East Bengal FC has been drawn alongside Nejmeh SC (Lebanon), Bashundhara Kings (Bangladesh) and Paro FC (Bhutan) in Group A of the AFC Challenge League 2024-25, in the draw conducted at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.
East Bengal qualified for the third tier of men’s AFC club competitions after winning the 2024 Kalinga Super Cup. The Red and Gold Brigade competed in the AFC Champions League Two qualifying round but lost 2-3 to Altyn Asyr FC.
This will be the first time East Bengal will be playing in a continental club competition group stage since the 2015 AFC Cup. Its best showing came at the 2013 AFC Cup, where it reached the semifinal.
Nejmeh SC, former runner-up of the AFC Cup in 2005, qualified for the AFC Challenge League after winning the 2023-24 Lebanese Premier League. East Bengal has faced Nejmeh previously in the 2010 AFC Cup group stage, losing 0-3 away and 0-4 at home.
Bashundhara Kings booked its slot in the tournament as the 2023-24 Bangladesh Premier League champion. It will be its fifth consecutive group-stage appearance in an AFC club competition.
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Paro FC, the 2023 Bhutan Premier League champion, overcame Church Boys United (Nepal) in the qualifying round to make its debut in a continental club competition group stage.
There are five groups in the group stage – three comprising four teams from the West each and two involving three teams from the East each – that is set to be played over three matchdays between October 26 and November 2, with each group taking place in a centralised location in a single round-robin format.
Group A will be hosted by Paro FC at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu.
The three group winners and best-ranked runners-up from the West, and the top two finishers of each group from the East will move on to the double-legged quarterfinals, which will take place between March 5 and 13, 2025.
The semifinals will be played between April 9 to 17, 2025, and the winners will advance to the final to be played on May 10, 2025.
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