The 2026 AFC Champions League Elite final was the final match of the 2025–26 AFC Champions League Elite, the 44th season of Asia's premier club football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the second since it was rebranded as the AFC Champions League Elite. It was played at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on 25 April 2026 between defending champions and finals hosts Al-Ahli and Japanese club Machida Zelvia, in their first continental final.[1][2]
 The King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah hosted the final. | |||||||
| Event | Champions League Elite | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| After extra time | |||||||
| Date | 25 April 2026 | ||||||
| Venue | King Abdullah Sports City Stadium, Jeddah | ||||||
| Referee | Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan) | ||||||
| Attendance | 58,984 | ||||||
Al-Ahli won 1–0 after extra time, the first final to went through it since 2011, winning a second Champions League title.[3]
Teams
editIn the following table, the finals until 2002 were in the Asian Club Championship era, and from 2003 to 2024 were in the AFC Champions League era.
| Team | Region (Federation) | Previous finals appearances (bold indicates winners) |
|---|---|---|
 Al-Ahli |
West (WAFF) | 3 (1985–86, 2012, 2025) |
 Machida Zelvia |
East (EAFF) | None |
Road to the final
editNote: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first. (H: home; A: away; N: neutral).
| Al-Ahli |
Round | Machida Zelvia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opponents | Results | League stage | Opponents | Results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Nasaf |
4–2 (H) | Match 1 |  FC Seoul |
1–1 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Al-Duhail |
2–2 (A) | Match 2 |  Johor Darul Ta'zim |
0–0 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Al-Gharafa |
4–0 (H) | Match 3 |  Shanghai Port |
2–0 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Al Sadd |
2–1 (A) | Match 4 |  Melbourne City |
1–2 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Sharjah |
0–1 (H) | Match 5 | Gangwon FC |
3–1 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Al-Shorta |
5–0 (A) | Match 6 | Ulsan HD |
3–1 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Al Wahda |
0–0 (A) | Match 7 | Shanghai Shenhua |
2–0 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shabab Al Ahli |
4–3 (H) | Match 8 | Chengdu Rongcheng |
3–2 (H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| West region, 2nd place | Final standings | East Region, 1st place
Source: AFC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opponents | Results | Knockout stage | Opponents | Results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Al-Duhail |
1–0 (a.e.t.) (H) | Round of 16 | Gangwon FC |
1–0 (0–0, 1–0) (A, H) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Johor Darul Ta'zim |
2–1 (A) | Quarter-finals | Al-Ittihad |
1–0 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vissel Kobe |
2–1 (H) | Semi-finals | Shabab Al Ahli |
1–0 (N) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Match
editDetails
edit| Al-Ahli | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | Machida Zelvia |
|---|---|---|
Al-Buraikan  96' |
Report |
          Al-Ahli
|
     Machida Zelvia
|
|
Assistant referees:
|
Match rules[4]
|
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "Venues confirmed for AFC Champions League Elite Finals Jeddah 2026". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. 23 December 2025. Retrieved 23 December 2025.
- ↑ "Ultimate battles to be revealed for #ACLElite Finals". the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. 21 March 2026. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
- ↑ Tan, Gabriel (25 April 2026). "Al Ahli see off Machida Zelvia in extra-time to win back-to-back AFC Champions League Elite titles". ESPN. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
- ↑ "AFC Champions League Elite 2025-26 Competition Regulations" (PDF). the-AFC.com. Asian Football Confederation. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
External links
edit- AFC Champions League, the-AFC.com