2021–22 UEFA Champions League

The 2021–22 UEFA Champions League is the 67th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 30th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League.

2021–22 UEFA Champions League
The Stade de France in Saint-Denis will host the final
Tournament details
DatesQualifying:
22 June – 25 August 2021
Competition proper:
14 September 2021 – 28 May 2022
TeamsCompetition proper: 32
Total: 80 (from 54 associations)
Tournament statistics
Matches played122
Goals scored370 (3.03 per match)
Attendance4,242,174 (34,772 per match)
Top scorer(s) Karim Benzema
(14 goals)

The final will be played at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, France.[1] It was originally scheduled to be played at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany. However, due to the postponement and relocation of the 2020 final, the final hosts were shifted back a year, with Saint Petersburg scheduled to host the 2022 final.[2] Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the final was eventually moved to Saint-Denis.[1] The winners of the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League will automatically qualify for the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League group stage, and also earn the right to play against the winners of the 2021–22 UEFA Europa League in the 2022 UEFA Super Cup.

This season is the first since 1998–99 (the last season when the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was played) where three major European club competitions (UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, and the newly created UEFA Europa Conference League) are organised by UEFA. No changes are made to the format of the Champions League, but teams that are eliminated from the preliminary round and first qualifying round of the Champions League are now transferred to the Europa Conference League instead of the Europa League.[3] Chelsea were the defending champions, but were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Real Madrid.

On 24 June 2021, UEFA approved the proposal to abolish the away goals rule in all UEFA club competitions, which had been used since 1965. Accordingly, if in a two-legged tie two teams score the same number of aggregate goals, the winner of the tie would not be decided by the number of away goals scored by each team but always by 30 minutes of extra time, and if the two teams score the same amount of goals in extra time, the winner would be decided by a penalty shoot-out.[4]

Association team allocation

A total of 80 teams from 54 of the 55 UEFA member associations participate in the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League (the exception being Liechtenstein,[Note LIE] which does not organise a domestic league). The association ranking based on the UEFA association coefficients is used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:[5]

  • Associations 1–4 each have four teams qualify.
  • Associations 5–6 each have three teams qualify.
  • Associations 7–15 each have two teams qualify.
  • Associations 16–55 (except Liechtenstein)[Note LIE] each have one team qualify.
  • The winners of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League and 2020–21 UEFA Europa League are each given an additional entry if they do not qualify for the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League through their own domestic league. (As Chelsea, the Champions League title holders, did qualify through their own domestic league this season, the additional entry for the Champions League title holders was re-allocated.)

Association ranking

For the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League, the associations are allocated places according to their 2020 UEFA association coefficients, which takes into account their performance in European competitions from 2015–16 to 2019–20.[6]

Apart from the allocation based on the association coefficients, associations may have additional teams participating in the Champions League, as noted below:

  • (UEL) – Additional berth for UEFA Europa League title holders
Association ranking for 2021–22 UEFA Champions League
Rank Association Coeff. Teams Notes
1  Spain 102.283 4 +1 (UEL)
2  England 90.462
3  Germany 74.784
4  Italy 70.653
5  France 59.248 3
6  Portugal 49.449
7  Russia 45.549 2
8  Belgium 37.900
9  Ukraine 36.100
10  Netherlands 35.750
11  Turkey 33.600
12  Austria 32.925
13  Denmark 29.250
14  Scotland 27.875
15  Czech Republic 27.300
16  Cyprus 26.750 1
17   Switzerland 26.400
18  Greece 26.300
19  Serbia 25.500
Rank Association Coeff. Teams Notes
20  Croatia 24.875 1
21  Sweden 22.750
22  Norway 21.750
23  Israel 19.625
24  Kazakhstan 19.250
25  Belarus 18.875
26  Azerbaijan 18.750
27  Bulgaria 17.375
28  Romania 16.700
29  Poland 16.625
30  Slovakia 15.875
31  Liechtenstein 13.500 0 [Note LIE]
32  Slovenia 13.000 1
33  Hungary 12.875
34  Luxembourg 8.000
35  Lithuania 7.875
36  Armenia 7.625
37  Latvia 7.625
Rank Association Coeff. Teams Notes
38  Albania 7.375 1
39  North Macedonia 7.375
40  Bosnia and Herzegovina 6.875
41  Moldova 6.750
42  Republic of Ireland 6.700
43  Finland 6.500
44  Georgia 5.750
45  Malta 5.750
46  Iceland 5.375
47  Wales 5.000
48  Northern Ireland 4.875
49  Gibraltar 4.750
50  Montenegro 4.375
51  Estonia 4.375
52  Kosovo 4.000
53  Faroe Islands 3.750
54  Andorra 2.831
55  San Marino 0.666

