The 2023 Arab Club Champions Cup, officially named the 2023 King Salman Club Cup () after Salman of Saudi Arabia, where the final tournament was hosted, was the 30th season of the Arab Club Champions Cup, the Arab world's club football tournament organised by UAFA.
A total of 37 teams participated in the tournament, which started with preliminary and qualifying rounds, before the final tournament was held in Saudi Arabia in the summer of 2023 across four cities: Abha, Al Bahah, Khamis Mushait and Taif. A total of $10 million of prize money was awarded.
Moroccan side Raja CA were the defending champions, having won their second title in the previous edition, but they lost 3–1 in the quarter-finals to Saudi team Al-Nassr. In the final, Al-Nassr defeated local rivals Al-Hilal 2–1 after extra time to win their first title.
Prize money and sponsorship The prize money was as follows:
Prize moneyWinners$6,000,000 Runners-up$2,500,000Semi-finalists$200,000Quarter-finalists$150,000Group stage$100,000Qualifying rounds$20,000
Sponsorship of 2023 Arab Club Champions Cup:
Sponsorship Fly Emirates
Association team allocation A total of 37 teams participated in the tournament.
On March 3, Egyptian club Al Ahly announced its withdrawal from the competition due to scheduling issues.
Association ranking The team entries allocation was based on the FIFA World Ranking of the associations on 22 December 2022. +Asia ZoneAssociationTeams (19 total)Group stageQualifying roundPreliminary round1 (host)49310260110368110470010575020684010785020890010993010101000101114801012154001+Africa ZoneAssociationTeams (18 total)Group stageQualifying roundPreliminary round1112102301203391104401105103010612002071280208129001919300110204001
Format and distribution
Teams entering in this roundTeams advancing from previous roundPreliminary round(4 teams) 4 teamsFirst qualifying round(24 teams) 23 teams 1 winner from the preliminary roundSecond qualifying round(12 teams) 12 winners from the first qualifying roundGroup stage(16 teams) 10 teams: 6 winners from the second qualifying roundKnockout phase(8 teams)4 group winners from the group stage 4 group runners-up from the group stage
Teams The labels in the parentheses show each team's position from their last season domestic league table standing.
Entry roundTeamsGroup stage Raja CA Al-Ittihad Jeddah CR Belouizdad Zamalek Al-Shorta Wydad AC Al-Sadd Al-Hilal Espérance de Tunis Al-Nassr Qualifying rounds JS Saoura Manama Al-Muharraq Tala'ea El-Gaish Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya Shabab Al-Ordon Kuwait SC Bourj Al-Ittihad Tripoli Al-Ahli Tripoli FC Nouadhibou ASFAR Al-Seeb Al-Nahda Shabab Al-Khalil Qatar SC Al-Shabab Al-Hilal Omdurman Al-Merrikh Tishreen US Monastir CS Sfaxien Al-Wahda Preliminary rounds Volcan Club Arta Solar 7 Horseed FC Fahman Notes
Schedule The schedule was as follows.
StageRoundDraw dateFirst legSecond legHostPreliminary roundsFirst roundNo draw2 March 2023 Saudi ArabiaPlayoff round5 March 2023Qualifying roundsFirst round6 March 202313 March – 7 April 202321 March – 16 April 2023 Home and away matchesSecond round8 May – 4 July 202311 May – 7 July 2023Group stageMatchday 127–28 July 2023 Saudi ArabiaMatchday 230–31 July 2023Matchday 32–3 August 2023Knockout stageQuarter-finals5–6 August 2023Semi-finals9 August 2023Final12 August 2023
Preliminary rounds
Four teams played the preliminary rounds, starting with the first round and then a play-off round in a one-leg knockout format. One team from the preliminary round advanced to the qualifying rounds.
Preliminary rounds teams The following teams entered the preliminary rounds as the lowest FIFA ranking associations. Teams entered the preliminary rounds
Bracket
First preliminary round
Playoff round
Qualifying rounds
24 teams were drawn into two-leg knockout stage format. 23 teams entered directly to the first qualifying round, plus one team advanced from the preliminary round. 12 teams advanced to the second qualifying round playing a two-leg knockout stage format. Six teams only advanced from the second qualifying round to the group stage.
Seeding The following 24 teams were divided based on their football association's FIFA Ranking. Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4 Notes
Bracket
Qualifier 1
Qualifier 2
Qualifier 3
Qualifier 4
Qualifier 5
Qualifier 6
First qualifying round
The first legs were played between 13 March and 7 April 2023, and the second legs between 21 March and 16 April 2023.
