AFC Champions League Elite TV Schedule: Where to Watch & Stream Live

The AFC Champions League Elite is the absolute top tier of men's club football in Asia. Rebranded and restructured to mirror Europe's premier competitions, it brings together the 24 best teams from across the continent. It is a high-stakes, heavily funded tournament where regional giants clash, and the sheer scale of the travel demands alone makes surviving the league phase a massive test of endurance.

Top teams

In the West region, Saudi Pro League heavyweights like Al Hilal and Al Nassr bring massive budgets and global superstars, while UAE's Al Ain and Qatar's Al Sadd consistently know how to navigate the knockout pressure. Over in the East, Japanese staples like Urawa Red Diamonds and Yokohama F. Marinos rely on deep tactical discipline, while South Korea's Ulsan HD and China's Shanghai Port are always dangerous. The gap between the heavy spenders and the tactical underdogs makes the league phase genuinely unpredictable.

Format

The Elite format splits the 24 teams into West and East regions for the initial league phase. Each team plays eight matches against different regional opponents, meaning clubs avoid grueling cross-continent flights just to play a group game. The top eight from each side advance to the Round of 16. From the quarterfinals onward, the competition shifts to a centralized, single-venue knockout hub, turning the business end of the tournament into a high-pressure, winner-takes-all sprint to lift the trophy.

Viewership and broadcast

Broadcast rights are highly regionalized to match the massive geographic footprint. In the Middle East and North Africa, beIN Sports holds the dominant rights, delivering wall-to-wall coverage of the West region fixtures and the finals. In the United States, Paramount+ has become the primary streaming hub. Across Asia, local national broadcasters and dedicated sports networks pick up the rights for their specific markets, while the AFC's official digital platforms provide global access for fans in territories without a dedicated linear TV deal.

Viewership

The tournament pulls huge numbers, especially in the Middle East and East Asia. The addition of Ronaldo, Benzema, and Neymar boosted global interest significantly. AFC reported over 300 million viewers across the 2024-25 season. The final alone drew millions of viewers across Asia and beyond.

TV options in the US

Paramount+ holds the exclusive rights in the United States. Every match streams live on the platform. No cable required, just a subscription. Some matches also show up on the CBS Sports Golazo Network for free, but the full tournament is behind the paywall.

International streaming options

Coverage is fragmented across the region. In the Middle East and North Africa, beIN Sports has the exclusive rights and it's locked behind a subscription. In Japan, U-NEXT carries the games. In Korea and Southeast Asia, SPOTV is the main broadcaster. China and Australia have their own local deals. If you're traveling or living outside your home country, a VPN is often the only way to catch your local team's matches.

Current season

The 2025-26 season kicked off in August 2025. The knockout rounds are happening now. The two-legged semifinals are set for late April, with the final scheduled for May 2026. Al Hilal is the defending champion after beating Yokohama F. Marinos in last year's final.