2012 AFC Champions League

The 2012 AFC Champions League was the 31st edition of the top-level Asian club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 10th under the current AFC Champions League title.

2012 AFC Champions League
Tournament details
Dates10 February – 10 November 2012
Teams37 (from 11 associations)
Final positions
ChampionsSouth Korea Ulsan Hyundai (1st title)
Runners-upSaudi Arabia Al-Ahli
Tournament statistics
Matches played117
Goals scored338 (2.89 per match)
Attendance1,480,245 (12,652 per match)
Top scorer(s)Brazil Ricardo Oliveira
(12 goals)[1]
Best player(s)South Korea Lee Keun-ho[2]

Ulsan Hyundai from South Korea won their first title, defeating Al-Ahli from Saudi Arabia with a 3–0 win in the final, and qualified for the 2012 FIFA Club World Cup.[3][4]

Allocation of entries per association

The AFC approved criteria for participation in the 2011 and 2012 seasons.[5] The final decision date was set after the Executive Committee meeting in November 2010.[6]

On 30 November 2009, the AFC announced 12 more MA's that were keen to join the ACL, in addition to ten participating national associations. Singapore later withdrew. The full list of candidate associations were as follows:

East Asia
West Asia

Note: India, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam have clubs taking part in play-offs to qualify for the group stages of ACL in 2010.

Entrants per association

It was originally announced that the allocation for entry to the 2012 ACL would stay the same as the previous three seasons with the exception of Vietnam, who were disqualified, and their previous playoff slot was awarded to Qatar.[8] However, following the AFC Executive Committee meeting in November 2011, it was decided that the number of slots for each association to be changed based on evaluation of the AFC Champions League criteria that took place in 2011.[9]

A total of eleven member associations (see below) which participated in the 2011 AFC Champions League was evaluated for participating in the 2012 AFC Champions League.[10] India, which played in the 2011 ACL play-off, was not evaluated and dropped to the AFC Cup. The other member associations which applied but did not meet the criteria for 2011 ACL was not evaluated at all for 2012.

Evaluation for 2012 ACL
Meet all items of the criteria
Meet some items of the criteria
Do not meet the criteria
Notes
  • A One of the group stage direct entrants from Uzbekistan was moved to the East Zone.[9]
  • B One of the K-League clubs, Sangju Sangmu Phoenix, is unable to qualify for the ACL because the team is not a commercial entity and their players are not professionally contracted.[8]
  • C While the 2010–11 A-League, the season which qualified Australian clubs to the 2012 ACL, had 11 teams, the 2011–12 A-League, the ongoing season, only has 10 teams after North Queensland Fury was closed, and this number was given in the 2012 ACL evaluation report (page 8).[10] One of the A-League clubs, Wellington Phoenix, is based in New Zealand, an OFC member country, and are unable to qualify for the ACL.[11]
  • D This number was given in the 2012 ACL evaluation report (page 8).[10] The 2010–11 Indonesia Super League, the season which qualified Indonesian clubs to the 2012 ACL, had 15 teams, and the 2011–12 Indonesian Premier League, the ongoing top division recognized by the Football Association of Indonesia, has 13 teams. There are two rival "top-division" leagues in Indonesia: the Indonesian Premier League and the Indonesia Super League (the ISL was by then not recognized by the Football Association of Indonesia).
  • E China was allocated a berth in the qualifying play-off, but Liaoning Whowin, the 2011 Chinese Super League 3rd place, did not enter the competition.[12] Therefore, only four teams entered the East Zone qualifying play-off.

Teams

A total of 37 teams participated in the 2012 AFC Champions League.[10]

  • 28 teams (14 in West Zone, 14 in East Zone) directly entered the group stage.
  • 9 teams (5 in West Zone, 4 in East Zone) competed in the qualifying play-off, which was divided into two rounds. The 4 winners (2 in West Zone, 2 in East Zone) qualified for the group stage. Losers of the qualifying play-off final round entered the 2012 AFC Cup group stage. However, losers of the qualifying play-off semi-final round were eliminated from all AFC competitions, a change from previous seasons where they would also enter the AFC Cup.
Notes
  • * Number of appearances (including qualifying rounds) since the 2002/03 season, when the competition was rebranded as the AFC Champions League.
  • † Bunyodkor (Uzbekistan) was moved to the East Zone.[10]
  • ‡ Persipura Jayapura were initially disqualified by the AFC from participating but on appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the CAS ruled on 1 February 2012 that they should be provisionally reinstated to the competition and were entitled to play in the qualifying play-off.[13]
  • Al-Kuwait (Kuwait), the 2011 AFC Cup runners-up, failed to fulfil the criteria set by AFC to compete in the 2012 AFC Champions League, and thus directly entered the 2012 AFC Cup. Nasaf Qarshi (Uzbekistan), the 2011 AFC Cup winners, already directly qualified for the group stage based on their domestic performance.[10]

