The defending champions, Ulsan Hyundai, failed to qualify for the tournament.

The schedule of the competition was as follows (all draws held at AFC headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia).

[7] The following changes in the format of the competition were made compared with the previous year: The draw for the qualifying play-off was held on 6 December 2012.

[9] Each tie was played as a single match, with extra time and penalty shoot-out used to decide the winner if necessary.

The winners of each tie advanced to the group stage to join the 29 automatic qualifiers.

[2] The draw for the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final (to decide the order of two legs) was held on 20 June 2013.