Sharjah set a first
Sharjah FC completed a thrilling comeback by defeating Qatar's Al Gharafa SC 4-3 - the first time the UAE side have won a continental match after trailing by two or more goals. In fact, the victory was only their second in an AFC Champions League match against Qatari opposition.

Buriram get the better of JDT, again
Thailand's Buriram United are now unbeaten in four straight AFC Champions League Elite matches against Johor Darul Ta’zim, their outright longest such run against a single opposition in the competition (W2 D2). The Malaysian team are also just the second side against whom Buriram have recorded consecutive wins in the competition.

Al Ittihad struggle
Al Ittihad Club's return to the top tier of continental football ended in a 2-1 defeat to UAE's to Al Wahda FC and the loss can be attributed to the Saudi Arabian side's sharpness in front of goal, with Al Ittihad attempting just two shots - their lowest tally in a single game in their last five campaigns in the competition.

Lethal Vissel Kobe
Vissel Kobe scored three first half goals for just the second time in AFC Champions League history (four against Thailand's Chiangrai United on 22 April 2022). The Japanese champions have won each of their three games against Shanghai Port, their longest winning run against a single side in the competition.

Victory elusive for Al Shorta, Al Sadd
The 1-1 draw with Al Sadd SC means Iraq's Al Shorta stretched their winless run in opening fixtures of their AFC Champions League campaigns to six (D3 L3). Qatar's Al Sadd, meanwhile, have gone without victory in their last seven openers (D6 L1), including draws in each of the last six.

Shenhua's Korean hurdle
Shanghai Shenhua have now lost their first game against Korea Republic opposition in the AFC Champions League on five out of seven occasions (W2) including each of the last two. They have failed to keep a clean sheet in all seven of these games.

Al Ahli's unbeaten run
Titleholders Al Ahli Saudi FC equalled the third-longest unbeaten run in AFC Champions League history at 19 matches (W15 D4) - level with Japan's Gamba Osaka - and are one game away from matching the record (20 – Al Hilal SFC and Ulsan HD).

Impressive outings
FC Seoul's Park Seong-hoon made 16 clearances against Machida Zelvia, the most by any player on the opening matchday of the AFC Champions League Elite 2025/26 while Chengdu Rongcheng's Jian Tao made eight saves against Ulsan HD, the most by any goalkeeper in the first round of continental action.