Schedule

Schedule of dates for 2012 competition.[14]

Phase Round Draw date First leg Second leg
Qualifying play-offs Semi-finals 6 December 2011 10 February 2012
Finals 18 February 2012
Group stage Matchday 1 6–7 March 2012
Matchday 2 20–21 March 2012
Matchday 3 3–4 April 2012
Matchday 4 17–18 April 2012
Matchday 5 1–2 May 2012
Matchday 6 15–16 May 2012
Knockout phase Round of 16 22–23 May 2012 (W), 29–30 May 2012 (E)
Quarter-finals 14 June 2012 19 September 2012 2–3 October 2012
Semi-finals 24 October 2012 31 October 2012
Final 9 or 10 November 2012 at home of one of the finalists

Qualifying play-off
Main article: 2012 AFC Champions League qualifying play-off

The draw for the qualifying play-off was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 6 December 2011.[15] The winners advanced to the group stage, while the losers of the final round advanced to the AFC Cup group stage,[16] except the loser of the match between Adelaide United and Persipura Jayapura.[17]

West Zone
Team 1  Score  Team 2
Semi-final Round
Esteghlal Iran 2–0 Iran Zob Ahan
Final Round
Al-Shabab United Arab Emirates 3–0 Uzbekistan Neftchi Farg'ona
Esteghlal Iran 3–1 Saudi Arabia Al-Ettifaq

East Zone
Team 1  Score  Team 2
Final Round
Pohang Steelers South Korea 2–0 Thailand Chonburi
Adelaide United Australia 3–0 Indonesia Persipura Jayapura

Group stage
Main article: 2012 AFC Champions League group stage

The draw for the group stage was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 6 December 2011.[18] Clubs from the same country may not be drawn into the same group. The winners and runners-up of each group advanced to the knockout stage.[16]

Group A

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification JAZ EST RAY NQA
1 United Arab Emirates Al-Jazira 6 5 1 0 18 10 +8 16 Advance to knockout stage — 1–1 3–2 4–1
2 Iran Esteghlal 6 3 2 1 8 3 +5 11 1–2 — 3–0 0–0
3 Qatar Al-Rayyan 6 2 0 4 9 12 −3 6 3–4 0–1 — 3–1
4 Uzbekistan Nasaf Qarshi 6 0 1 5 4 14 −10 1 2–4 0–2 0–1 —
Source: WorldFootball.net

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification ITT YAS PAK ARA
1 Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad 6 5 1 0 13 4 +9 16 Advance to knockout stage — 1–0 4–0 3–2
2 United Arab Emirates Baniyas 6 3 2 1 9 2 +7 11 0–0 — 2–0 2–0
3 Uzbekistan Pakhtakor 6 2 1 3 6 10 −4 7 1–2 1–1 — 3–1
4 Qatar Al-Arabi 6 0 0 6 4 16 −12 0 1–3 0–4 0–1 —
Source: WorldFootball.net

Group C

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SEP AHL NAS LEK
1 Iran Sepahan 6 4 1 1 9 4 +5 13 Advance to knockout stage — 2–1 1–0 2–1
2 Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli 6 3 1 2 10 6 +4 10 1–1 — 3–1 3–0
3 United Arab Emirates Al-Nasr 6 2 0 4 6 11 −5 6[lower-alpha 1] 0–3 1–2 — 2–1
4 Qatar Lekhwiya 6 2 0 4 5 9 −4 6[lower-alpha 1] 1–0 1–0 1–2 —
Source: WorldFootball.net
Notes:
  1. Al-Nasr and Lekhwiya are ranked by their head-to-head record (Al-Nasr: 6 pts; Lekhwiya: 0 pts).

Group D

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification HIL PER GHA SHA
1 Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal 6 3 3 0 10 7 +3 12 Advance to knockout stage — 1–1 2–1 2–1
2 Iran Persepolis 6 3 2 1 14 5 +9 11 0–1 — 1–1 6–1
3 Qatar Al-Gharafa 6 1 3 2 7 10 −3 6 3–3 0–3 — 2–1
4 United Arab Emirates Al-Shabab 6 0 2 4 5 14 −9 2 1–1 1–3 0–0 —
Source: WorldFootball.net

Group E

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification ADE BYD POH GMB
1 Australia Adelaide United 6 4 1 1 7 2 +5 13 Advance to knockout stage — 0–0 1–0 2–0
2 Uzbekistan Bunyodkor 6 3 1 2 8 7 +1 10 1–2 — 1–0 3–2
3 South Korea Pohang Steelers 6 3 0 3 6 4 +2 9 1–0 0–2 — 2–0
4 Japan Gamba Osaka 6 1 0 5 5 13 −8 3 0–2 3–1 0–3 —
Source: WorldFootball.net

