AFC Champions League Two 2026-27 draw: All you need to know

East Bengal FC will play AFC Champions League Two 2026-27.

Indian football fans are full of excitement after ISL champions East Bengal FC defeated Kuwaiti side Al-Arabi SC 4-1 in Kolkata to book a spot in the AFC Champions League Two 2026-27. The Torchbearers will now represent India in the second division of Asian club football where they will fight toe-to-toe against quality opponents.

East Bengal FC registered an unforgettable comeback against the Kuwait League’s runners up Al-Arabi SC after going one goal down. With the score tied at 1-1 after Jay Gupta’s 90th-minute equaliser, the Preliminary Stage clash was settled by strikes from Mohammed Rashid, David Lalhlansanga and Rohit Danu in extra time.

Now, East Bengal FC have been put in Pot 4 of the west zone which also comprises of FK Arkadag, the Turkmen side which defeated FC Goa to book their slot in the AFC Champions League Two 2026-27.

In this article we will take a look at when and where will the draw for AFC Champions League Two 2026-27 take place and also look at the pots along with the streaming details.

The draw to take place in Malaysia

The participants for the AFC Champions League Two (ACL Two) 2026-27 will learn their Group Stage opponents for the tournament on August 18th (Tuesday) when the draw ceremony takes place at 2 pm (11:30 am IST) at Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.

The 22nd edition of Asia’s second-tier men’s competition will comprise of 32 clubs from across Asia and will kick off its thrilling group stage battles on September 15th. The Group Stage matches are scheduled to conclude on December 9, 2026, before moving into the round of 16 between February 9 and 18, 2027.

The quarter-finals and semi-finals are set for March 2-18 and April 6-14 respectively, with the final will be played on May 15, 2027.

AFC Champions League Two 2026-27 will be played in a home and away round robin format, with each team playing against each other in the respective group twice, once at home and once away from home. Every match will carry significant importance moving forward as teams battle to book a spot in the knockout rounds.

Division of pots

The clubs have been divided into four pots per region (West and East) where East Bengal FC are in Pot 4 in West alongside FK Arkadag (Turkmenistan), Al-Nahda Club (Oman) and Al-Khaldiya SC (Bahrain).

The country protection principle will be in force and the specialised draw software will be utilised to prevent deadlock situations.

West

Pot 1	Pot 2	Pot 3	Pot 4
Al Jazira Club (UAE)	Al Rayyan SC (QAT)	Al Faisaly (JOR)	Al Khaldiya SC (BHR)
Al Hussein (JOR)	Golgohar Sirjan SC (IRN)	Al Muharraq SC (BHR)	Al Nahda Club (OMA)
Al Taawoun FC (KSA)	PFC Nasaf (UZB)	Al Seeb Club (OMA)	East Bengal FC (IND)
Al Wahda FC (UAE)	Al Shorta (IRQ)	Kuwait SC (KUW)	FC Arkadag (TKM)

East

Pot 1	Pot 2	Pot 3	Pot 4
Gangwon FC (KOR)	BG Pathum United (THA)	The Cong – Viettel FC (VIE)	Tampines Rovers FC (SGP)
Adelaide United FC (AUS)	Shanghai Shenhua FC (CHN)	Lion City Sailors FC (SGP)	Tai Po FC (HKG)
FC Machida Zelvia (JPN)	Melbourne Victory FC (AUS)	Kitchee SC (HKG)	Phnom Penh Crown FC (CAM)
FC Seoul (KOR)	Kuching City FC (MAS)	Preah Khan Reach Svay Rieng FC (CAM)	Persib Bandung (IDN)/Manila Digger (PHI)

When and where to watch the draw live?

The draw for AFC Champions League Two 2026-27 will take place on 18th August in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at 2 pm (11:30 am IST).

Fans can watch the draw live on The AFC Hub YouTube Channel from 11:30 am IST.

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