia 02,464 0 0 0 0 21st 43  Chinese Taipei 02,089 0 0 0 0 22nd 44  Mongolia 01,554 0 0 0 0 23 45  Brunei 00.804 0 0 0 0 Total 6th 9 2 0 2

Remarks

1. ↑ Iraq originally received two qualifying places in the 2015 Champions League. However, since no Iraqi club received a license for this, they were instead allowed to participate directly in the AFC Cup.
2. ↑ ^{a b} Lebanon and Syria each originally received a qualifying place in the 2015 Champions League. However, since none of their clubs received a license for this, they were instead allowed to participate directly in the AFC Cup.
3. ↑ Afghanistan originally received a direct starting place and a qualifying place, but did not send a team.
4. ↑ Turkmenistan originally received a direct starting place and a qualifying place. However, through the participation of Iraq, both teams took part in the qualification.
5. ↑ ^{a b} Kyrgyzstan and Yemen each received a qualifying place through their participation in the AFC Cup 2014 .
6. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g h i j} Participation of associations from Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bhutan, Guam, East Timor, Macau, Cambodia, Chinese Taipei (Taiwan), Mongolia and Brunei was not planned.
7. ↑ ^{a b} Bangladesh and Nepal each received a qualifying place through their performance in the AFC President's Cup 2014 .
8. ↑ Myanmar originally received a qualification place. With the withdrawal of North Korea, the team moved directly into the group stage.
9. ↑ ^{a b c} Malaysia, India and Singapore originally each received a qualifying place. Due to the lack of participants in the qualification for the eastern region, the teams moved directly into the group stage.
10. ↑ North Korea originally received a direct starting place and a qualifying place, but withdrew from the competition.
11. ↑ Laos originally received a direct starting place and a qualifying place. But only one team took part.

qualification

The draw for the two qualifying rounds took place on December 11, 2014 in Kuala Lumpur , Malaysia .

First qualifying round

The games took place on February 9 and 10, 2015.

	Result
West asia
Ahal FK	1-0	FK Dordoi Bishkek
Altyn Asyr FK	0: 1	al-Saqr SC
Khayr Vahdat FK	1-0	Sheikh Russel KC
Hilal al-Quds Club	w / o 1	Manang Marsyangdi Club

¹ Since Manang Marsyangdi Club withdrew, Hilal al-Quds Club moved into the play-offs without a fight.

Play-offs

The games took place on February 17, 2015.

	Result
West asia
Fanja SC	2: 3	Ahal FK
al-Hidd	2: 1	al-Saqr SC
Salam Zgharta	3-0	Khayr Vahdat FK
Al Jaish	0: 0 n.v. (5: 4 in good condition )	Hilal al-Quds Club
East asia
Maziya S&RC	1-0	Ceres FC

Group stage

The group stage was also drawn on December 11, 2014. The 32 teams were drawn into eight groups with four participants each. Teams from the same country could not be drawn into the same group. Everyone played a game against each other. The two best teams in each group reached the round of 16.

Group A

Pl.	society	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	al-Wihdat	6th	4th	1	1	016: 300	+13	13
2.	al-Wahda	6th	3	2	1	008: 400	+4	11
3.	al-Nahda Club	6th	2	1	3	007:110	−4	07th
4th	Salam Zgharta	6th	1	0	5	005:180	−13	03

February 24, 2015
al-Wahda	1: 2	al-Nahda Club
al-Wihdat	5: 1	Salam Zgharta
March 10, 2015
Salam Zgharta	0: 2	al-Wahda
al-Nahda Club	0: 3	al-Wihdat
17th March 2015
Salam Zgharta	2: 1	al-Nahda Club
al-Wihdat	0: 1	al-Wahda
April 14, 2015
al-Nahda Club	4: 1	Salam Zgharta
April 15, 2015
al-Wahda	1: 1	al-Wihdat
April 28, 2015
Salam Zgharta	0: 3	al-Wihdat
al-Nahda Club	0-0	al-Wahda
May 12, 2015
al-Wihdat	4-0	al-Nahda Club
al-Wahda	3: 1	Salam Zgharta

