Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Sponsors and Partners
Here, we look at the organisations serving as official sponsors and partners of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
Official Global Partners
Continental
Continental, a German multinational tyre manufacturer, has been an exclusive partner of the AFC and Asian football since 2015.
Continental and the AFC last renewed their partnership in December 2020.
Neom
Neom, an urban area being built by Saudi Arabia in Tabuk, serves as an official global partner to the AFC. In July 2024, Neom and the AFC signed a five-year partnership extension agreement set to run until 2029.
Under the terms of the current deal, Neom is to act as the Official Global Partner of the AFC national team and club competitions, as well as the Presenting Partner of the AFC Women’s Champions League, with the AFC Champions League Elite also set to have Neom as the Official Global Presenting Partner of the eight final matches to be played in Riyadh in 2025.
Credit Saison
Founded in 1951, Credit Saison is a Japanese financial services company affiliated to Mizuho Financial Group. It is the third-largest credit card issuer in the country.
A long-time partner of the AFC, Credit Saison last signed a partnership extension agreement with the Asian governing body in 2021, which was a multi-year deal initially set to run until the end of 2024.
Qatar Airways
Qatar Airways is the flag carrier of Qatar, headquartered in the Qatar Airways Tower in Doha. In December 2023, the AFC and Qatar Airways Group signed a global partnership agreement set to run until the end of 2029.
The deal covers the following AFC tournaments: the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia, the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup, the 2024 U23 Asian Cup in Qatar, the Futsal Asian Cups of 2024, 2026, and 2028, and all AFC youth national team competitions during the period, as well as all matches of the 2023/24 Champions League Knockout Stage and three new AFC club competitions from the 2024/25 season onwards in the Champions League Elite, the Women’s Champions League, and the Champions League Two.
Additionally, Qatar Airways works with the AFC to offer travel packages to football fans.
Yili Group
Yili Group is a Chinese dairy products producer headquartered in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia. It is one of the largest dairy producers in the world.
In July 2021, the AFC announced its partnership with Yili for the 2021–2024 rights cycle. Yili thus became the first Official Global Partner of the AFC national team competitions from China, acting as the exclusive sponsor in the dairy products, water, and other selected beverage categories.
The contract was later renewed in September 2025, with the new deal to run until 2028. The new deal covers more AFC competitions, including the Champions League Elite, the Women’s Champions League, the Asian Qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.
Official Global Supporters
Tecno
Chinese consumer electronics brand Tecno and the AFC announced a global partnership in August 2024, which made the former an Official Global Supporter of the AFC Champions League Elite, the AFC Women’s Champions League, and the AFC Champions League Two for the 2024/25 season.
Through its partnership with the AFC, Tecno aims to deliver unique experiences in Asia and inspire football fans to champion its “Stop at Nothing” spirit together.
Kelme
The Elche-headquartered Spanish sportswear and sports equipment company was announced as an Official Global Supporter of all AFC national team competitions for the 2021–2024 cycle in August 2021.
In November 2024, the two parties signed an extension agreement for a period between 2024 and 2029. The renewed partnership sees Kelme remain an Official Global Supporter of all important AFC club competitions as well as several national team competitions.
Kelme is to supply the official match balls for the following AFC competitions: the 2027 Asian Cup, the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup, the U23 Asian Cups of 2026 and 2028, and the Futsal Asian Cups of 2026 and 2028. Furthermore, the Champions League Elite, the Women’s Champions League, and Champions League Two are also to be covered between 2025 and 2029.
Midea
Midea thus became a Global Supporter of the following AFC club events: the Champions League Elite (starting with the final stages of the 2024/25 season till the 2028/29 season), the Champions League Two, and the Women’s Champions League from the 2025/26 to 2028/29 seasons. Midea gained the exclusive rights to promote its products across these tournaments.
In June 2025, Midea signed a multi-year partnership expansion agreement to become an Official Global Supporter of the AFC’s national team competitions, which thus added the following competitions organised by the governing body to its existing partnership: the 2027 Asian Cup, the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, and the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup.
AFC futsal tournaments were also added to the Midea partnership with the expanded agreement, including the U23 Asian Cups of 2026 and 2028, the 2027 U20 Asian Cup, the U17 Asian Cups of 2026, 2027, and 2028, the U17 Women’s Asian Cups of 2026, 2027, and 2028, the U20 Women’s Asian Cups of 2026 and 2028, and the 2026 and 2028 editions of the Futsal Asian Cup.
VISA
In November 2023, VISA, a global digital payment solutions provider, teamed up with the AFC to become an official regional partner of the 2023 Asian Cup.
In February 2025, the two expanded this deal to make VISA an Official Global Supporter of several key AFC competitions, including the Champions League Elite, the Women’s Champions League, and the Champions League Two for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 seasons, as well as the Asian Qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The partnership entails VISA being involved in brand promotion and brand activation strategies at these tournaments, also offering discounts on tickets to VISA card holders in Asia.
Barbican
In November 2025, Barbican, a non-alcoholic malt beverage brand, officially renewed its partnership with the AFC to remain an Official Global Supporter of its key club competitions for the 2025/26 season.
