The 2020 AFC Champions League knockout stage was played from 26 September to 19 December 2020 in Qatar.[1] A total of 16 teams competed in the knockout stage to decide the champions of the 2020 AFC Champions League.[2]
The winners and runners-up of each of the eight groups in the group stage advanced to the round of 16, with both West Region (Groups A–D) and East Region (Groups E–H) having eight qualified teams.
| Region | Group | Winners | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Region | A |  Al-Ahli
|
 Esteghlal
|
| B |  Pakhtakor
|
 Shabab Al-Ahli
| |
| C | Persepolis
|
Al-Taawoun
| |
| D | Al-Nassr
|
 Al-Sadd
| |
| East Region | E |  Beijing FC
|
 Melbourne Victory
|
| F |  Ulsan Hyundai
|
 FC Tokyo
| |
| G | Vissel Kobe
|
Suwon Samsung Bluewings
| |
| H | Yokohama F. Marinos
|
Shanghai SIPG
|
In the knockout stage, the 16 teams played a single-elimination tournament, with the teams split into the two regions until the final. Each tie was played as a single-leg match at centralised venues, instead of the usual home-and-away two-legged basis as planned before the COVID-19 pandemic. Extra time and a penalty shoot-out were used to decide the winners if necessary.
The schedule of each round was as follows.
| Round | West Region | East Region |
|---|---|---|
| Round of 16 | 26–27 September 2020 | 6–7 December 2020 |
| Quarter-finals | 30 September | 10 December 2020 |
| Semi-finals | 3 October 2020 | 13 December 2020 |
| Final | 19 December 2020 | |
The original schedule, as planned before the COVID-19 pandemic, was as follows.
After meetings with representatives of the member associations from the East Region held on 2 March 2020 and from the West Region held on 7–8 March 2020, it was agreed that the round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals would be moved to 10–12 and 24–26 August, 14–16 and 28–30 September, and 20–21 and 27–28 October.[3][4]
On 9 July 2020, the AFC announced the new schedule for the remaining matches, with all matches before the final played at centralised venues. The West Region round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals would be played on 26–27 September, 30 September and 3 October, and the East Region round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals would be played on 3–4 November, 25 November and 28 November. The final would be played on 5 December, at a venue in the West Region.[5][6] On 10 September 2020, the AFC announced that East Region round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals were rescheduled to be played on 6–7 December, 10 December and 13 December, and the final were rescheduled to 19 December.[7]
On 16 July 2020, the AFC announced that Qatar would host all West Region matches after restart.[8] On 27 July 2020, the AFC announced that Malaysia would host two round of 16 matches involving teams from Group G and H, and both quarter-finals and the semi-final of the East Region.[9] However, on 9 October 2020, the AFC announced that following an agreement with Qatar Football Association, all East Region matches after restart would also be played in Qatar.[10] On 16 October 2020, the AFC announced that the final would be played in Qatar.[11]
The following centralised venues in Qatar were used:
The bracket of the knockout stage was determined as follows:
| Round | West Region | East Region |
|---|---|---|
| Round of 16 |
|
|
| Quarter-finals | (Matchups decided by draw, involving four round of 16 winners)
|
(Matchups decided by draw, involving four round of 16 winners)
|
| Semi-finals |
|
|
| Final |
| |
The bracket was decided after the draw for the quarter-finals. The draw for the West Region quarter-finals was held on 28 September 2020, 11:00 AST (UTC+3), and the draw for the East Region quarter-finals was held on 8 December 2020, 11:30 AST (UTC+3), both in Doha, Qatar.[12][13][14][15]
| Round of 16 | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||
| 27 September – Al Rayyan | |||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||
| Al-Nassr | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 30 September – Doha (Jassim) | |||||||||||||
| Al-Taawoun | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Al-Nassr | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 26 September – Al Wakrah | |||||||||||||
| Al-Ahli | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Al-Ahli (p) | 1 (4) | ||||||||||||
| 3 October – Doha (Jassim) | |||||||||||||
| Shabab Al-Ahli | 1 (3) | ||||||||||||
| Al-Nassr | 1 (3) | ||||||||||||
| 27 September – Al Rayyan | |||||||||||||
| Persepolis (p) | 1 (5) | ||||||||||||
| Persepolis | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 30 September – Doha (Jassim) | |||||||||||||
| Al-Sadd | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Persepolis | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 26 September – Al Wakrah | |||||||||||||
| Pakhtakor | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Pakhtakor | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 19 December – Al Wakrah | |||||||||||||
| Esteghlal | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Persepolis | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 6 December – Al Rayyan | |||||||||||||
| Ulsan Hyundai | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Ulsan Hyundai | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 10 December – Al Wakrah | |||||||||||||
| Melbourne Victory | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Ulsan Hyundai | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 6 December – Al Rayyan | |||||||||||||
| Beijing FC | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Beijing FC | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 13 December – Doha (Jassim) | |||||||||||||
| FC Tokyo | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Ulsan Hyundai (a.e.t.) | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 7 December – Doha (Khalifa) | |||||||||||||
| Vissel Kobe | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Vissel Kobe | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 10 December – Al Wakrah | |||||||||||||
| Shanghai SIPG | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Vissel Kobe (p) | 1 (7) | ||||||||||||
| 7 December – Doha (Khalifa) | |||||||||||||
| Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 1 (6) | ||||||||||||
| Yokohama F. Marinos | 2 | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||
| Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 3 | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||
In the round of 16, the winners of one group played against the runners-up of another group from the same region and the matchups were determined by the group stage draw.
