2021–22 UEFA Champions League

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2021–22 UEFA Champions League
The Stade de France in Saint-Denis hosted 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)
Final positions
ChampionsSpain Real Madrid (14th title)
Runners-upEngland Liverpool
Tournament statistics
Matches played125
Goals scored380 (3.04 per match)
Attendance4,402,255 (35,218 per match)
Top scorer(s)Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
15 goals
Best player(s)Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)[1]
Best young playerVinícius Júnior (Real Madrid)[2]

The 2021–22 UEFA Champions League was 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.

Real Madrid defeated Liverpool 1–0 in the final, which was played at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, France, for a record-extending 14th European Cup title, and their fifth in nine years.[3] It was originally scheduled to be played at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany.[4] However, due to the postponement and relocation of the 2020 final, the hosts were shifted back a year, with Saint Petersburg scheduled to host the 2022 final.[5] Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine which commenced in February 2022, the final was eventually moved to Saint-Denis.[4] As the winners, Real Madrid automatically qualified for the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League group stage, as well as earning the right to play against the winners of the 2021–22 UEFA Europa League, Eintracht Frankfurt, in the 2022 UEFA Super Cup and participate in the 2022 FIFA Club World Cup, both of which they went on to win.

Chelsea were the defending champions, but they were eliminated in the quarter-finals by eventual winners Real Madrid.

This season was the first since 1999–2000 (the first season after the dissolution of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup) 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 were made to the format of the Champions League, but teams that were eliminated from the preliminary round and first qualifying round of the Champions League were now transferred to the Europa Conference League instead of the Europa League.[6]

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 scored 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 scored the same number of goals in extra time, the winner would be decided by a penalty shoot-out.[7]

Association team allocation

A total of 80 teams from 54 of the 55 UEFA member associations participated in the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League (the exception being Liechtenstein,[Note LIE] which did not organise a domestic league). The association ranking based on the UEFA association coefficients was used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:[8]

  • Associations 1–4 each had four teams qualify.
  • Associations 5–6 each had three teams qualify.
  • Associations 7–15 each had two teams qualify.
  • Associations 16–55 (except Liechtenstein)[Note LIE] each had one team qualify.
  • The winners of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League and 2020–21 UEFA Europa League were each given an additional entry if they did 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 were allocated places according to their 2020 UEFA association coefficients, which took into account their performance in European competitions from 2015–16 to 2019–20.[9]

Apart from the allocation based on the association coefficients, associations could 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.

2020-21 Premier League
), the following changes to the access list were made:

  • The champions of association 11 (Turkey) enter the group stage instead of the play-off round (Champions Path).
  • The champions of association 13 (Denmark) enter the play-off round instead of the third qualifying round (Champions Path).
  • The champions of association 15 (Czech Republic) enter the third qualifying round instead of the second qualifying round (Champions Path).
  • The champions of associations 18 (Greece) and 19 (Serbia) enter the second qualifying round instead of the first qualifying round (Champions Path).
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 were subject to approval by UEFA as per the guidelines for entry to European competitions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[11]

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

CC: 2021 UEFA club coefficients.[12]