Group B

Pl.	society	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	al-Shorta SC	6th	2	3	1	014: 700	+7	09
2.	al-Jazeera	6th	2	3	1	006: 700	−1	09
3.	Taraji Wadi Al-Nes	6th	1	3	2	006:110	−5	06th
4th	al-Hidd	6th	0	5	1	006: 700	−1	05

February 24, 2015
Taraji Wadi Al-Nes	1: 1	al-Jazeera
al-Shorta SC	2: 2	al-Hidd
March 10, 2015
al-Jazeera	1: 1	al-Shorta SC
al-Hidd	1: 1	Taraji Wadi Al-Nes
17th March 2015
al-Shorta SC	6: 2	Taraji Wadi Al-Nes
al-Hidd	1: 1	al-Jazeera
April 14, 2015
Taraji Wadi Al-Nes	1-0	al-Shorta SC
al-Jazeera	1-0	al-Hidd
April 28, 2015
al-Jazeera	2-0	Taraji Wadi Al-Nes
al-Hidd	1: 1	al-Shorta SC
May 12, 2015
al-Shorta SC	4-0	al-Jazeera
Taraji Wadi Al-Nes	1: 1	al-Hidd

Group C

Pl.	society	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	FC Istiklol	6th	3	2	1	012: 800	+4	11
2.	al Qadsia Kuwait	6th	3	1	2	007: 600	+1	10
3.	Erbil SC	6th	2	1	3	008: 800	± 0	07th
4th	Ahal FK	6th	2	0	4th	008:130	−5	06th

February 25, 2015
FC Istiklol	1: 3	Erbil SC
al Qadsia Kuwait	2-0	Ahal FK
March 11, 2015
Ahal FK	1: 2	FC Istiklol
Erbil SC	0: 1	al Qadsia Kuwait
March 18, 2015
Ahal FK	2: 1	Erbil SC
al Qadsia Kuwait	2: 2	FC Istiklol
April 15, 2015
FC Istiklol	2-0	al Qadsia Kuwait
Erbil SC	2: 3	Ahal FK
April 29, 2015
Ahal FK	0: 1	al Qadsia Kuwait
Erbil SC	0-0	FC Istiklol
May 13, 2015
al Qadsia Kuwait	1: 2	Erbil SC
FC Istiklol	5: 2	Ahal FK

Group D

Pl.	society	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Al Jaish	6th	4th	2	0	006: 100	+5	14th
2.	al Kuwait SC	6th	3	2	1	009: 600	+3	11
3.	al-Riffa SC	6th	2	2	2	007: 700	± 0	08th
4th	Nejmeh Club	6th	0	1	5	004:120	−8	01

February 24, 2015
al Kuwait SC	4: 1	Nejmeh Club
February 25, 2015
al-Riffa SC	0: 1	Al Jaish
March 11, 2015
Al Jaish	1-0	Nejmeh Club
al Kuwait SC	2: 1	al-Riffa SC
17th March 2015
Al Jaish	0-0	al Kuwait SC
March 18, 2015
al-Riffa SC	2: 1	Nejmeh Club
April 15, 2015
Nejmeh Club	1: 1	al-Riffa SC
al Kuwait SC	0: 1	Al Jaish
April 29, 2015
Nejmeh Club	1: 2	al Kuwait SC
Al Jaish	1: 1	al-Riffa SC
May 13, 2015
al-Riffa SC	2: 1	al Kuwait SC
Nejmeh Club	0: 2	Al Jaish

Group E

Pl.	society	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Persipura Jayapura	6th	5	1	0	017: 400	+13	16
2.	Bengaluru FC	6th	4th	0	2	008: 800	± 0	12
3.	Maziya S&RC	6th	2	1	3	007: 600	+1	07th
4th	Warriors FC	6th	0	0	6th	001:150	−14	00

February 24, 2015
Warriors FC	1: 3	Persipura Jayapura
Bengaluru FC	2: 1	Maziya S&RC
March 10, 2015
Persipura Jayapura	3: 1	Bengaluru FC
Maziya S&RC	2-0	Warriors FC
17th March 2015
Maziya S&RC	1: 2	Persipura Jayapura
Bengaluru FC	1-0	Warriors FC
April 14, 2015
Persipura Jayapura	0-0	Maziya S&RC
Warriors FC	0: 1	Bengaluru FC
April 28, 2015
Persipura Jayapura	6-0	Warriors FC
Maziya S&RC	1: 2	Bengaluru FC
May 12, 2015
Warriors FC	0: 2	Maziya S&RC
Bengaluru FC	1: 3	Persipura Jayapura

Group F.

