The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) released details of the committee's findings on their website on Tuesday following meetings last week in Kuala Lumpur ahead of plans to revamp the competition in 2009.

Among the suggestions put forward was the implementation of an additional round in the knockout phase, introducing a Round of 16 phase to the competition.

Currently, 28 teams from 15 nations are divided into seven groups of four with only the winners of each group progressing to the quarter-finals, where they are joined by the defending champions, who qualify automatically.

The new format would likely see two teams advance to the knockout phase, reducing the likelihood of failure for some of the continent's stronger clubs.

That will come as a relief to clubs from Japan's J-League who, despite currently having the highest profile in Asian football, have yet to reach the knockout phase of the competition since its inception in 2002.

Other recommendations included playing the final as a one-off match in a neutral venue. Under the current format, the final is played on a home-and-away basis.

The top sides from the 2007/08 A-League season will qualify for the 2009 AFC Champions League.