Group F

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification ULS TOK BBR BEG
1 South Korea Ulsan Hyundai 6 4 2 0 11 7 +4 14 Advance to knockout stage — 1–0 1–1 2–1
2 Japan FC Tokyo 6 3 2 1 12 6 +6 11 2–2 — 4–2 3–0
3 Australia Brisbane Roar 6 0 3 3 6 11 −5 3[lower-alpha 1] 1–2 0–2 — 1–1
4 China Beijing Guoan 6 0 3 3 6 11 −5 3[lower-alpha 1] 2–3 1–1 1–1 —
Source: WorldFootball.net
Notes:
  1. Brisbane Roar and Beijing Guoan are tied on their head-to-head record (2 pts, 0 GD, 2 GF), overall goal difference and overall goals scored, and so are ranked by their fair play record (Brisbane Roar: 12 pts; Beijing Guoan: 18 pts).

Group G

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SIC NGY CCM TTD
1 South Korea Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma 6 2 4 0 13 5 +8 10[lower-alpha 1] Advance to knockout stage — 1–1 5–0 1–1
2 Japan Nagoya Grampus 6 2 4 0 10 4 +6 10[lower-alpha 1] 2–2 — 3–0 0–0
3 Australia Central Coast Mariners 6 1 3 2 7 11 −4 6 1–1 1–1 — 5–1
4 China Tianjin Teda 6 0 3 3 2 12 −10 3 0–3 0–3 0–0 —
Source: WorldFootball.net
Notes:
  1. Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma and Nagoya Grampus are tied on their head-to-head record (2 pts, 0 GD, 3 GF), and so are ranked by their overall goal difference.

Group H

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification GEG KSR JHM BRU
1 China Guangzhou Evergrande 6 3 1 2 12 8 +4 10[lower-alpha 1] Advance to knockout stage — 3–1 1–3 1–2
2 Japan Kashiwa Reysol 6 3 1 2 11 7 +4 10[lower-alpha 1] 0–0 — 5–1 1–0
3 South Korea Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors 6 3 0 3 10 15 −5 9 1–5 0–2 — 3–2
4 Thailand Buriram United 6 2 0 4 8 11 −3 6 1–2 3–2 0–2 —
Source: WorldFootball.net
Notes:
  1. Guangzhou Evergrande and Kashiwa Reysol are ranked by their head-to-head record (Guangzhou Evergrande: 4 pts; Kashiwa Reysol: 1 pt).

Knockout stage
Main article: 2012 AFC Champions League knockout stage

Bracket
Round of 16 Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
            
Australia Adelaide United 1
Japan Nagoya Grampus 0
Australia Adelaide United 2 2 4
Uzbekistan Bunyodkor (a.e.t.) 2 3 5
South Korea Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma 0
Uzbekistan Bunyodkor 1
Uzbekistan Bunyodkor 1 0 1
South Korea Ulsan Hyundai 3 2 5
South Korea Ulsan Hyundai 3
Japan Kashiwa Reysol 2
South Korea Ulsan Hyundai 1 4 5
Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal 0 0 0
Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal 7
United Arab Emirates Baniyas 1
South Korea Ulsan Hyundai 3
Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli 0
Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad 3
Iran Persepolis 0
Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad 4 1 5
China Guangzhou Evergrande 2 2 4
China Guangzhou Evergrande 1
Japan FC Tokyo 0
Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad 1 0 1
Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli 0 2 2
Iran Sepahan 2
Iran Esteghlal 0
Iran Sepahan 0 1 1
Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli 0 4 4
United Arab Emirates Al-Jazira 3 (2)
Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli (p) 3 (4)

Round of 16

The matchups for the round of 16 were decided based on the results from the group stage.[19] Each tie was played as one match, hosted by the winners of each group (Team 1) against the runners-up of another group (Team 2).[16]

Team 1  Score  Team 2
West Zone
Al-Jazira United Arab Emirates 3–3 (aet)
(2–4 p)		 Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli
Sepahan Iran 2–0 Iran Esteghlal
Al-Ittihad Saudi Arabia 3–0 Iran Persepolis
Al-Hilal Saudi Arabia 7–1 United Arab Emirates Baniyas
Team 1  Score  Team 2
East Zone
Adelaide United Australia 1–0 Japan Nagoya Grampus
Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma South Korea 0–1 Uzbekistan Bunyodkor
Ulsan Hyundai South Korea 3–2 Japan Kashiwa Reysol
Guangzhou Evergrande China 1–0 Japan FC Tokyo

Quarter-finals

The draw for the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 14 June 2012.[20] It determined the matchups for the quarter-finals and semi-finals as well as the potential host for the final.[21]

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Al-Ittihad Saudi Arabia 5–4 China Guangzhou Evergrande 4–2 1–2
Sepahan Iran 1–4 Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli 0–0 1–4
Adelaide United Australia 4–5 Uzbekistan Bunyodkor 2–2 2–3 (a.e.t.)
Ulsan Hyundai South Korea 5–0 Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal 1–0 4–0

Semi-finals
Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Al-Ittihad Saudi Arabia 1–2 Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli 1–0 0–2
Bunyodkor Uzbekistan 1–5 South Korea Ulsan Hyundai 1–3 0–2

Final
Main article: 2012 AFC Champions League Final

The final of the 2012 AFC Champions League was hosted by one of the finalists, decided by a draw.[16] According to the draw on 14 June 2012, the winner of semi-final 2 would host the final.[22] Therefore, Ulsan Hyundai was the home team.

