Indian football is currently in a rut as a result of the national team’s recent underwhelming performance in several events, and it will be challenging for India to directly qualify for the major event due to new reforms imposed by the Asian Football Confederation in their upcoming tournaments.
India no longer ranks among the top competitors on the continent due to the new rule. According to the regulations set forth by the regulatory body, football teams will now contend for three spots rather than two.
Simply said, the AFC will launch a three-tier tournament, with the ACL serving as the top tier, the AFC Cup serving as the second, and a third tier that has not yet been decided.
Starting in 2024, India won’t be able to participate in the AFC Champions League. Going forward, India will need to rely on both domain-direct and playoff for places.
A total of 24 teams will participate in the competition, with 12 teams each in the east and west zones. Starting in the 2024 season, 32 teams will compete against one another.
Following the home and away match in the group stage, the top two teams advance to the round of 16. There will be eight groups with four teams each.
The event’s championship match will be decided by a single leg.
India now has the 17th position out of the 47 Asian member associations.
According to a recent press release from the AFC, it has been made clear that, starting with the 2024–25 season, the performance of the Member’s Association would solely be dependent on the past eight years of performance to reflect their historical performance.
