A fiery Causeway battle against 11-time Malaysia Super League champions Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) awaits the Lion City Sailors after they were drawn into Group B of the 2025/26 ASEAN Club Championship (ACC) Shopee Cup.
The other teams to be drawn with the Sailors in the group are 2024/25 Thai League 1 runners-up Bangkok United, reigning V.League 1 champions Nam Định FC, Cambodian Premier League champions PKR Svay Rieng, and the winner of a two-legged playoff tie between Laos’ Ezra FC and and Myanmar’s Shan United.
There is another familiar opponent for the Sailors in the form of Bangkok United, who they last crossed paths with in 2023/24 Asian Football Confederation Champions League, losing both group-stage encounters 2-1 and 1-0.
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Meanwhile, Group A consists of Malaysia’s Selangor FA, Vietnam’s ’s Công An Hà Nội (CAHN) FC, fellow Singapore Premier League (SPL) representative BG Tampines Rovers, the winner of the playoff tie between Brunei’s Kasuka FC and Philippines’ Dynamic Herb (DH) Cebu, as well as two Thai clubs in defending champions Buriram United and BG Pathum United.
The draw for the second edition of the ACC Shopee Cup took place in Bangkok, Thailand on Friday afternoon (4 July).
The Sailors are set to fly the Singapore flag once more in Southeast Asia’s premier club competition which kicks off in August, as they make their second consecutive appearance in the tournament.
Teams will compete in a single round-robin format, with the top two teams from each group progressing to the semi-finals.
The inaugural edition of the Shopee Cup concluded in dramatic fashion this past May, with Buriram edging CAHN FC on penalties after a thrilling 5-5 aggregate draw.
For the Sailors, the objective is clear: to build on last season’s debut and secure a spot in the knockout stages.
In their maiden campaign, the Sailors held eventual champions Buriram and defeated Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur City at home, but fell to Borneo FC Samarinda, CAHN and Kaya FC-Iloilo on the road.
“We didn’t have the best of campaigns last season and felt we didn’t show our full potential. But our run in last season’s ACL Two proved that we have what it takes to compete at the continental level, and now we’re hungry to show that again in Southeast Asia,” said captain Hariss Harun.
“It’s an exciting draw for us, especially going up against JDT— that always adds a bit of Causeway rivalry. Our target is clear: we want to at least make the semi-finals.”
The Sailors’ full fixtures list for the 2025/26 Shopee Cup will be confirmed in due course.