Distribution

The following is the access list for this season.[7] As the Champions League title holders, Chelsea, which were guaranteed a berth in the Champions League group stage, already qualified via their domestic league (as fourth place in the 2020-21 Premier League), the following changes to the access list were made:

  • The champions of association 11 (Turkey) entered the group stage instead of the play-off round.
  • The champions of association 13 (Denmark) entered the play-off round instead of the third qualifying round.
  • The champions of association 15 (Czech Republic) entered the third qualifying round instead of the second qualifying round.
  • The champions of associations 18 (Greece) and 19 (Serbia) entered the second qualifying round instead of the first qualifying round.
Access list for 2021–22 UEFA Champions League
Teams entering in this round Teams advancing from previous round
Preliminary round
(4 teams)
  • 4 champions from associations 52–55
First qualifying round
(32 teams)
  • 31 champions from associations 20–51 (except Liechtenstein)[Note LIE]
  • 1 winner from the preliminary round
Second qualifying round
(26 teams)		 Champions Path
(20 teams)
  • 4 champions from associations 16–19
  • 16 winners from the first qualifying round
League Path
(6 teams)
  • 6 runners-up from associations 10–15
Third qualifying round
(20 teams)		 Champions Path
(12 teams)
  • 2 champions from associations 14–15
  • 10 winners from the second qualifying round (Champions Path)
League Path
(8 teams)
  • 3 runners-up from associations 7–9
  • 2 third-placed teams from associations 5–6
  • 3 winners from the second qualifying round (League Path)
Play-off round
(12 teams)		 Champions Path
(8 teams)
  • 2 champions from associations 12–13
  • 6 winners from the third qualifying round (Champions Path)
League Path
(4 teams)
  • 4 winners from the third qualifying round (League Path)
Group stage
(32 teams)
  • Europa League title holders
  • 11 champions from associations 1–11
  • 6 runners-up from associations 1–6
  • 4 third-placed teams from associations 1–4
  • 4 fourth-placed teams from associations 1–4
  • 4 winners from the play-off round (Champions Path)
  • 2 winners from the play-off round (League Path)
Knockout phase
(16 teams)
  • 8 group winners from the group stage
  • 8 group runners-up from the group stage

Teams

The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:

  • TH: Champions League title holders
  • EL: Europa League title holders
  • 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc.: League positions of the previous season
  • Abd-: League positions of abandoned season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe as determined by the national association; all teams are subject to approval by UEFA as per the guidelines for entry to European competitions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[8]

The second qualifying round, third qualifying round and play-off round are divided into Champions Path (CH) and League Path (LP).

CC: 2021 UEFA club coefficients.[9]

Qualified teams for 2021–22 UEFA Champions League
Entry round Teams
Group stage Chelsea (4th)TH Villarreal (7th)EL Atlético Madrid (1st) Real Madrid (2nd)
Barcelona (3rd) Sevilla (4th) Manchester City (1st) Manchester United (2nd)
Liverpool (3rd) Bayern Munich (1st) RB Leipzig (2nd) Borussia Dortmund (3rd)
VfL Wolfsburg (4th) Inter Milan (1st) Milan (2nd) Atalanta (3rd)
Juventus (4th) Lille (1st) Paris Saint-Germain (2nd) Sporting CP (1st)
Porto (2nd) Zenit Saint Petersburg (1st) Club Brugge (1st) Dynamo Kyiv (1st)
Ajax (1st) Beşiktaş (1st)
Play-off round CH Red Bull Salzburg (1st) Brøndby (1st)
Third qualifying round CH Rangers (1st) Slavia Prague (1st)
LP Monaco (3rd) Benfica (3rd) Spartak Moscow (2nd) Genk (2nd)
Shakhtar Donetsk (2nd)
Second qualifying round CH Omonia (1st) Young Boys (1st) Olympiacos (1st) Red Star Belgrade (1st)
LP PSV Eindhoven (2nd) Galatasaray (2nd) Rapid Wien (2nd) Midtjylland (2nd)
Celtic (2nd) Sparta Prague (2nd)
First qualifying round Dinamo Zagreb (1st) Malmö FF (1st) Bodø/Glimt (1st) Maccabi Haifa (1st)
Kairat (1st) Shakhtyor Soligorsk (1st) Neftçi Baku (1st) Ludogorets Razgrad (1st)
CFR Cluj (1st) Legia Warsaw (1st) Slovan Bratislava (1st) Mura (1st)
Ferencváros (1st) Fola Esch (1st) Žalgiris (1st) Alashkert (1st)
Riga (1st) Teuta (1st) Shkëndija (1st) Borac Banja Luka (1st)
Sheriff Tiraspol (1st) Shamrock Rovers (1st) HJK (1st) Dinamo Tbilisi (1st)
Hibernians (Abd-2nd)[Note MLT] Valur (Abd-1st)[Note ISL] Connah's Quay Nomads (1st) Linfield (1st)
Lincoln Red Imps (1st) Budućnost Podgorica (1st) Flora (1st)
Preliminary round Prishtina (1st) HB (1st) Inter Club d'Escaldes (1st) Folgore (1st)