Qualified teams for 2021–22 UEFA Champions League
Entry round Teams
Group stage England Chelsea (4th)TH Spain Villarreal (EL) Spain Atlético Madrid (1st) Spain Real Madrid (2nd)
Spain Barcelona (3rd) Spain Sevilla (4th) England Manchester City (1st) England Manchester United (2nd)
England Liverpool (3rd) Germany Bayern Munich (1st) Germany RB Leipzig (2nd) Germany Borussia Dortmund (3rd)
Germany VfL Wolfsburg (4th) Italy Inter Milan (1st)
Milan (2nd
)
Atalanta (3rd
)
Juventus (4th
)
France Lille (1st) France Paris Saint-Germain (2nd) Portugal Sporting CP (1st)
Portugal Porto (2nd) Russia Zenit Saint Petersburg (1st) Belgium Club Brugge (1st) Ukraine Dynamo Kyiv (1st)
Netherlands Ajax (1st) Turkey Beşiktaş (1st)
Play-off round CH Austria Red Bull Salzburg (1st) Denmark Brøndby (1st)
Third qualifying round CH Scotland Rangers (1st)
1st
)
LP France Monaco (3rd) Portugal Benfica (3rd) Russia Spartak Moscow (2nd)
2nd
)
Ukraine Shakhtar Donetsk (2nd)
Second qualifying round CH Cyprus Omonia (1st) Switzerland Young Boys (1st) Greece Olympiacos (1st) Serbia Red Star Belgrade (1st)
LP Netherlands PSV Eindhoven (2nd) Turkey Galatasaray (2nd) Austria Rapid Wien (2nd) Denmark Midtjylland (2nd)
Scotland Celtic (2nd)
2nd
)
First qualifying round Croatia Dinamo Zagreb (1st) Sweden Malmö FF (1st) Norway Bodø/Glimt (1st) Israel Maccabi Haifa (1st)
Kazakhstan Kairat (1st) Belarus Shakhtyor Soligorsk (1st) Azerbaijan Neftçi Baku (1st) Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad (1st)
Romania CFR Cluj (1st) Poland Legia Warsaw (1st) Slovakia Slovan Bratislava (1st) Slovenia Mura (1st)
Hungary Ferencváros (1st) Luxembourg Fola Esch (1st) Lithuania Žalgiris (1st) Armenia Alashkert (1st)
Latvia Riga (1st) Albania Teuta (1st) North Macedonia Shkëndija (1st) Bosnia and Herzegovina Borac Banja Luka (1st)
Moldova Sheriff Tiraspol (1st) Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers (1st) Finland HJK (1st) Georgia (country) Dinamo Tbilisi (1st)
Malta Hibernians (Abd-2nd)[Note MLT] Wales Connah's Quay Nomads (1st) Northern Ireland Linfield (1st)
Gibraltar Lincoln Red Imps (1st) Montenegro Budućnost Podgorica (1st) Estonia Flora (1st)
Preliminary round Kosovo Prishtina (1st) Faroe Islands HB (1st) Andorra Inter Club d'Escaldes (1st)
Folgore (1st
)

Notes

  1. Valur (who were declared champions), were selected to play in the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League by the Football Association of Iceland.[13]
  • ^
    Liechtenstein (LIE): The seven teams affiliated with the Liechtenstein Football Association (LFV) all played in the Swiss football league system. The only competition organised by the LFV was the Liechtenstein Football Cup – the winners of which qualified for the UEFA Europa Conference League.
  • ^
    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.[14][15][16]
  • Schedule

    All matches were played on Tuesdays and Wednesdays apart from the preliminary round final, which was played on a Friday, and the final, which was 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 were 18:45 (instead of 18:55 previously) and 21:00 CEST/CET.[17]

    All draws were held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, except the group stage draw, which took place in Istanbul, Turkey, on 26 August 2021.[18]

    Schedule for 2021–22 UEFA Champions League[19]
    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 Play-off round 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

    Preliminary round

    The draw for the preliminary round was held on 8 June 2021, 12:00 CEST.[20] 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,[21] but were moved due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Faroe Islands.[22] 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.[23]

    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 San Marino
    0–2 Kosovo Prishtina
    HB Tórshavn Faroe Islands 0–1 Andorra Inter Club d'Escaldes
    Team 1  Score  Team 2
    Final
    Prishtina Kosovo 2–0 Andorra Inter Club d'Escaldes

