Singapore Premier League champions Lion City Sailors and Malaysia Super League winners Johor Darul Takzim (JDT) will meet again after being drawn into Group B of the 2026-27 Asean Club Championship Shopee Cup on June 5, 2026 [1, 2, 3]. Group B also includes Thailand’s Port FC, Vietnam’s Cong An Ha Noi, Cambodia’s PKR Svay Rieng, Indonesia’s Persib Bandung, and the winner of a play-off between Laos’ Ezra FC and Myanmar’s Shan United [1, 2, 3].
Last season, Lion City Sailors lost 3-1 to JDT in their opening group-stage match and failed to advance to the knockout stage for the second year running [1, 2, 3]. Since the tournament rebranded as the Shopee Cup in 2024, no Singapore team has progressed past the group stage [1, 2, 3].
Lion City Sailors captain Hariss Harun said the competition offers a key test against top regional clubs. He added, “We want to qualify for the quarter-finals and try to make a deep run this time round,” stressing the importance of playing familiar opponents including JDT and Persib [1].
The Shopee Cup expanded for 2026-27 from 14 to 16 teams across two groups, and will feature a quarter-final stage where the top four teams in each group advance to the last eight [1, 2, 3]. Group A includes SPL runners-up BG Tampines Rovers alongside defending champions Buriram United, Thai side Ratchaburi FC, Malaysia’s Kuching City, the yet-to-be-decided Vietnam Cup champions, Indonesia’s Borneo FC Samarinda, and the play-off winner between Brunei’s Kasuka FC and the Philippines’ Manila Digger [1, 2, 3].
The tournament will run from September 1, 2026, starting with play-offs, and conclude in June 2027 [1, 2, 3]. Asean Football Federation president Khiev Sameth called the expansion and new knockout stage “an exciting new chapter for club football in [the region]” and a boost to football standards and regional connectivity [1].
