Uzbekistan to host AFC Women’s Club Championship 2022™ – Pilot Tournament in the West

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has confirmed the first of two host Member Associations (MAs) for the biggest-ever edition of the AFC Women’s Club Championship™ – Pilot Tournament, which will be held from August 15 to 28, 2022.

The Uzbekistan Football Association (UFA) will host the tournament for the clubs in the West, which is scheduled for August 20 to 26, while the host and match dates for the East will be determined in due course in the first edition to be held across the two AFC regions.

The confirmation of the full line-up of participating clubs for both regions are in the final stages with as many as seven participating clubs from India, Islamic Republic of Iran, Jordan, and Uzbekistan (West) as well as Chinese Taipei, Myanmar, and Thailand (East) expected to compete for supremacy, three more than the previous two pilot editions in 2019 and 2021.

The coveted Final between the West and East winners is poised to take place in conjunction with the AFC Cup 2022™ Final scheduled for October 22.

Japanese club Nippon TV Beleza were the first side to win the inaugural pilot women’s club tournament in Yongin, Korea Republic, in 2019, while home side Amman Club clinched the 2021 edition in Aqaba, Jordan.

The pilot editions further underline the AFC’s ambitions to strengthen the foundations of professional women’s club football in the Continent and serve as the prelude for the impending launch of the inaugural AFC Women’s Champions League in 2024.

In addition, the Club Licensing process, which has served as a landmark development tool for the men’s club game over the last decade, will also be implemented as a pilot project for participating clubs this year, with the regular cycle to begin in 2023.