Dates 2–26 March 2013 Goals scored 82 (3.04 per match) | Matches played 27 | |
Teams 19 (from 1 confederation) Attendance 127,100 (4,707 per match) Top scorer(s) Phil Younghusband(5 goals) | ||
The 2014 AFC Challenge Cup qualification phase determined the teams which advanced to the final tournament. The qualification draw was held on 11 December 2012, in AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Contents
Qualified nations
Format
Twenty teams expressed their interest to take part before the deadline of 7 September 2012. The Northern Mariana Islands will make their Challenge Cup debut after having been approved by the AFC to participate (the Northern Mariana Islands is an associate member of the AFC).
It was decided that starting from this tournament, an automatic qualification place will be given to the AFC Challenge Cup host. The hosting rights were given to Maldives in the AFC Competitions Committee meeting on 28 November.
The twenty teams involved in the qualification draw were drawn into five groups of four teams, with each group containing one team from each of the following seeding pots. Teams in each group will play a single round-robin at a pre-determined host country. The five group winners plus the two best second-placed teams will qualify for the finals.
Groups
Groups A, C and D were played 2–6 March 2013, Group B was played 17–21 March 2013, and Group E was played 22–26 March 2013.
In each group, the teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, 0 points for a loss) and tie breakers are in following order:
- Greater number of points obtained in the group matches between the teams concerned
- Goal difference resulting from the group matches between the teams concerned
- Greater number of goals scored in the group matches between the teams concerned (Away goals do not apply)
- Goal difference in all the group matches
- Greater number of goals scored in all the group matches
- Kicks from the penalty mark if only two teams are involved and they are both on the field of play
- Fewer score calculated according to the number of yellow and red cards received in the group matches (1 point for each yellow card, 3 points for each red card as a consequence of two yellow cards, 3 points for each direct red card, 4 points for each yellow card followed by a direct red card)
- Drawing of lots
Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
Group E
Ranking of second-placed teams
To determine the two best second-placed teams, the following criteria were used:
- Number of points obtained in the group matches
- Goal difference in the group matches
- Greater number of goals scored in the group matches
- Fewer score calculated according to the number of yellow and red cards received in the group matches (1 point for each yellow card, 3 points for each red card as a consequence of two yellow cards, 3 points for each direct red card, 4 points for each yellow card followed by a direct red card)
- Drawing of lots
For this ranking, the non-participation of Brunei in Group E meant that the results of the matches in the four other groups between the runner-up and the bottom-placed team were declared null and void based on Article 16.1 and Appendix 2 of the tournament regulations.