Notes

  1. ^
    Iceland (ISL): The 2020 Úrvalsdeild was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Iceland. The top team of the league at the time of the abandonment based on the average number of points per matches played for each team, Valur (who were declared champions), were selected to play in the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League by the Football Association of Iceland.[10]
  2. ^
    Liechtenstein (LIE): The seven teams affiliated with the Liechtenstein Football Association (LFV) all play in the Swiss football league system. The only competition organised by the LFV is the Liechtenstein Football Cup – the winners of which qualify for the UEFA Europa Conference League.
  3. ^
    Malta (MLT): The 2020–21 Maltese Premier League was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Malta. The top team of the league at the time of the abandonment, Ħamrun Spartans, were declared champions but were subsequently banned from competing in European competitions for a match fixing case dating back to 2013. As a result, the second-placed team, Hibernians, were selected to play in the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League by the Malta Football Association.[11][12][13]

Schedule

All matches are played on Tuesdays and Wednesdays apart from the preliminary round final, which was played on a Friday, and the final, which will be played on a Saturday. The third qualifying round second legs were only played on a Tuesday due to the 2021 UEFA Super Cup on the following Wednesday. Scheduled kick-off times starting from the play-off round are 18:45 (instead of 18:55 previously) and 21:00 CEST/CET.[14]

All draws are held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, except the group stage draw, which took place in Istanbul, Turkey, on 26 August 2021.[15]

Schedule for 2021–22 UEFA Champions League[16]
Phase Round Draw date First leg Second leg
Qualifying Preliminary round 8 June 2021 22 June 2021 (semi-finals) 25 June 2021 (final)
First qualifying round 15 June 2021 6–7 July 2021 13–14 July 2021
Second qualifying round 16 June 2021 20–21 July 2021 27–28 July 2021
Third qualifying round 19 July 2021 3–4 August 2021 10 August 2021
Play-offs 2 August 2021 17–18 August 2021 24–25 August 2021
Group stage Matchday 1 26 August 2021 14–15 September 2021
Matchday 2 28–29 September 2021
Matchday 3 19–20 October 2021
Matchday 4 2–3 November 2021
Matchday 5 23–24 November 2021
Matchday 6 7–8 December 2021
Knockout phase Round of 16 13 December 2021 15–16 & 22–23 February 2022 8–9 & 15–16 March 2022
Quarter-finals 18 March 2022 5–6 April 2022 12–13 April 2022
Semi-finals 26–27 April 2022 3–4 May 2022
Final 28 May 2022 at Stade de France, Saint-Denis

Qualifying rounds
Main article: 2021–22 UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds

Preliminary round

The draw for the preliminary round was held on 8 June 2021, 12:00 CEST.[17] The preliminary round matches, which consisted of two semi-finals on 22 June 2021 and the final on 25 June 2021, were originally to be played at Gundadalur, Tórshavn in the Faroe Islands,[18] but were moved due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Faroe Islands.[19] The matches were instead played in Albania, with the semi-finals at Elbasan Arena, Elbasan and Niko Dovana Stadium, Durrës, and the final at Elbasan Arena.[20]

The winner of the preliminary round final advanced to the first qualifying round. The losers of the semi-finals and final were transferred to the Europa Conference League Champions Path second qualifying round.

Team 1  Score  Team 2
Semi-finals
Folgore 0–2 Prishtina
HB Tórshavn 0–1 Inter Club d'Escaldes
Team 1  Score  Team 2
Final
Prishtina 2–0 Inter Club d'Escaldes

First qualifying round

The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 15 June 2021, 12:00 CEST.[21] The first legs were played on 6 and 7 July, and the second legs were played on 13 and 14 July 2021.

