East Bengal Women Create History, Become 2nd Indian Team To Qualify For AFC Champions League

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East Bengal FC's women's team scripted history on Sunday by booking their place in the main draw of the AFC Women's Champions League 2025-26. The Red and Gold brigade became only the second Indian club to reach the group stage of Asia's premier women's competition, following in the footsteps of Odisha FC, who debuted last season.

The landmark achievement came after East Bengal held Hong Kong China's Kitchee SC to a 1-1 draw in their final Group E match of the preliminary round at the National Sports Complex in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Needing just a point to advance, Anthony Andrews' side showed grit and composure under pressure to top the group.

India international Sangita Basfore gave East Bengal the perfect start, slotting home in the ninth minute after being set up by Ugandan striker Fazila Ikwaput, the match-winner from their opening 1-0 victory over Phnom Penh Crown FC. The early lead allowed East Bengal to dictate terms through most of the first half, keeping Kitchee on the back foot.

The momentum, however, shifted after the break. Kitchee's Ho Mui Mei equalised in the 59th minute, ensuring a tense final half-hour. With qualification on the line, East Bengal's defenders had to stay sharp against repeated waves of attack. They held firm until the final whistle, sealing the crucial point that secured top spot in Group E.

The preliminary stage of the tournament featured 19 clubs split across five groups. Only the group winners and the best-placed runners-up would move into the 12-team main draw, where they will join six automatically qualified clubs from Asia's strongest leagues.

East Bengal earned their ticket to continental football after lifting the Indian Women's League (IWL) title last season. Now, they will represent India on the continental stage between November 9 and 23, when the AFC Women's Champions League group stage gets underway.

This will be just the second edition of the AWCL, which was launched in 2024-25. Odisha FC had carried the Indian flag in the inaugural season, progressing from the preliminaries before bowing out in the group phase. East Bengal will now aim to go one step further and make a deeper mark in Asia.