AFC Champions League berth not far away: PFF chief

Pakistan Wapda midfelder Mehmood (L) vies with Taiwan Power Company defender Chen Chun Chieh of Chinese Taipei (R) during an AFC President's Cup qualifying round match in Kathmandu on May 18, 2009. -Photo by AFP LAHORE: The president of the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) has claimed that the Asian region will in the future only feature one club level championship instead of the three-tiers currently in place as traditionally weaker sides have become more competitive. Currently, there is the AFC Champions League for elite sides, while the 'developing' and 'emerging' nations compete in the AFC Cup and AFC Presidents Cup respectively. But with Asian Football Confederation putting more focus on emerging nations through their 'Vision Asia' programme, PFF chief Faisal Saleh Hayat believes the AFC Cup and the President's Cup will eventually become one strong league. "It is my belief and hope that this (President's Cup) competition will be gone one day. The clubs playing in AFC President’s Cup have matured and will be able to play at the higher level such as the AFC Cup, and even the AFC Champions League, in the future," Hayat, who is also an AFC EXCO member, said. Since the competition began, the eight founding nations to take part in the President's Cup have been Tajikistan, Nepal, Taiwan, Bhutan, Kyrgyzstan, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Cambodia. Pakistani representatives in the event have been Pakistan WAPDA (2005, 2008, 2009, 2011), Pakistan Army (2006, 2007) and Khan Research Laboratories (2010). Since 2008, clubs from Bangladesh, Myanmar and Turkmenistan have been invited. Other nations that could enter a team, but have yet to do so are Brunei, Timor-Leste, Laos, Philippines, Guam, Macau, Mongolia, North Korea and Afghanistan. Palestinian clubs have also earned entry into the championship this year.