The winners of the ties advanced to the Champions Path second qualifying round. The losers were transferred to the Europa Conference League Champions Path second qualifying round.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Fola Esch 2–7 Lincoln Red Imps 2–2 0–5
Slovan Bratislava 3–2[upper-alpha 1] Shamrock Rovers 2–0 1–2
Malmö FF 2–1 Riga 1–0 1–1
Bodø/Glimt 2–5 Legia Warsaw 2–3 0–2
Connah's Quay Nomads 2–3 Alashkert 2–2 0–1 (a.e.t.)
HJK 7–1 Budućnost Podgorica 3–1 4–0
CFR Cluj 4–3 Borac Banja Luka 3–1 1–2 (a.e.t.)
Shkëndija 0–6 Mura 0–1 0–5
Teuta 0–5 Sheriff Tiraspol 0–4 0–1
Dinamo Tbilisi 2–4 Neftçi Baku 1–2 1–2
Maccabi Haifa 1–3 Kairat 1–1 0–2
Ludogorets Razgrad 2–0 Shakhtyor Soligorsk 1–0 1–0
Ferencváros 6–1 Prishtina 3–0 3–1
Žalgiris 5–2 Linfield 3–1 2–1
Flora 5–0 Hibernians 2–0 3–0
Dinamo Zagreb 5–2 Valur 3–2 2–0

Notes

  1. Losers drawn to receive a bye to the Europa Conference League third qualifying round.

Second qualifying round

The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 16 June 2021, 12:00 CEST.[22] The first legs were played on 20 and 21 July, and the second legs were played on 27 and 28 July 2021.

The winners of the ties advanced to the third qualifying round of their respective path. The Champions Path losers were transferred to the Europa League Champions Path third qualifying round, while the League Path losers were transferred to the Europa League Main Path third qualifying round.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Champions Path
Dinamo Zagreb 3–0 Omonia 2–0 1–0
Slovan Bratislava 2–3 Young Boys 0–0 2–3
Legia Warsaw 3–1 Flora 2–1 1–0
Alashkert 1–4 Sheriff Tiraspol 0–1 1–3
Olympiacos 2–0 Neftçi Baku 1–0 1–0
Kairat 2–6 Red Star Belgrade 2–1 0–5
Lincoln Red Imps 1–4 CFR Cluj 1–2 0–2
Malmö FF 4–3 HJK 2–1 2–2
Ferencváros 5–1 Žalgiris 2–0 3–1
Mura 1–3 Ludogorets Razgrad 0–0 1–3
Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
League Path
Rapid Wien 2–3 Sparta Prague 2–1 0–2
Celtic 2–3 Midtjylland 1–1 1–2 (a.e.t.)
PSV Eindhoven 7–2 Galatasaray 5–1 2–1

Third qualifying round

The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 19 July 2021, 12:00 CEST.[23] The first legs were played on 3 and 4 August, and the second legs were played on 10 August 2021.

The winners of the ties advanced to the play-off round of their respective path. The Champions Path losers were transferred to the Europa League play-off round, while the League Path losers were transferred to the Europa League group stage.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Champions Path
Dinamo Zagreb 2–1 Legia Warsaw 1–1 1–0
CFR Cluj 2–4 Young Boys 1–1 1–3
Olympiacos 3–3 (1–4 p) Ludogorets Razgrad 1–1 2–2 (a.e.t.)
Red Star Belgrade 1–2 Sheriff Tiraspol 1–1 0–1
Malmö FF 4–2 Rangers 2–1 2–1
Ferencváros 2–1 Slavia Prague 2–0 0–1
Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
League Path
PSV Eindhoven 4–0 Midtjylland 3–0 1–0
Spartak Moscow 0–4 Benfica 0–2 0–2
Genk 2–4 Shakhtar Donetsk 1–2 1–2
Sparta Prague 1–5 Monaco 0–2 1–3

Play-off round

The draw for the play-off round was held on 2 August 2021, 12:00 CEST.[24] The first legs were played on 17 and 18 August, and the second legs were played on 24 and 25 August 2021.

The winners of the ties advanced to the group stage. The losers were transferred to the Europa League group stage.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Champions Path
Red Bull Salzburg 4–2 Brøndby 2–1 2–1
Young Boys 6–4 Ferencváros 3–2 3–2
Malmö FF 3–2 Ludogorets Razgrad 2–0 1–2
Sheriff Tiraspol 3–0 Dinamo Zagreb 3–0 0–0
Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
League Path
Monaco 2–3 Shakhtar Donetsk 0–1 2–2 (a.e.t.)
Benfica 2–1 PSV Eindhoven 2–1 0–0

Group stage
Main article: 2021–22 UEFA Champions League group stage
Location of teams of the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League group stage.
Brown: Group A; Red: Group B; Orange: Group C; Yellow: Group D;
Green: Group E; Blue: Group F; Purple: Group G; Pink: Group H.