Pl.	society	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Johor Darul Ta'zim FC	6th	5	0	1	011: 300	+8	15th
2.	Kitchee SC	6th	3	2	1	010: 600	+4	11
3.	Kingfisher East Bengal	6th	1	2	3	008:100	−2	05
4th	Balestier Khalsa	6th	1	0	5	003:130	−10	03

February 24, 2015
Kitchee SC	3-0	Balestier Khalsa
Johor Darul Ta'zim FC	4: 1	Kingfisher East Bengal
March 10, 2015
Balestier Khalsa	0: 1	Johor Darul Ta'zim FC
Kingfisher East Bengal	1: 1	Kitchee SC
17th March 2015
Balestier Khalsa	2: 1	Kingfisher East Bengal
Kitchee SC	2-0	Johor Darul Ta'zim FC
April 14, 2015
Kingfisher East Bengal	3-0	Balestier Khalsa
Johor Darul Ta'zim FC	2-0	Kitchee SC
April 28, 2015
Balestier Khalsa	1: 2	Kitchee SC
Kingfisher East Bengal	0: 1	Johor Darul Ta'zim FC
May 12, 2015
Kitchee SC	2: 2	Kingfisher East Bengal
Johor Darul Ta'zim FC	3-0	Balestier Khalsa

Group G

Pl.	society	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	South China AA	6th	6th	0	0	019: 300	+16	18th
2.	Pahang FA	6th	2	2	2	011:100	+1	08th
3.	Global FC	6th	1	2	3	005:120	−7	05
4th	Yadanarbon FC	6th	1	0	5	010:200	−10	03

February 25, 2015
Yadanarbon FC	2: 3	Pahang FA
Global FC	1: 6	South China AA
March 11, 2015
South China AA	3: 1	Yadanarbon FC
Pahang FA	0-0	Global FC
March 18, 2015
Yadanarbon FC	2-0	Global FC
Pahang FA	0: 1	South China AA
April 15, 2015
South China AA	3: 1	Pahang FA
Global FC	4: 1	Yadanarbon FC
April 29, 2015
South China AA	3-0	Global FC
Pahang FA	7: 4	Yadanarbon FC
May 13, 2015
Global FC	0-0	Pahang FA
Yadanarbon FC	0: 3	South China AA

Group H.

Pl.	society	Sp.	S.	U	N	Gates	Diff.	Points
1.	Persib Bandung	6th	3	3	0	010: 500	+5	12
2.	Ayeyawady United	6th	2	4th	0	013: 900	+4	10
3.	New radians	6th	1	2	3	004:100	−6	05
4th	Lao Toyota FC	6th	0	3	3	007:100	−3	03

February 25, 2015
Persib Bandung	4: 1	New radians
Lao Toyota FC	2: 2	Ayeyawady United
March 11, 2015
Ayeyawady United	1: 1	Persib Bandung
New radians	2: 1	Lao Toyota FC
March 18, 2015
Persib Bandung	1-0	Lao Toyota FC
New radians	0: 3	Ayeyawady United
April 15, 2015
Ayeyawady United	0-0	New radians
Lao Toyota FC	0-0	Persib Bandung
April 29, 2015
Ayeyawady United	4: 3	Lao Toyota FC
New radians	0: 1	Persib Bandung
May 13, 2015
Persib Bandung	3: 3	Ayeyawady United
Lao Toyota FC	1: 1	New radians

Final round

Round of 16

The games took place on May 26th and 27th, 2015. In the round of the last 16, the group winners played against runners-up from a different group in the same zone. The group winners had home advantage.

