Indonesian international defender Sandy Walsh is gearing up for the match of a lifetime as his club, Yokohama F. Marinos, prepares to take on Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr in the 2024/25 AFC Champions League Elite quarterfinals. Meanwhile, Thai powerhouse Buriram United is set to face another Saudi giant, Al Ahli.
The draw for the ACLE final rounds took place on Monday at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, setting the stage for a thrilling showdown.
This year’s final rounds will feature seven high-stakes matches played in a centralized format from April 25 to May 3 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. With no regional restrictions in place, Saudi Arabian giants and four-time Asian champions Al Hilal, the tournament’s top seed, will take on South Korean underdogs Gwangju FC, who are eager to add another major upset to their growing list of triumphs.
Al Hilal’s fierce rivals, Al Nassr, led by superstar Ronaldo, will face Japan’s Yokohama as both teams chase their first-ever AFC Champions League Elite title. This highly anticipated clash will draw significant Southeast Asian interest, with Indonesian defender Walsh set to go up against five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo, alongside Al Nassr’s other stars, including Sadio Mané, Jhon Durán, and Aymeric Laporte.
Another matchup set to capture Southeast Asian attention is the clash between Buriram and Al Ahli, where Thai stars Suphanat Mueanta, Supachai Chaided, Theerathon Bunmathan, and Sasalak Haiprakhon will face off against Al Ahli’s star-studded lineup featuring Ivan Toney, Riyad Mahrez, Roberto Firmino, and Edouard Mendy.
The final quarterfinal matchup will see Japan’s Kawasaki Frontale take on Qatar’s Al Sadd, the 2011 champions. Kawasaki will be determined to break their quarterfinal curse and advance to the last four for the first time in club history.
The winner of the Al Hilal-Gwangju matchup will face the victor of the Al Ahli-Buriram tie in the semi-finals, while the Yokohama-Al Nassr winner will meet the triumphant side from the Kawasaki-Al Sadd clash.
The quarter-finals will kick off on April 25, with the second and third fixtures scheduled for April 26, and the final last-eight encounter set for April 27.
The semi-finals will take place on April 29 and 30, leading up to the grand finale on May 3 at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium, where the ultimate champions will be crowned and a record-breaking prize of at least USD 12 million will be on the line.