The draw for the group stage was held in Istanbul, Turkey, on 26 August 2021.[15][25] The 32 teams were drawn into eight groups of four. For the draw, the teams were seeded into four pots, each of eight teams, based on the following principles:

  • Pot 1 contained the Champions League and Europa League title holders, and the champions of the top six associations based on their 2020 UEFA country coefficients.[6]
  • Pot 2, 3 and 4 contained the remaining teams, seeded based on their 2021 UEFA club coefficients.[9]

Teams from the same association, and due to political reasons, teams from Ukraine and Russia, could not be drawn into the same group. Before the draw, UEFA formed pairings of teams from the same association (one pairing for associations with two or three teams, two pairings for associations with four or five teams) based on television audiences, where one team was drawn into Groups A–D and another team was drawn into Groups E–H, so that the two teams would play on different days.[26]

The matches were played on 14–15 September, 28–29 September, 19–20 October, 2–3 November, 23–24 November, and 7–9 December 2021. The top two teams of each group advanced to the round of 16. The third-placed teams were transferred to the Europa League knockout round play-offs, while the fourth-placed teams were eliminated from European competitions for the season.

Sheriff Tiraspol made their debut appearance in the group stage. They were the first team from Moldova to play in the Champions League group stage.

Group A
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MCI PAR RBL BRU
1 Manchester City 6 4 0 2 18 10 +8 12 Advance to knockout phase — 2–1 6–3 4–1
2 Paris Saint-Germain 6 3 2 1 13 8 +5 11 2–0 — 3–2 4–1
3 RB Leipzig 6 2 1 3 15 14 +1 7 Transfer to Europa League 2–1 2–2 — 1–2
4 Club Brugge 6 1 1 4 6 20 −14 4 1–5 1–1 0–5 —
Source: UEFA

Group B
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification LIV ATM POR MIL
1 Liverpool 6 6 0 0 17 6 +11 18 Advance to knockout phase — 2–0 2–0 3–2
2 Atlético Madrid 6 2 1 3 7 8 −1 7 2–3 — 0–0 0–1
3 Porto 6 1 2 3 4 11 −7 5 Transfer to Europa League 1–5 1–3 — 1–0
4 Milan 6 1 1 4 6 9 −3 4 1–2 1–2 1–1 —
Source: UEFA

Group C
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification AJX SPO DOR BES
1 Ajax 6 6 0 0 20 5 +15 18 Advance to knockout phase — 4–2 4–0 2–0
2 Sporting CP 6 3 0 3 14 12 +2 9[lower-alpha 1] 1–5 — 3–1 4–0
3 Borussia Dortmund 6 3 0 3 10 11 −1 9[lower-alpha 1] Transfer to Europa League 1–3 1–0 — 5–0
4 Beşiktaş 6 0 0 6 3 19 −16 0 1–2 1–4 1–2 —
Source: UEFA
Notes:
  1. Head-to-head points: Sporting CP 3, Borussia Dortmund 3. Head-to-head goal differences: Sporting CP +1, Borussia Dortmund −1.

Group D
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification RMA INT SHE SHK
1 Real Madrid 6 5 0 1 14 3 +11 15 Advance to knockout phase — 2–0 1–2 2–1
2 Inter Milan 6 3 1 2 8 5 +3 10 0–1 — 3–1 2–0
3 Sheriff Tiraspol 6 2 1 3 7 11 −4 7 Transfer to Europa League 0–3 1–3 — 2–0
4 Shakhtar Donetsk 6 0 2 4 2 12 −10 2 0–5 0–0 1–1 —
Source: UEFA

Group E
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification BAY BEN BAR DKV
1 Bayern Munich 6 6 0 0 22 3 +19 18 Advance to knockout phase — 5–2 3–0 5–0
2 Benfica 6 2 2 2 7 9 −2 8 0–4 — 3–0 2–0
3 Barcelona 6 2 1 3 2 9 −7 7 Transfer to Europa League 0–3 0–0 — 1–0
4 Dynamo Kyiv 6 0 1 5 1 11 −10 1 1–2 0–0 0–1 —
Source: UEFA

Group F
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MUN VIL ATA YB
1 Manchester United 6 3 2 1 11 8 +3 11 Advance to knockout phase — 2–1 3–2 1–1
2 Villarreal 6 3 1 2 12 9 +3 10 0–2 — 2–2 2–0
3 Atalanta 6 1 3 2 12 13 −1 6 Transfer to Europa League 2–2 2–3 — 1–0
4 Young Boys 6 1 2 3 7 12 −5 5 2–1 1–4 3–3 —
Source: UEFA

