"Altyn asyr" will play with teams from Oman, Bhutan and Kyrgyzstan

Turkmen soccer club Altyn Asyr learned its opponents in the group stage of the AFC Challenge League 2025/26 after the draw held in Kuala Lumpur. The team was placed in Group A along with Oman's Al-Shabab, Bhutan's Paro and Kyrgyzstan's Abdysh Ata. Arzuw.news reports with reference to Turkmenistan: Golden Age.

The tournament will involve 20 teams divided into two zones - Western and Eastern. Each team will receive 100 thousand US dollars for participation in the group stage.

"Altyn Asyr" was in the first basket along with Omani "Al-Sib" and Tajik "Regar-TadAZ", which excluded the possibility of meetings with these teams at the group stage.

The opponents of the Turkmen team have different experience of performances. "Al-Shabab" from the city of Barka, founded in 2003, took sixth place in the national league of Oman and won the Sultan Qaboos Cup, which gave it the right to debut in the AFC Challenge League.

Bhutan Paro, established in 2018, have been crowned champions of their country five times in 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. In August 2024, the club caught the eye by signing Japanese player Keisuke Honda on a one-match contract.

"Abdysh-Ata" from the Kyrgyz city of Kant, founded in 2000, has won the Kyrgyz championship three times in 2022, 2023 and 2024, and has also won the national cup five times. In 2023, the team reached the semifinals of the AFC Cup.

Group A matches will be played in a centralized format in Bhutan from October 25 to November 1, 2025. Eight teams will qualify for the quarterfinals: the three group winners and the best second team from the West Zone, and the top two teams from each group in the East Zone.

The quarterfinal matches are scheduled for March 2026, the semifinals will take place in April 2026, and the tournament finals will be held on May 9, 2026.