The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has approved the Olympic Stadium in Ashgabat as the home of Turkmenistan’s “Arkadag” FC for the first leg of the AFC-2 Champions League Round of 1/8 tie against Saudi Arabia’s “Al-Nassr”.
The stadium, with a capacity of 45 000, is the largest in Central Asia. It was built for the fifth Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in 2017. “Arkadag” FC match against “Al-Nassr” will be the first official football event at the arena.
The club previously played its home games at a stadium in Arkadag, which has a capacity of 10 000.
The AFC has also decided to hold matches between Iranian teams “Sepahan” and “Esteghlal” at neutral venues. Exact locations will be announced later.
AFC-2 Champions League Round of 1/8 Bracket:
West Zone:
Arkadag (Turkmenistan) vs. Al-Nasr (Saudi Arabia)
Al-Zawraa (Iraq) vs. Al-Wasl (UAE)
Sepahan (Iran) vs. Al-Ahli (Qatar)
Esteghlal (Iran) vs. Al-Hussein (Jordan)
East Zone:
Pohang Steelers (Korea) vs. Gamba Osaka (Japan)
Ratchaburi (Thailand) vs. Persib Bandung (Indonesia)
Bangkok United (Thailand) vs. Macarthur (Australia)
Cong An Hanoi (Vietnam) vs. Tampines Rovers (Singapore)
The tournament offers bonuses for playoff participants: 160 000 dollars for reaching the quarterfinals and 240 000 dollars for reaching the semifinals. While finalist receives 1 million dollars, the winner receives 2.5 million dollars.
