AFC U-20 Asian Cup 2027 Qualifiers Draw: All you need to know

AFC U-20 Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers draw will take place on 28th May

The AFC U-20 Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers draw will officially take place at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on May 28th (Thursday) at 12:30 pm IST.

The qualifiers which are scheduled to be played between 25th August and 6th September 2026 in a centralized league system will feature the implementation of new format which was introduced by AFC earlier this year for all AFC youth competitions.

In this article ahead of the qualifiers draw, we take a look at everything related to the AFC U-20 Asian Cup qualifiers draw.

A brief look at the new format

The qualifiers for the AFC U-20 Asian Cup 2027 will feature a total of 44 teams this time, and for this edition AFC will implement the new format. The qualifiers will now be divided into two phases, the Qualification Phase and the Development Phase, allowing teams to face opponents of a similar level while also giving them ample amount of gametime.

In the Qualification Phase, 32 teams will be divided into 8 groups of 4. The winners of each group, along with the 7 best second placed teams, will secure qualification for the AFC U-20 Asian Cup 2027 in China. On the other hand, the teams finishing at the bottom of their respective groups will be relegated to the Development Phase for the next cycle.

Meanwhile, the Development Phase will feature 12 teams divided into 3 groups of 4. The group winners of these groups and the second placed teams will earn promotion back to the Qualification Phase for the next cycle.

Overall, the new structure will work somewhat be like a centralized league system, with promotion and relegation aimed at ensuring more competitive and meaningful matches for every team involved at the youth level.

AFC U-20 Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers Pot distribution

Qualification Phase

Pot 1: Australia, Korea Republic, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Islamic Republic of Iran, Jordan

Pot 2: Qatar, Indonesia, Syria, Thailand, Vietnam, Yemen, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan

Pot 3: Oman, United Arab Emirates, India, DPR Korea, Cambodia, Bahrain, Malaysia, Philippines

Pot 4: Bangladesh, Turkmenistan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Palestine, Laos, Hong Kong (China), Afghanistan

Development Phase

Pot 1: Chinese Taipei, Mongolia, Myanmar

Pot 2: Singapore, Guam, Maldives

Pot 3: Nepal, Brunei Darussalam, Bhutan

Pot 4: Macau, Sri Lanka, Northern Mariana Islands

Host Associations in each phase have been identified and will be separately allocated to an additional Hosts Pot at the beginning of the draw to ensure they are drawn into different groups as below.

Qualification Phase

Hosts Pot: Uzbekistan, Qatar, Thailand, Vietnam, Kyrgyz Republic, Cambodia, Bahrain, Laos

Development Phase

Hosts Pot: Mongolia, Myanmar, Bhutan

When and where to watch the draw live?

The AFC U-20 Asian Cup 2027 is scheduled to take place in China during March and April 2027. Ahead of the tournament, the qualifiers draw will officially be conducted on 28 May 2026 at 12:30 PM IST.

Fans can watch the live streaming of the draw on the official AFC Asian Cup YouTube channel, where viewers from across Asia will be able to follow the proceedings live and find out the group stage matchups for the qualification campaign.

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