Stage set for AFC U-23 Championship 2018 Qualifiers draw [VIDEO]

AFC – KUALA LUMPUR, The stage is set for the AFC U-23 Championship China 2018 Qualifiers draw which will take place at AFC House in the Malaysian capital at 3pm (GMT+8) on Friday.

The qualifying stage will consist of 40 teams, to be divided into 10 centralised groups of four teams. The 10 group winners and five best second-placed teams among all the groups will advance to the finals. The qualifiers will take place on July 19 to 23, 2017.

Although directly qualified as the host, China PR have expressed interest to participate in the qualifying stage. Therefore, if China finish at the top of their group or finish among the five best second-placed teams, the next (6th) second-placed team will qualify to the final competition.

The seedings for the draw will be based on the rankings of the AFC U-23 Championship Qatar 2016. The host Member Associations will be drawn into separate groups.

The 40 Member Associations will be divided into two zones – WEST (West, South & Central) and EAST (East & ASEAN) – with 20 teams each, as follows: