The AFC Cup is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Under its current rules, the competition is played primarily between clubs from nations that did not receive direct qualifying slots in the top-tier AFC Champions League, based on the AFC Club Competitions Ranking.Teams from 27 AFC countries have reached the group stage of the AFC Cup. Asterisks represent occasions where at least one team was eliminated in qualification for the group stage. A total of 29 teams will directly enter the group phase, while the other 3 places will be allocated to 3 Asian Cup champions elimination losing teams. The 32 teams will be divided into eight groups, including four teams in East Asia and four in West Asia. The top two teams in each group will be promoted to the round of 16. The round of 16 teams will be divided into East Asia and West Asia respectively, and the single elimination system will be adopted. When the top 8 are produced, they will be decided by drawing lots again. The home and away rounds elimination system will be adopted for the top 8, semi-final and final.