Group G
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification LOSC SAL SEV WOL
1 Lille 6 3 2 1 7 4 +3 11 Advance to knockout phase — 1–0 0–0 0–0
2 Red Bull Salzburg 6 3 1 2 8 6 +2 10 2–1 — 1–0 3–1
3 Sevilla 6 1 3 2 5 5 0 6 Transfer to Europa League 1–2 1–1 — 2–0
4 VfL Wolfsburg 6 1 2 3 5 10 −5 5 1–3 2–1 1–1 —
Source: UEFA

Group H
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification JUV CHE ZEN MAL
1 Juventus 6 5 0 1 10 6 +4 15 Advance to knockout phase — 1–0 4–2 1–0
2 Chelsea 6 4 1 1 13 4 +9 13 4–0 — 1–0 4–0
3 Zenit Saint Petersburg 6 1 2 3 10 10 0 5 Transfer to Europa League 0–1 3–3 — 4–0
4 Malmö FF 6 0 1 5 1 14 −13 1 0–3 0–1 1–1 —
Source: UEFA

Knockout phase
Main article: 2021–22 UEFA Champions League knockout phase

In the knockout phase, teams play against each other over two legs on a home-and-away basis, except for the one-match final. The mechanism of the draws for each round is as follows:

  • In the draw for the round of 16, the eight group winners were seeded, and the eight group runners-up were unseeded. The seeded teams were drawn against the unseeded teams, with the seeded teams hosting the second leg. Teams from the same group or the same association could not be drawn against each other.
  • In the draws for the quarter-finals and semi-finals, there were no seedings, and teams from the same group or the same association could be drawn against each other. As the draws for the quarter-finals and semi-finals were held together before the quarter-finals were played, the identity of the quarter-final winners was not known at the time of the semi-final draw. A draw was also held to determine which semi-final winner was designated as the "home" team for the final (for administrative purposes as it is played at a neutral venue).

Bracket
 
Round of 16Quarter-finalsSemi-finalsFinal
 
                      
 
 
 
 
 Benfica213
 
 
 
 Ajax202
 
 Benfica134
 
 
 
 Liverpool336
 
 Inter Milan011
 
 
 
 Liverpool202
 
 Liverpool2  
 
 
 
 Villarreal0  
 
 Villarreal134
 
 
 
 Juventus101
 
 Villarreal112
 
 
 
 Bayern Munich011
 
 Red Bull Salzburg112
 
28 May – Saint-Denis
 
 Bayern Munich178
 
 Winners of semi-final 2 
 
 
 
 Winners of semi-final 1 
 
 Sporting CP000
 
 
 
 Manchester City505
 
 Manchester City101
 
 
 
 Atlético Madrid000
 
 Atlético Madrid112
 
 
 
 Manchester United101
 
 Manchester City4  
 
 
 
 Real Madrid3  
 
 Chelsea224
 
 
 
 Lille011
 
 Chelsea134
 
 
 
 Real Madrid (a.e.t.)325
 
 Paris Saint-Germain112
 
 
 Real Madrid033
 

Round of 16

The draw for the round of 16 was held on 13 December 2021, originally at 12:00 CET.[27] The draw featured multiple irregularities: Manchester United were mistakenly included in the draw for Villarreal's opponent (both were in Group F), and subsequently were selected; another ball was then drawn, with Manchester City chosen instead. In the following tie, Liverpool were mistakenly included in the draw for Atlético Madrid's opponent (both were in Group B), while Manchester United were incorrectly excluded.[28] Later that day, UEFA voided the original draw due to a "technical problem" with the draw computer, and it was entirely redone at 15:00 CET.[29] The first legs were played on 15, 16, 22 and 23 February, and the second legs were played on 8, 9, 15 and 16 March 2022.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Red Bull Salzburg 2–8 Bayern Munich 1–1 1–7
Sporting CP 0–5 Manchester City 0–5 0–0
Benfica 3–2 Ajax 2–2 1–0
Chelsea 4–1 Lille 2–0 2–1
Atlético Madrid 2–1 Manchester United 1–1 1–0
Villarreal 4–1 Juventus 1–1 3–0
Inter Milan 1–2 Liverpool 0–2 1–0
Paris Saint-Germain 2–3 Real Madrid 1–0 1–3

