Adelaide United take on Vietnamese side Công An Hà Nội at Coopers Stadium on Tuesday night as they bid to qualify for the prestigious AFC Champions League Elite.
The Reds have home advantage for the one-off clash against their Vietnamese opponents in what is a playoff clash to determine who qualifies directly into the ACL Elite competition in season 2026/27.
The current Vietnamese champions, Công An Hà Nội competed in last season’s ACL Two competition where they faced off against Isuzu UTE A-League side Macarthur Bulls whilst they also boast former Adelaide midfielder Stefan Mauk amongst their midfield ranks.
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Craig Goodwin of Adelaide United
Should Adelaide prevail it will see the club bank over $1.1 million AUD ($800,000 USD) in prize money, while the loser of the tie drops down into the ACL Two competition for this coming season.
The South Australians are making their first appearance in Asia since the 2016-17 season. The Reds memorably made the AFC Champions League final in 2008 under Auerlio Vidmar, going down to Gamba Osaka 5-0.
Andrioli is hoping tonight’s match will be the start of a similar journey.
“We did our homework. We did as much as we could looking back on previous games and trying to analyse the opposition thoroughly,” Andrioli said.
Adelaide United after the first leg of the AFC Champions League final
“The boys are ready for the match and hopefully we can reward our supporters tomorrow night and get the result.
“It’s not just the prize money that comes into it, but also the commercial repercussions and what we can use moving forward.”
For Socceroos and Adelaide United legend Craig Goodwin it’s an opportunity to play in a competition for the first time since 2016.
“It’s really exciting,” Goodwin said. “It’s been 10 years since the Club has been in this competition.
“For us to be back in Asia is a great experience for a lot of our younger players. It’s a great chance for more exposure to better opposition, better quality football and more games for us as well.
“It’s an exciting time and hopefully we can get the right result and put ourselves in the ACL Elite.”
Goodwin was in attendance as a young fan at Coopers Stadium during that famous 2008 campaign.
“I came to a few when I could back in those days,” Goodwin explained.
“I remember the final run and a few times that Adelaide went deep into the competition.
“Not getting ahead of ourselves, but it’d be nice to do as well as we can in the competition and that starts here in this game.”
Goodwin welcomed the fact that the Reds would be facing their old teammate in Mauk, who returns to Coopers for the first time since leaving in February 2025.
“It’ll be nice. It’s a little side story for him, playing against the team and city where he’s from.
Adelaide United players pose for a team photo prior to the AFC Asian Champions League match in Adelaide, Australia.
“But at the end of the day, we just look at him as another player and that’s all we do.”
It’s Adelaide’s first match since being eliminated from the Australia Cup after losing 2-1 to South Melbourne. While both teams are nominally in ‘pre-season’, Andrioli explained what an important opportunity it is for the club.
“They’re in a similar situation to us in terms of pre-season and not having played many games, so that levels the ground a little bit more evenly.”
“We know the focus is on this game. We know what’s in front of us and we want to make sure that we get a result because we want to challenge ourselves playing in that type of competition.”
Adelaide United v CAHN – Coopers Stadium – Tuesday 11 August. Streaming live on 10 from 6:55pm (AEST).
