Turkmenistan’s “Altyn Asyr” football club started the AFC Challenge League 2025/26 with a narrow 1–0 win over Kyrgyzstan’s “Abdysh-Ata.”
The match took place in Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan, where Group “A” of the West Zone is being played in a centralized format. Competing for a place in the quarterfinals are also the Bhutanese club “Paro” and Oman’s “Al-Shabab.” All matches of this group are being held at the Changlimithang Stadium, located at an altitude of 2,300 meters above sea level, making it one of the highest stadiums in the world. Its construction sparked much debate in football circles since the high altitude affects oxygen absorption in the human body, giving a noticeable advantage to the home team, which is more accustomed to such conditions.
The match between “Altyn Asyr” and “Abdysh-Ata”, officiated by an international Uzbek-Syrian referee team led by FIFA referee Firdavs Norsafarov from Uzbekistan, was attended by 432 spectators.
The “Abdysh-Ata” Football Club from the Kyrgyz city of Kant was founded in 2000 and has been playing in the Kyrgyz Premier League since the 2003 season. “Abdysh-Ata” has won the Kyrgyzstan Cup five times (in 2007, 2009, 2011, 2015, and 2022) and has been national champion three times (in 2022, 2023, and 2024). In 2023, “Abdysh-Ata” made its debut in the AFC Cup, performing impressively by becoming the first club from Kyrgyzstan to not only advance from the group stage of Asia’s second-tier club tournament but also reach the semi-finals.
During the 2024/2025 season, “Abdysh-Ata” participated in the new AFC-organized tournament – the Challenge League, but failed to progress past the group stage. In the current season, the Kyrgyz club is taking part in the group stage of the AFC Challenge League for the second consecutive year, having qualified through the preliminary round by defeating Syria’s “Hattin” in Bishkek 5–2.
It is noteworthy that for this tournament, the reigning champion of Kyrgyzstan strengthened its squad with 11 foreign players and changed four head coaches over the past year. In the AFC Challenge League 2025/26, “Abdysh-Ata” is managed by 42-year-old Khurshit Lutfullaev, a former striker of the Kyrgyz national team and the top scorer of the country’s league in 2008.
Before the opening group match, “Abdysh-Ata”,the reigning champion of Kyrgyzstan, was considered the on-paper favorite against “Altyn Asyr”, the bronze medalist of the 2024 Turkmenistan Championship, especially since two years earlier, in the AFC Cup 2023group stage, the Kyrgyz team had defeated “Altyn Asyr” twice — 3–0 at home and 4–2 away.
Recalling those disappointing results, “Altyn Asyr” head coach Yazguly Hojageldiyev was cautious in his pre-match predictions.
“We watched several games of our opponent and prepared. The first game is always difficult. Before the tournament, I do not consider any team particularly strong since everyone is in the same conditions,” said Hojageldiyev, noting that his team aimed to win every match and achieve the best possible result in the tournament.
The first half saw some advantage from the Kyrgyz club. In the 5th minute, Erbol Atabayev of “Abdysh-Ata” shot just wide of the right post. “Altyn Asyr” responded in the 15th minute with a header from Selim Nurmyradov, but the ball went over the crossbar.
In the 21st minute, E. Atabayev fired dangerously from inside the penalty area, but goalkeeper Dovletyar Berdiyev made the save. Two minutes later, the Kyrgyz captain tried again — his free kick from 30 meters struck the crossbar.
Early in the second half, the three-time champion of Kyrgyzstan missed a great chance to open the score when Muhammed Sanneh (Gambia) crossed to Brazilian Lucas Barreto, who headed from close range into the left side netting.
In the 53rd minute, “Abdysh-Ata” was reduced to ten men after defender Khristiyan Brausman was sent off for fouling Myrat Annayev, who was breaking away towards goal. Taking advantage of their numerical superiority, “Altyn Asyr” seized control of the game and maintained their dominance until the final whistle.
Soon after, Brazilian L. Barreto made a fatal mistake that decided the outcome of the match. In the 58th minute, he blindly passed the ball back to his goalkeeper, but instead gifted it to Myrat Annayev, who rounded goalkeeper Sultan Chomoyev and from the edge of the box sent the ball into the empty net.
Leading 1–0, “Altyn Asyr” continued to attack. In the 68th minute, Rovshengeldi Halmammedov fired dangerously from the edge of the penalty area, but the goalkeeper barely managed to block the shot. Five minutes later, Abdyrahman Annamyradov’s effort from the left went just wide of the right post.
In the 78th minute, Rakhman Myratberdiyev broke through one-on-one with the goalkeeper but failed to score. In the final minute, Suleyman Muhadov shot from the edge of the area, but S. Chomoyev saved comfortably.
In the other Group “A” match, Oman’s “Al-Shabab” defeated Bhutan’s “Paro” by the same score 1–0. The winning goal came in the 26th minute from a penalty, converted by Kenian Markin.
Thus, after the first round, “Altyn Asyr” and “Al-Shabab” lead the group with 3 points each, while “Abdysh-Ata”and “Paro” have no points yet.
In the second round, “Altyn Asyr” will face “Paro”, while “Al-Shabab” will meet “Abdysh-Ata.”
The AFC Challenge League is the third-tier club competition in Asia, featuring teams of a lower level compared to those in the AFC Champions League and the AFC Champions League Two. It was established to give ambitious clubs the opportunity to showcase their football talent.
In the 2025/26 season, 20 clubs are competing for the AFC Challenge League trophy, divided geographically into two zones — West and East. Matches in the five groups are played in a centralized format, with each team facing its group opponents once. Each team participating in the group stage will receive USD 100,000.
Results of the 1st round matches in other groups:
West Zone
Group “B” (matches in Kuwait):
Al-Seeb (Oman) – Bashundhara Kings (Bangladesh) – 3–2,
Al-Ansar (Lebanon) – Al-Kuwait (Kuwait) – 2–3.
Group “C” (matches in Kyrgyzstan):
Safa (Lebanon) – Al-Arabi (Kuwait) – 2–2,
Regar-TadAZ (Tajikistan) – Muras United (Kyrgyzstan) – 0–0.
East Zone
Group “D” (matches in Cambodia):
Preah Khan Reach Svay Rieng (Cambodia) – SP Falcons (Mongolia) – 3–0,
Manila Digger (Philippines) – Ezra (Laos) – 3–1.
Group “E” (matches in Indonesia):
Shan United (Myanmar) – Tainan City (Chinese Taipei) – 1–2,
Dewa United (Indonesia) – Phnom Penh Crown (Cambodia) – 1–1.
At the end of the group stage, eight teams will advance to the quarterfinals: three group winners and the best second-placed team from the West Zone, as well as the two best teams from each group in the East Zone.
The playoff matches will be played on a home-and-away basis. Quarterfinals are scheduled for March, semifinals for April 2026, and the final is set for May 9, 2026.
In the previous edition of the tournament, the winner of the AFC Challenge League was the current champion of Turkmenistan, “Arkadag.”
turkmenistan.gov.tm