Quarter-finals

The draw for the quarter-finals was held on 18 March 2022, 12:00 CET.[30] The first legs were played on 5 and 6 April, and the second legs were played on 12 and 13 April 2022.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Chelsea 4–5 Real Madrid 1–3 3–2 (a.e.t.)
Manchester City 1–0 Atlético Madrid 1–0 0–0
Villarreal 2–1 Bayern Munich 1–0 1–1
Benfica 4–6 Liverpool 1–3 3–3

Semi-finals

The draw for the semi-finals was held on 18 March 2022, 12:00 CET, after the quarter-final draw.[30] The first legs were played on 26 and 27 April, and the second legs are being played on 3 and 4 May 2022.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Manchester City 1 Real Madrid 4–3 4 May
Liverpool 2 Villarreal 2–0 3 May

Final
Main article: 2022 UEFA Champions League Final

The final will be played on 28 May 2022 at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis. A draw was held on 18 March 2022, after the quarter-final and semi-final draws, to determine the "home" team for administrative purposes.[30]

Winners of semi-final 2 v Winners of semi-final 1
Report

Statistics

Statistics exclude qualifying rounds and play-off round.

Top goalscorers
Rank[31]PlayerTeamGoalsMinutes played
1 Karim Benzema Real Madrid 14 912
2 Robert Lewandowski Bayern Munich 13 876
3 Sébastien Haller Ajax 11 668
4 Mohamed Salah Liverpool 8 828
5 Christopher Nkunku RB Leipzig 7 531
6 Cristiano Ronaldo Manchester United 6 611
Darwin Núñez Benfica 613
Kylian Mbappé Paris Saint-Germain 673
Leroy Sané Bayern Munich 798
Riyad Mahrez Manchester City 901
Arnaut Danjuma Villarreal 906

Top assists
Rank[32]PlayerTeamAssistsMinutes played
1 Bruno Fernandes Manchester United 7 520
2 Leroy Sané Bayern Munich 6 798
Vinícius Júnior Real Madrid 995
4 Antony Ajax 5 577
5 Gerard Moreno Villarreal 4 456
João Mário Benfica 493
Kevin De Bruyne Manchester City 662
Kylian Mbappé Paris Saint-Germain 673
Luka Modrić Real Madrid 913

European Super League controversy
Main article: European Super League

On 18 April 2021, UEFA, the Football Association, the Premier League, the Italian Football Federation, Serie A, the Royal Spanish Football Federation and La Liga learned of plans from several English, Italian and Spanish clubs to create the European Super League.[33] UEFA and the national associations announced that if such a league were to be established, its participants would be banned from playing in international and domestic competitions.[34] Later that same day, English clubs (Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur), Italian clubs (Inter Milan, Juventus and AC Milan) and Spanish clubs (Atlético Madrid, Barcelona and Real Madrid) announced the establishment of the Super League, putting them at risk of being banned.[35]

On 20 April 2021, Arsenal,[36] Liverpool,[37] Manchester City,[38] Manchester United[39] and Tottenham Hotspur[40] withdrew after the Football Association threatened to ban participating clubs from domestic football,[41] whilst Chelsea withdrew some hours later.[42] This led to the project's collapse,[43] as Atlético Madrid, Inter Milan and AC Milan followed the English clubs by withdrawing.[44] The Super League suspended its operations,[45] with the case to be taken by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) to establish whether UEFA and FIFA have the exclusive right to organise competitions.[46]

On 7 June 2021, the Swiss Federal Department of Justice and Police notified UEFA and FIFA of the Spanish precautionary measure – which had earlier issued an injunction against UEFA and FIFA and referred a cuestión preliminar (English: preliminary question) to the CJEU on whether UEFA and FIFA have violated articles 101 and 102 of the TFEU[47] – ruling that neither governing body could not execute sanctions against Super League clubs.[48] On 15 June 2021, it was officially confirmed that the remaining three clubs (Barcelona, Juventus and Real Madrid) – which did not sign the Commitment Declaration of the sanctioned other nine clubs[49] and filed a new motion to scrap the agreement UEFA signed with those nine clubs[46] – were admitted to the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League, pending the disciplinary proceedings UEFA opened against them but which were suspended after the Swiss notification.[50]