Notes
ASFAR won 5–4 on aggregate.
Al-Wahda won 4–0 on aggregate.
2–2 on aggregate. Tishreen won on away goals.
Al-Shabab won 5–1 on aggregate.
Al-Hilal Omdurman won 4–2 on aggregate.
1–1 on aggregate. CS Sfaxien won on away goals.
Al-Ahli Tripoli won 3–2 on aggregate.
Al-Nahda won 5–0 on aggregate. Al-Nahda were awarded a 3–0 walkover victory for the second leg after Shabab Al-Khalil refused to change the home ground from Dura International Stadium, in Dura, Hebron to Petra Stadium in Amman, Jordan.
US Monastir won 6–0 on aggregate.
2–2 on aggregate. Al-Muharraq won 5–4 on penalties.
FC Nouadhibou won 4–2 on aggregate.
Kuwait SC won 2–1 on aggregate.
Second qualifying round The second qualifying first legs were played between 7 May and 4 July 2023, and the second legs between 11 May and 7 July 2023.
Notes
Al-Wahda won 3–0 on aggregate.
Al-Shabab won 4–2 on aggregate.
CS Sfaxien won 2–1 on aggregate.
Al-Ahli Tripoli won 4–2 on aggregate.
US Monastir won 3–0 on aggregate.
Kuwait SC won 3–1 on aggregate.
Final tournament
The final tournament was held in Saudi Arabia from 27 July to 12 August 2023, across four cities: Abha, Al Bahah, Khamis Mushait and Taif. 16 teams were drawn into four groups of four. Ten teams already entered the group stage directly as league champions from Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia. In addition the previous edition holders and runners-up, and one invitee selected by UAFA from the host nation enters directly to the group stage. Six teams advanced from the qualifying rounds to complete the 16-teams group stage. The winners and runners-up of each group advanced to the knockout stage.
Qualified teams All of the qualified teams for the group stage were as follows:
Teams entered directly to the group stage Teams qualified from the qualifying round
Seeding 10 teams were directly qualified to the final tournament divided in pot 1, pot 2, and pot 3 based on their football association's FIFA Ranking. The other 6 teams' slots who qualified from the qualifying rounds were drawn in pot 3 and pot 4 prior to this stage. Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4
Draw result + Group A Team A1 A2 Al-Ittihad Jeddah A3 CS Sfaxien A4 Al-Shorta+ Group B Team B1 Al-Sadd B2 Wydad AC B3 Al-Ahli Tripoli B4 Al-Hilal+ Group C Team C1 Zamalek C2 C3 Al-Nassr C4 Al-Shabab+ Group D Team D1 CR Belouizdad D2 Raja CA D3 Kuwait SC D4 Al-Wahda
Venues Final tournament venues were played in Saudi Arabia in four host cities in Abha, Al Bahah, Khamis Mushait and Taif. Saudi Arabia Abha Al Bahah Khamis Mushait Taif Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Stadium King Saud Sport City Stadium Damac Club Stadium King Fahd Stadium Capacity: 20,000 Capacity: 10,000 Capacity: 5,000 Capacity: 20,000
Officials
Asia zone
Referees Ali Sabah Mohanad Qasim Sarray Adham Makhadmeh Ahmad Al Ali Abdulrahman Al-Jassim Mohammed Al Shammari Majed Al-Shamrani Mohammed Al Hoish Khalid Al Turais Hanna Hattab Ammar Al-Jeneibi Adel Al Naqbi
Assistant referees Abdulla Saleh Mohamed Jaafar Salman Hayder Abdulhasan Ali Ameer Dawood Hussein Ahmed Al Ali Mohammad Abu Loum Ahmed Al Roalle Abdulhadi Manea Ahmad Sadeq Hussein Abo Yehia Abu Bakar Al Amri Rashid Al Ghaithi Taleb Salem Al Marri Saoud Ahmed Al Maqaleh Faisal Al Qahtani Hesham Al Refai Ali Ahmad Mazen Zazfoun Jasem Abdulla Al Ali Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi
Africa zone
Referees Lotfi Bekouassa Lahlou Benbraham Mahmoud El Banna Amin Omar Abdulrazg Ahmed Abdulwahid Huraywidah Dahane Beida Samir Guezzaz Redouane Jiyed Sadok Selmi
Assistant referees Mokrane Gourari Abbes Zerhouni Mahmoud Ashour Ahmed Hossam Eldin Mahmoud Abo El Regal Wahed Al Jaahawe Attia Amsaaed Brahim Hmade Mohamed Yahia Youssouf Mustapha Akerkad Lahcen Azgaou Omer Hamid Ahmed Mohammed Ibrahim Haythem Guirat Khalil Hassani Aymen Ismail
Group stage
16 teams were drawn into four groups of four. The winners and runners-up of each group advanced to the knockout stage.