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Al-Ahli
|
1–1 (a.e.t.) (4–3 p) |
Shabab Al-Ahli
|
| Pakhtakor
|
2–1 | Esteghlal
|
| Persepolis
|
1–0 | Al-Sadd
|
| Al-Nassr
|
1–0 | Al-Taawoun
|
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Beijing FC
|
1–0 | FC Tokyo
|
| Ulsan Hyundai
|
3–0 | Melbourne Victory
|
| Vissel Kobe
|
2–0 | Shanghai SIPG
|
| Yokohama F. Marinos
|
2–3 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings
|
| Al-Ahli | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Shabab Al-Ahli |
|---|---|---|
| Live Report Stats Report |
|
|
| Penalties | ||
  |
4–3 |
Jaber Ganiev Al-Bloushi Al-Naqbi |
Attendance: 10
Referee: Nawaf Shukralla (Bahrain)
| Pakhtakor | 2–1 | Esteghlal |
|---|---|---|
 47' |
Live Report Stats Report |
|
Attendance: 0
Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)
| Persepolis | 1–0 | Al-Sadd |
|---|---|---|
|
Live Report Stats Report |
Attendance: 0
Referee: Ko Hyung-jin (South Korea)
| Al-Nassr | 1–0 | Al-Taawoun |
|---|---|---|
|
Live Report Stats Report |
Attendance: 0
| Beijing FC | 1–0 | FC Tokyo |
|---|---|---|
|
Live Report Stats Report |
Attendance: 0
Referee: Alireza Faghani (Iran)
| Ulsan Hyundai | 3–0 | Melbourne Victory |
|---|---|---|
77' |
Live Report Stats Report |
Attendance: 0
Referee: Turki Al-Khudhayr (Saudi Arabia)
| Vissel Kobe | 2–0 | Shanghai SIPG |
|---|---|---|
50' |
Live Report Stats Report |
Attendance: 0
Referee: Chris Beath (Australia)
| Yokohama F. Marinos | 2–3 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
|---|---|---|
90+1' |
Live Report Stats Report |
82' 87' |
Attendance: 0
Referee: Hettikamkanamge Perera (Sri Lanka)
In the quarter-finals, the four teams from the West Region played in two ties, and the four teams from the East Region played in two ties, with the matchups decided by draw, without any seeding or country protection. The draw for the West Region quarter-finals was held on 28 September 2020,[12][13] and the draw for the East Region quarter-finals was held on 8 December 2020.[14][15]
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Al-Nassr
|
2–0 | Al-Ahli
|
| Persepolis
|
2–0 | Pakhtakor
|
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Ulsan Hyundai
|
2–0 | Beijing FC
|
| Vissel Kobe
|
1–1 (a.e.t.) (7–6 p) |
Suwon Samsung Bluewings
|
| Al-Nassr | 2–0 | Al-Ahli |
|---|---|---|
55' |
Live Report Stats Report |
Attendance: 0
Referee: Sivakorn Pu-udom (Thailand)
| Persepolis | 2–0 | Pakhtakor |
|---|---|---|
|
Live Report Stats Report |
Attendance: 0
Referee: Adham Makhadmeh (Jordan)
| Ulsan Hyundai | 2–0 | Beijing FC |
|---|---|---|
| Live Report Stats Report |
Attendance: 0
Referee: Mohammed Abdulla Hassan Mohamed (United Arab Emirates)
Attendance: 0
Referee: Adham Makhadmeh (Jordan)
In the semi-finals, the two quarter-final winners from the West Region played against each other, and the two quarter-final winners from the East Region played against each other.
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Al-Nassr
|
1–1 (a.e.t.) (3–5 p) |
Persepolis
|
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Ulsan Hyundai
|
2–1 (a.e.t.) | Vissel Kobe
|
| Al-Nassr | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Persepolis |
|---|---|---|
| Live Report Stats Report |
|
|
| Penalties | ||
|
|
3–5 |
Nemati Sarlak Khalilzadeh Shojaei |
Attendance: 0
Referee: Muhammad Taqi (Singapore)
| Ulsan Hyundai | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Vissel Kobe |
|---|---|---|
119' (pen.) |
Live Report Stats Report |
|
Attendance: 0
Referee: Nawaf Shukralla (Bahrain)
In the final, the two semi-final winners played against each other, at Al Janoub StadiuminAl Wakrah, Qatar.[11]
| Persepolis | 1–2 | Ulsan Hyundai |
|---|---|---|
|
Live Report Stats Report |
Attendance: 8,517
Referee: Abdulrahman Al-Jassim (Qatar)
