Under the new plans, the second-tier club competition of Asian football will consist of 32 teams, divided into East and West regions, each with 4 groups of 4 teams, with each team in their group playing each other twice, once home and once away. The top two teams per group advance to the knockout stage, where the round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals are held over two legs, with the final to be held in a neutral venue. It is currently unknown when this format will take effect or whether it will have the AFC Cup moniker. Format Some changes were applied in terms of teams and format for the 2017 AFC Cup. A total of 36 teams participate in the group stage (12 each from West Asia and ASEAN, and 4 each from East Asia, Central Asia, and South Asia). The final will be played as a one-off match. Allocation Teams from 27 AFC countries have reached the group stage of the AFC Cup. The allocation of those teams by member country is listed below; asterisks represent occasions where at least one team was eliminated in qualification for the group stage. 34 AFC countries have had teams participate in qualification (including Brunei and Timor-Leste who will make their debuts in 2020), those who have not reached the group stage but have only played in qualification are not bolded. Prize money The prize money for the 2021 AFC Cup: Marketing Sponsorship Like the AFC Champions League, the AFC Cup is sponsored by a group of multinational corporations, in contrast to the single main sponsor typically found in national top-flight leagues. The tournament's current main sponsors are: Allianz beIN Sports China Resources Beverage Emirates Kärcher Nike, Inc. Nikon QNB Group Toyota Tsingtao Brewery Seiko Results and statistics Finals Performance by clubs Performance by nations Top scorers Most Valuable Player Winning coaches All-time top goalscorers See also List of association football competitions Bangladeshi clubs in the AFC Cup Indian clubs in the AFC Cup Indonesian clubs in the AFC Cup Syrian clubs in the AFC Cup Thai clubs in the AFC Cup Hong Kong clubs in the AFC Cup Vietnamese clubs in the AFC Cup References Notes External links AFC Cup on RSSSF 2 Recurring sporting events established in 2004 2004 establishments in Asia