Tiebreakers The teams were ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If tied on points, tiebreakers were applied in the following order (Regulations IV. 8): Goal difference in all group matches; Goals scored in all group matches; Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams; Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams; Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams; Fair play points in all group matches (only one deduction could be applied to a player in a single match): Drawing of lots.
Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
Knockout stage
Qualified teams The knockout phase involved the eight teams which qualified as winners and runners-up of each of the eight groups in the group stage. The quarter-finals were followed by the semi-finals and final, played in a single leg knockout format. In the case of a draw after 90 minutes, extra time would be played only in the final.
GroupWinnersRunners-upA Al-Ittihad Jeddah Al-ShortaB Al-Sadd Al-HilalC Al-Shabab Al-NassrD Raja CA Al-Wahda
Bracket
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
Top goalscorers Final tournament
RankPlayerTeamTotal1 Cristiano Ronaldo Al-Nassr 1111262 Karim Benzema Al-Ittihad Jeddah111 33 Malcom Al-Hilal 112 Michael Al-Hilal 1 1 Salem Al-Dawsari Al-Hilal 1 1 Sergej Milinković-Savić Al-Hilal 11 Aso Rostam Al-Shorta 2 Éver Banega Al-Shabab 11 Akram Afif Al-Sadd 2 Sayed Abdallah Zamalek2 Zizo Zamalek1 1 38 players scored 1 goalRankPlayerTeamTotal12 Rúben Neves Al-Hilal 1 1 Abdullah Al-Hamdan Al-Hilal 1 Mohamed Kanno Al-Hilal 1 Talisca Al-Nassr 1 Seko Fofana Al-Nassr 1 Abdulelah Al-Amri Al-Nassr 1 Abdulaziz Al-Elewai Al-Nassr 1 Sultan Al-Ghannam Al-Nassr 1 Alaa Abdul-Zahra Al-Shorta1 Ahmed Farhan Al-Shorta 1 Ameer Sabah Khudhair Al-Shorta 1 Abdoul Madjid Moumouni Al-Shorta 1 Gustavo Cuéllar Al-Shabab 1 Yousri Bouzok Raja CA1 Bouchaib Arrassi Raja CA1 Zakaria El Wardi Raja CA 1 Houssine Rahimi Raja CA 1 Mohamed Zrida Raja CA 1 Baghdad Bounedjah Al-Sadd 1 Paulo Otávio Al-Sadd 1 Gonzalo Plata Al-Sadd 1 Tarek Salman Al-Sadd 1 Romarinho Ittithad Jeddah 1 Abderrazak Hamdallah Ittithad Jeddah1 Ahmed Bamsaud Ittithad Jeddah 1 Cristian Guanca Al-Wahda 1 Facundo Kruspzky Al-Wahda 1 João Pedro Al-Wahda1 Suhail Al-Mansoori Al-Wahda1 Mohamed Islam Belkhir CR Belouizdad 1 Aimen Bouguerra CR Belouizdad 1 Mouad Hadded CR Belouizdad1 Ahmed Al-Dhefiri Kuwait SC1 Taha Yassine Khenissi Kuwait SC 1 Ahmed Krawa'a Al-Ahli Tripoli 1 Saifeddine Bouhra Wydad AC 1 Ayoub El Amloud Wydad AC 1 Oussama Bouguerra Espérance de Tunis1
Preliminary and qualifying rounds
RankPlayerTeamTotal1 Taha Yassine Khenissi Kuwait SC 1113 Boubacar Traore US Monastir 2 1 Abdelghafour Mihri Al-Ittihad Tripoli 34 Mohamed Marhoon Kuwait SC 1 12 Mohamed El Monir Al-Ahli Tripoli 1 1 Anis Saltou Al-Ahli Tripoli 11 Hemeya Tanjy FC Nouadhibou 2 Ousmane Faye FC Nouadhibou 2 Mustapha Sahd ASFAR 11 Omar Al-Maliki Al-Nahda 1 1 Aaron Boupendza Al-Shabab 11 Ahmed Abdu Jaber Al-Shabab Mohamed Abdelrahman Al-Hilal Omdurman 1 1 Abdulrazzaq Al-Mohamad Tishreen 11 Idriss Mhirsi US Monastir 2 Allan Al-Wahda 1 1 Abdul Aziz Al-Muqbali Al-Seeb 2 Aidarous Awad Fahman 2