See also

References
  1. "Decisions from today's extraordinary UEFA Executive Committee meeting". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 25 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
  2. "UEFA competitions to resume in August". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 17 June 2020. Archived from the original on 25 August 2020. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  3. "UEFA Executive Committee approves new club competition". UEFA. 2 December 2018. Archived from the original on 13 May 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  4. "Abolition of the away goals rule in all UEFA club competitions". UEFA. 24 June 2021. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
  5. "Regulations of the UEFA Champions League, 2021/22 Season". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
  6. "Association coefficients 2019/20". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 2020. Archived from the original on 4 December 2019. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  7. "Access list 2021–24" (PDF). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 December 2018. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  8. "Guidelines on eligibility principles for 2020/21 UEFA Club Competitions – COVID 19" (PDF). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 23 April 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  9. "Club coefficients 2020/21". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations.
  10. "Keppni hætt". Knattspyrnusamband Íslands. 30 October 2020. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  11. "Sports ban forces termination of domestic competitions". Malta Football Association. 9 April 2021.
  12. "UEFA board turns down Ħamrun Spartans' appeal to compete in 2021-22 Champions League". Sportsdesk.com.mt. Times of Malta. 9 June 2021. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  13. "Hamrun Spartans to be excluded from Champions League by UEFA over past match fixing case". Malta Independent. 9 June 2021.
  14. "Format change for 2020/21 UEFA Nations League". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 24 September 2019. Archived from the original on 26 September 2019. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  15. "Venues appointed for club competition finals". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 16 July 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  16. "2021/22 UEFA Champions League: all you need to know". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 19 January 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  17. "UEFA Champions League preliminary round draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 8 June 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  18. "Champions League í Gundadali". Havnar Bóltfelag. 23 May 2021.
  19. "Einki Champions League í Føroyum". 4 June 2021.
  20. "Champions League: Folgore sorteggiata coi kosovari del Prishtina". Federazione Sammarinese Giuoco Calcio. 8 June 2021.
  21. "UEFA Champions League first qualifying round draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 15 June 2021.
  22. "UEFA Champions League second qualifying round draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  23. "UEFA Champions League third qualifying round draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 19 July 2021.
  24. "UEFA Champions League play-off round draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 2 August 2021.
  25. "UEFA Champions League group stage draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 26 August 2021.
  26. "Champions League group stage draw pots confirmed". UEFA.com. 26 August 2021.
  27. "UEFA Champions League round of 16 draw". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 13 December 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
  28. Crafton, Adam; Brown, Luke (13 December 2021). "Controversy as Manchester United incorrectly excluded from section of Champions League draw". The Athletic. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
  29. "Champions League round of 16 draw declared void and will be redone at 15:00 CET". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 13 December 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
  30. "UEFA Champions League quarter-final, semi-final and final draws". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  31. "UEFA Champions League – Top Scorers". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
  32. "UEFA Champions League – Top Assists". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
  33. Panja, Tariq (18 April 2021). "Top European Soccer Teams Agree to Join Breakaway League". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 28 December 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  34. "Statement by UEFA, the English Football Association, the Premier League, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), LaLiga, the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) and Lega Serie A". UEFA. 18 April 2021. Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  35. "European Super League: Uefa and Premier League condemn 12 major clubs signing up to breakaway plans". BBC. BBC Sport. 18 April 2021. Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  36. "An open letter to our fans" (Press release). Arsenal F.C. 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  37. "Liverpool Football Club statement" (Press release). Liverpool F.C. 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  38. Pollard, Rob (20 April 2021). "Club statement" (Press release). Manchester City F.C. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  39. "Manchester United withdraw from European Super League" (Press release). Manchester United F.C. 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  40. "Club statement" (Press release). Tottenham Hotspur F.C. 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  41. Hytner, David; Hunter, Andy; Jackson, Jamie (20 April 2021). "All Premier League clubs quit Super League after FA ban warning". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  42. "Club statement" (Press release). Chelsea F.C. 21 April 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  43. Panja, Tariq; Smith, Rory (22 April 2021). "How the Super League Fell Apart". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 28 December 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
  44. "European Super League in tatters as Atletico, Inter & AC Milan follow English clubs in quitting". Euronews. 21 April 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  45. "Super League suspended: Why English clubs pulled out, and what's next for them and UEFA". ESPN. 21 April 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  46. Dunham, Matt (20 June 2021). "Football Super League is 'not dead, just resting'". The Times. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  47. "Super League-UEFA, the clash arrives at the EU Court of Justice". Italy24 News Sport. 13 May 2021.
  48. "UEFA y FIFA no pueden tomar represalias contra los clubes de la Superliga" (in Spanish). Cadena Ser. 7 June 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  49. MacInnes, Paul (7 May 2021). "Nine of European Super League rebel clubs commit to UEFA competitions". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 8 May 2021.
  50. "Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus admitted to Champions League next season". ESPN. Reuters. 15 June 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.