Ulsan Hyundai South Korea3–0Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli
Kwak Tae-Hwi 13'
Rafinha 68'
Kim Seung-Yong 75'		 Report
Attendance: 42,153

Top scorers
Rank Player Club MD1 MD2 MD3 MD4 MD5 MD6 R16 QF1 QF2 SF1 SF2 0 F 0 Total
1 Brazil Ricardo Oliveira United Arab Emirates Al-Jazira 111342 12
2 Saudi Arabia Naif Hazazi Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad 211121 8
3 Brazil Rafinha Japan Gamba Osaka (GS)
South Korea Ulsan Hyundai (QF+SF+F)		 21211 7
Brazil Victor Simões Saudi Arabia Al-Ahli 1111111 7
5 Argentina Darío Conca China Guangzhou Evergrande 21111 6
South Korea Kim Shin-Wook South Korea Ulsan Hyundai 111111 6
7 Libya Éamon Zayed Iran Persepolis 311 5
Brazil Bruno Correa Iran Sepahan 11111 5
Brazil Leandro Domingues Japan Kashiwa Reysol 2111 5
South Korea Yoo Byung-Soo Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal 14 5
Ivory Coast Amara Diané United Arab Emirates Al-Nasr 2111 5

Note: Goals scored in qualifying play-off not counted.[23]

Source:[24][25]

See also

References
  1. "Ricardo Oliveira takes top scorer title". AFC. 10 November 2012. Archived from the original on 17 November 2012.
  2. "Livewire Lee name MVP". Asian Football Confederation. 10 November 2012. Archived from the original on 17 November 2012.
  3. "Ulsan Hyundai win 2012 AFC Champions League". AFC. 10 November 2012.
  4. "Ulsan 3 Al Ahli 0". Soccerway.com. Retrieved 13 December 2012.
  5. "Criteria for Participation in AFC Club Competitions for 2011–2012 seasons" (PDF). AFC. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 August 2012.
  6. "12 MAs keen to join ACL". AFC. 30 November 2009.
  7. "Singapore seek to pull out of ACL". AFC. 4 October 2010.
  8. "ACL slots maintained". AFC. 21 November 2010. Archived from the original on 12 September 2012.
  9. "ACL 2012 slots confirmed". AFC. 1 December 2011. Archived from the original on 26 December 2012.
  10. "Decision by Competitions Committee & Executive Committee for AFC Club Competitions" (PDF). AFC. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 July 2018.
  11. "Ad Hoc Committee for Professional Clubs". AFC. 27 July 2010.
  12. 辽宁宏运足球俱乐部正式宣布退出亚冠联赛资格赛. sports.china.com (in Chinese). CDC Corporation. 2 December 2011. Archived from the original on 29 February 2012. Retrieved 5 December 2011.
  13. "FOOTBALL – PERSIPURA (INDONESIA) PROVISIONALLY REINSTATED IN THE AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2012". CAS. 1 February 2012.
  14. "AFC Calendar of Competitions 2012" (PDF). AFC.
  15. "Reds' relief as Adelaide avoid playoff". AFC. 6 December 2011. Archived from the original on 14 September 2012.
  16. "AFC Champions League 2012 Competitions Regulations". AFC. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 July 2012.
  17. "ACL playoff: Adelaide United vs Persipura Jayapura on Feb 16". AFC. 13 February 2012. Archived from the original on 4 December 2012.
  18. "ACL 2012 - Group Stage draw". AFC. 6 December 2011. Archived from the original on 18 September 2012.
  19. "Mouth-watering ties await in R16". AFC. 17 May 2012. Archived from the original on 9 December 2012.
  20. "First-timers face experienced campaigners". AFC. 14 June 2012.
  21. "ACL, AFC Cup draw procedures". AFC. 17 May 2012.
  22. "SF2 winners to host ACL Final". AFC. 14 June 2012. Archived from the original on 17 December 2012.
  23. "Top Scorers (qualifying play-off)". AFC.com.
  24. "Top Scorers (group stage & round of 16)". AFC.com. Archived from the original on 3 February 2013.
  25. "Top Scorers (quarter-finals, semi-finals & final)". AFC.com.
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