	Result
West asia
al-Wihdat	0: 1	al Qadsia Kuwait
FC Istiklol	1: 1 n.V. (4: 2 in good. )	al-Wahda
al-Shorta SC	0: 2	al Kuwait SC
Al Jaish	1-0	al-Jazeera
East asia
Persipura Jayapura	0: 3 1	Pahang FA
South China AA	2-0	Bengaluru FC
Johor Darul Ta'zim FC	5-0	Ayeyawady United
Persib Bandung	0: 2	Kitchee SC

¹The game did not take place as some Pahang FA players were not allowed to enter. The AFC rated the game on June 10, 2015 as a 3-0 defeat for Persipura Jayapura.

Quarter finals

The pairings were drawn on June 18, 2015. There were no regional and country barriers so that teams from the same region and country could be drawn against each other. The first legs took place on August 25 and 26, 2015, and the second legs on September 15 and 16, 2015.

	total		First leg	Return leg
al Qadsia Kuwait	3: 2	Al Jaish	3-0	0: 2
Johor Darul Ta'zim FC	4: 2	South China AA	1: 1	3: 1
al Kuwait SC	7: 1	Kitchee SC	6-0	1: 1
FC Istiklol	5: 3	Pahang FA	4-0	1: 3

Semifinals

The first legs took place on September 29 and 30, 2015. The second legs were canceled after the Kuwaiti Football Association was suspended .

	total		First leg	Return leg
al Qadsia Kuwait	w / o 1	Johor Darul Ta'zim FC	3: 1	Abge.
al Kuwait SC	w / o 1	FC Istiklol	4-0	Abge.

¹On October 16, 2015, the Kuwaiti Football Association was suspended by FIFA. As a result, the two Kuwaiti clubs are no longer allowed to take part in the AFC Cup, and the planned return legs have been canceled. Johor Darul Ta'zim FC and FC Istiklol advanced to the final.

final

FC Istiklol		Johor Darul Ta'zim FC
	October 31, 2015 in Dushanbe ( Pamir Stadium ) Result: 0: 1 (0: 1) Spectators: 18,000 Referee: Minoru Tōjō ( Japan )   Match report
	Trainer: Mubin Ergashev	Coach: Mario Gómez ( Argentina )
		0: 1 Leandro Velázquez (23rd)

List of goalscorers

The qualifying rounds are not taken into account. If the number of hits is the same, the players are sorted alphabetically.

space	player	team	Gates
01.	Daniel McBreen	South China AA	8th
	Riste Naumov	Ayeyawady United	8th
03.	Dickson Nwakaeme	Pahang FA	6th
04th	Bader al-Mutawa	al Qadsia Kuwait	5
	Mahama Awal	South China AA	5
	Juan Belencoso	Kitchee SC	5
	Luciano Figueroa	Johor Darul Ta'zim FC	5
	Rogerinho	al Kuwait SC	5
	Boaz Solossa	Persipura Jayapura	5
10	9 players		4th
Status: end of the season

Web links

• Official website of the AFC Cup

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} AFC MA Ranking as at 3 November 2014 (PDF) In: The-AFC.com . Archived from the original on November 12, 2014. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
2. ↑ ^{a b} AFC Cup slots decided for 2015-2016 editions . In: The-AFC.com . December 4, 2014. Archived from the original on February 10, 2015. Retrieved on September 7, 2015.
3. ↑ ^{a b} AFC Cup 2015 Draw . In: The-AFC.com . December 12, 2015. Archived from the original on February 10, 2015. Retrieved on September 14, 2015.
4. ↑ Statement on Persipura Jayapura v Pahang FA AFC Cup Round of 16 fixture . In: The-AFC.com . May 25, 2015. Archived from the original on May 25, 2015. Retrieved October 17, 2015.
5. ↑ Persipura Jayapura forfeit AFC Cup match v Pahang FA . In: The-AFC.com . June 10, 2015. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015. Retrieved October 17, 2015.
6. ^ FIFA suspension of Kuwait FA implications to AFC Cup . In: The-AFC.com . October 17, 2015. Archived from the original on October 17, 2015. Retrieved on October 17, 2015.
7. ^ AFC Cup 2015: List of goalscorers (group stage) . In: The-AFC.com . Retrieved October 31, 2015.
8. ^ AFC Cup 2015: list of goalscorers (round of 16) . In: The-AFC.com . Retrieved October 31, 2015.
9. ^ AFC Cup 2015: List of goalscorers (final round) . In: The-AFC.com . Retrieved October 31, 2015.