    First qualifying round

    The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 15 June 2021, 12:00 CEST.[24] 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.
    Tooltip Aggregate score
    Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
    Fola Esch Luxembourg 2–7 Gibraltar Lincoln Red Imps 2–2 0–5
    Slovan Bratislava Slovakia 3–2[A] Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers 2–0 1–2
    Malmö FF Sweden 2–1 Latvia Riga 1–0 1–1
    Bodø/Glimt Norway 2–5 Poland Legia Warsaw 2–3 0–2
    Connah's Quay Nomads Wales 2–3 Armenia Alashkert 2–2
    a.e.t.
    )
    HJK Finland 7–1 Montenegro Budućnost Podgorica 3–1 4–0
    CFR Cluj Romania 4–3 Bosnia and Herzegovina Borac Banja Luka 3–1
    a.e.t.
    )
    Shkëndija North Macedonia 0–6 Slovenia Mura 0–1 0–5
    Teuta Albania 0–5 Moldova Sheriff Tiraspol 0–4 0–1
    Dinamo Tbilisi Georgia (country) 2–4 Azerbaijan Neftçi Baku 1–2 1–2
    Maccabi Haifa Israel 1–3 Kazakhstan Kairat 1–1 0–2
    Ludogorets Razgrad Bulgaria 2–0 Belarus Shakhtyor Soligorsk 1–0 1–0
    Ferencváros Hungary 6–1 Kosovo Prishtina 3–0 3–1
    Žalgiris Lithuania 5–2 Northern Ireland Linfield 3–1 2–1
    Flora Estonia 5–0 Malta Hibernians 2–0 3–0
    Dinamo Zagreb Croatia 5–2 Iceland 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.[25] 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.
    Tooltip Aggregate score
    Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
    Champions Path
    Dinamo Zagreb Croatia 3–0 Cyprus Omonia 2–0 1–0
    Slovan Bratislava Slovakia 2–3 Switzerland Young Boys 0–0 2–3
    Legia Warsaw Poland 3–1 Estonia Flora 2–1 1–0
    Alashkert Armenia 1–4 Moldova Sheriff Tiraspol 0–1 1–3
    Olympiacos Greece 2–0 Azerbaijan Neftçi Baku 1–0 1–0
    Kairat Kazakhstan 2–6 Serbia Red Star Belgrade 2–1 0–5
    Lincoln Red Imps Gibraltar 1–4 Romania CFR Cluj 1–2 0–2
    Malmö FF Sweden 4–3 Finland HJK 2–1 2–2
    Ferencváros Hungary 5–1 Lithuania Žalgiris 2–0 3–1
    Mura Slovenia 1–3 Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad 0–0 1–3
    Team 1
    Agg.
    Tooltip Aggregate score
    Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
    League Path
    Rapid Wien Austria 2–3 Czech Republic Sparta Prague 2–1 0–2
    Celtic Scotland 2–3 Denmark Midtjylland 1–1
    a.e.t.
    )
    PSV Eindhoven Netherlands 7–2 Turkey Galatasaray 5–1 2–1

    Third qualifying round

    The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 19 July 2021, 12:00 CEST.[26] 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.
    Tooltip Aggregate score
    Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
    Champions Path
    Dinamo Zagreb Croatia 2–1 Poland Legia Warsaw 1–1 1–0
    CFR Cluj Romania 2–4 Switzerland Young Boys 1–1 1–3
    Olympiacos Greece 3–3 (1–4 p) Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad 1–1
    a.e.t.
    )
    Red Star Belgrade Serbia 1–2 Moldova Sheriff Tiraspol 1–1 0–1
    Malmö FF Sweden 4–2 Scotland Rangers 2–1 2–1
    Ferencváros Hungary 2–1 Czech Republic Slavia Prague 2–0 0–1
    Team 1
    Agg.
    Tooltip Aggregate score
    Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
    League Path
    PSV Eindhoven Netherlands 4–0 Denmark Midtjylland 3–0 1–0
    Spartak Moscow Russia 0–4 Portugal Benfica 0–2 0–2
    Genk Belgium 2–4 Ukraine Shakhtar Donetsk 1–2 1–2
    Sparta Prague Czech Republic 1–5 France Monaco 0–2 1–3

    Play-off round

    The draw for the play-off round was held on 2 August 2021, 12:00 CEST.[27] 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.
    Tooltip Aggregate score
    Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
    Champions Path
    Red Bull Salzburg Austria 4–2 Denmark Brøndby 2–1 2–1
    Young Boys Switzerland 6–4 Hungary Ferencváros 3–2 3–2
    Malmö FF Sweden 3–2 Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad 2–0 1–2
    Sheriff Tiraspol Moldova 3–0 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb 3–0 0–0
    Team 1
    Agg.
    Tooltip Aggregate score
    Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
    League Path
    Monaco France 2–3 Ukraine Shakhtar Donetsk 0–1
    a.e.t.
    )
    Benfica Portugal 2–1 Netherlands PSV Eindhoven 2–1 0–0

    Group stage

    Milan
    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.