AFC Challenge League 2024-25, live streaming: East Bengal return to continental arena - full schedule, where to watch in India

India’s East Bengal FC will hope to put their torrid domestic form behind them when they start their AFC Challenge League 2024-25 campaign against Paro FC at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu, Bhutan on Saturday.

East Bengal’s AFC Challenge League football matches will be available on live streaming in India.

EBFC entered the AFC Challenge League after losing to Turkmenistani club Altyn Asyr by a 3-2 scoreline in the 2024-25 AFC Champions League Two (ACL Two) playoffs held at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata back in August.

The third-tier continental football competition for Asian clubs after the AFC Champions League Elite and ACL Two, the AFC Challenge League was known as the President's Cup until the previous season.

The campaign will also see East Bengal’s return to the main draw of any continental competition since the AFC Cup 2015. The Red and Golds were also the AFC Cup semi-finalists in 2013.

The AFC Challenge League 2024-25 is an 18-team tournament and features 12 clubs from West Asia and six from East Asia.

Twelve West Asian teams have been drawn into three groups of four each (Group A-C) while the six from the Eastern part of the continent have been split into two groups (Group D-E) of three each.

After round-robin group-stage matches, eight teams will make the quarter-finals. The winners of Group A to C along with the best runners-up from these three West Asian groups will make the final eight. The winners and runner-ups of Group D and E will also qualify.

East Bengal are in Group A with Bhutanese champions Paro FC, Bangladeshi giants Bashundhara Kings and Lebanese champs Nejmeh.

All Group A matches of the AFC Challenge League 2024-25 will be played at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu, Bhutan.

Local side Paro FC will be East Bengal’s first challenge in the competition. The Red and Gold Brigade are in the midst of a torrid season domestically and have lost all six of their matches in the ongoing Indian Super League (ISL) season.

The string of poor results has already seen former coach Carles Cuadrat get the axe. Oscar Bruzon has been brought on board to turn the team’s fortunes around but the Spaniard's term began with a 2-1 loss to Odisha FC earlier this week.

The Red and Gold faithful will be hoping that a change in venue and competition can halt the team’s poor run this season.

Bruzon has named a 26-member squad for the group stage of the AFC Challenge League 2024-25.

Where to watch AFC Challenge League 2024-25 live in India

Live streaming of East Bengal’s AFC Challenge League 2024-25 Group A matches will be available on Paro FC’s official YouTube channel.

There will be no live telecast of the AFC Challenge League 2024-25 on any TV channel in India.

East Bengal’s AFC Challenge League 2024-25 schedule

As per Indian Standard Time (IST)

AFC Challenge League 2024-25: East Bengal squad

Goalkeepers: Prabhsukhan Gill, Debjit Majumder, Aditya Patra

Defenders: Provat Lakra, Anwar Ali, Lalchungnunga, Mohamad Rakip, Hijazi Maher, Nishu Kumar, Gursimrat Gill, Hector Yuste, Monotosh Chakladar

Midfielders: Jeakson Singh, Madih Talal, Nandhakumar Sekar, Saul Crespo, Souvik Chakrabarti, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Naseeb Rahman, Shyamal Besra, PV Vishnu, Sayan Banerjee

Forwards: Dimitrios Diamantakos, Cleiton Silva, David Lalhlansanga, Jesin TK