2016 AFC Cup group stage
The 2016 AFC Cup group stage was played from 23 February to 11 May 2016. A total of 32 teams competed in the group stage to decide the 16 places in the knockout stage of the 2016 AFC Cup.
The draw for the group stage was held on 10 December 2015, 15:00 MYT (UTC+8), at the Petaling Jaya Hilton Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The 32 teams were drawn into eight groups of four. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same group.
The seeding of each team in the draw was determined by their association and their qualifying position within their association. The mechanism of the draw was as follows:
The following 32 teams (16 from West Zone, 16 from East Zone) entered into the group stage draw, which included the 28 direct entrants and the four winners of the qualifying play-off, whose identity were not known at the time of the draw.
In the group stage, each group was played on a home-and-away round-robin basis. The winners and runners-up of each group advanced to the round of 16.
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 would be applied in the following order (Regulations Article 11.5):
The schedule of each matchday was as follows.
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