The current agreement between the two parties covers the following AFC club competitions for the 2025/26 season: the Champions League Elite, the Champions League Two, and the Women’s Champions League.
Official Regional Partners
Earthlink
The AFC stated at the time that the partnership would run until the end of November 2025 and cover all its Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with Earthlink collaborating with the governing body on several brand activation and promotional activities.
talabat
In September 2024, the AFC roped in talabat, a UAE-based on-demand food and Q-commerce app, as an Official Regional Partner in the UAE, Qatar, Jordan, and Iraq.
The AFC stated at the time that the deal would entail regional sponsorship for the 2024/25 edition of the following of its competitions: the Champions League Elite, the Women’s Champions League, and the Champions League Two.
Official Media Partners
FanCode
As per the deal, FanCode is to stream the following AFC national team and club competitions in India during the aforementioned period: the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup, the 2027 Asian Cup, the U23 Asian Cups of 2026 and 2028, and all editions of the Champions League Elite, the Champions League Two, and the Women’s Champions League.
Football Australia
The AFC first partnered with Football Australia in 2021 in a deal that covered its national team competitions for the 2021–2024 cycle.
Football Australia, along with its broadcast partners like Paramount Australia, Network 10, 10 Play, and Paramount+, thus provided fans Down Under extensive coverage of AFC national team competitions.
In August 2024, the AFC and Football Australia renewed their partnership for the 2025–2028 cycle. The current agreement covers the following AFC national team competitions in the aforementioned period: the 2027 Asian Cup, the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, the U23 Asian Cups of 2026 and 2028, and the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup.
Sport 24
Sport 24, owned by global sports marketing agency IMG, is a dedicated live sports channel for cruises and airlines. In December 2024, the AFC renewed its partnership with Sport 24 for broadcasting rights for its competitions on airlines and cruise ships around the world.
The agreement includes coverage of the following AFC competitions: the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, the 2027 Asian Cup, the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup, and the 2025/26 to 2028/29 editions of the Champions League Elite.
BG Sports
In August 2025, the AFC and BG Sports announced an extension of their initial deal signed in September 2024 for the exclusive coverage of AFC competitions in Thailand.
The multi-year extension entails BG Sports broadcasting all AFC competitions in Thailand from the 2025/26 to the 2028/29 seasons, streaming the matches live on its YouTube channel and expanding its coverage via linear free-to-air TV broadcasts of the 2027 Asian Cup.
Additionally, the deal entails BG Sports broadcasting all games involving Thai teams in the following AFC tournaments: the 2027 Asian Cup, the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup, the 2026 and 2028 U23 Asian Cups, the final round of the women’s qualifiers for the 2028 Olympics, the 2027 U20 Asian Cup, the 2026, 2027, and 2028 U17 Asian Cups, the 2026 and 2028 U20 Women’s Asian Cups, the 2026, 2027, and 2028 U17 Women’s Asian Cups, the 2026 and 2028 Futsal Asian Cups, and the 2025/26 to 2028/29 editions of the Women’s Champions League.
ESPN
In September 2021, ESPN signed a media rights agreement with the AFC for Latin America, Central America, and non-exclusively in the Caribbean to broadcast its key competitions for the 2021–2024 cycle.
The two parties renewed their partnership in March 2025, as per which ESPN is set to continue as the Exclusive Media Partner of AFC competitions in South America and Central America as well as the non-exclusive partner in the Caribbean for the 2025–28 cycle.
The current agreement between the two parties covers the following AFC tournaments: the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the 2027 Asian Cup, the Champions League Elite, and the Champions League Two.
MNC
This media rights agreement, covering Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Timor-Leste, includes the following AFC competitions: the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup, the 2027 Asian Cup, the U23 Asian Cups of 2026 and 2028, the Champions League Elite, the Women’s Champions League, and the Champions League Two.
Sportdigital
In September 2020, the AFC announced a partnership with German sports media broadcaster Sportdigital for coverage of its competitions for the 2021–2024 cycle in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. The two later extended this partnership in December 2024 for the 2025–2028 cycle.
The agreement includes the following key AFC tournaments: the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, the 2027 Asian Cup, the Champions League Elite, the Champions League Two, the U23 Asian Cups of 2026 and 2028, and the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup.
Migu
In November 2025, the AFC announced a multi-year media rights partnership with Migu, a China Mobile-owned digital content company, bringing it on board as the Official Media Partner for its national team and club football competitions in China.
The partnership entails “extensive broadcast coverage” of AFC competitions in the country via Migu Video, the company’s flagship platform.
The following AFC international football tournaments are covered under the agreement: the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, the 2027 Asian Cup, the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup, and the final round of women’s qualifiers for the 2028 Olympics.
The following AFC youth football and futsal tournaments are also covered under the agreement: the 2026 and 2028 U23 Asian Cups, the 2027 U20 Asian Cup, the 2026 and 2028 U17 Asian Cups, the 2026 and 2028 U20 Women’s Asian Cups, the U17 Women’s Asian Cups from 2026 to 2028, and the 2026 and 2028 Futsal Asian Cups.
Additionally, the Champions Elite, the Champions League Two, and the Women’s Champions League are the AFC club football tournaments whose 2025/26 to 2028/29 seasons are covered under the governing body’s agreement with Migu.
