2015–16 UEFA Champions League
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The San Siro in Milan will host the final. | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates |
30 June – 26 August 2015 (qualifying) 15 September 2015 – 28 May 2016 (competition proper) |
| Teams |
32 (group stage) 77 or 78 (total) (from 53 associations) |
The 2015–16 UEFA Champions League will be the 61st season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 24th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League.
The 2016 UEFA Champions League Final will be played at the San Siro in Milan, Italy.[1]
Format changes
The UEFA Executive Committee held in May 2013 approved the following changes to the UEFA Champions League starting from the 2015–16 season (for the three-year cycle until the 2017–18 season):[2]
- The winners of the previous season's UEFA Europa League will qualify for the UEFA Champions League. They will enter at least the play-off round, and will enter the group stage if the berth reserved for the Champions League title holders is not used.
- The previous limit of a maximum of four teams per association will be increased to five, meaning that if the Champions League title holders or the Europa League title holders are from the top three ranked associations (but not both from the same one) and finish outside the top four of their domestic league, the fourth-placed team of their association will not be prevented from participating in the tournament. However, if both the Champions League title holders and the Europa League title holders are from the same top three ranked association and finish outside the top four of their domestic league, the fourth-placed team of their association will be moved to the Europa League.[3]
Association team allocation
A total of 77 or 78 teams from 53 of the 54 UEFA member associations are expected to participate in the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League (the exception being Liechtenstein, which do not organise a domestic league). The association ranking based on the UEFA country coefficients is used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:[4]
- Associations 1–3 each have four teams qualify.
- Associations 4–6 each have three teams qualify.
- Associations 7–15 each have two teams qualify.
- Associations 16–54 (except Liechtenstein) each have one team qualify.
- The winners of the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League and 2014–15 UEFA Europa League are each given an additional entry if they do not qualify for the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League through their domestic league. Because a maximum of five teams from one association can enter the UEFA Champions League, if both the Champions League title holders and the Europa League title holders are from the same top three ranked association and finish outside the top four of their domestic league, the fourth-placed team of their association will be moved to the Europa League.[5] For this season:
- The winners of the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League (either Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Juventus or Real Madrid) are certain to qualify through their domestic league, meaning the additional entry for the Champions League title holders is not necessary.
- The winners of the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League (either Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk, Fiorentina, Napoli or Sevilla) are not yet certain to qualify through their domestic league, meaning the additional entry for the Europa League title holders may still be necessary.
Association ranking
For the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League, the associations are allocated places according to their 2014 UEFA country coefficients, which takes into account their performance in European competitions from 2009–10 to 2013–14.[6][7]
Apart from the allocation based on the country coefficients, associations may have additional teams participating in the Champions League, as noted below:
- (EL) – Additional berth for Europa League title holders
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Distribution
The table below shows the default access list.[8][9][10]
| Teams entering in this round | Teams advancing from previous round | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| First qualifying round (8 teams) |
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| Second qualifying round (34 teams) |
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| Third qualifying round | Champions Route (20 teams) |
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| League Route (10 teams) |
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| Play-off round | Champions Route (10 teams) |
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| League Route (10 teams) |
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| Group stage (32 teams) |
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| Knockout phase (16 teams) |
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The access list above is provisional, as changes will be made depending on whether the Champions League and Europa League title holders qualify for the tournament via their domestic leagues. The Champions League title holders always enter directly into the group stage. The Europa League title holders also enter directly into the group stage if either they or the Champions League title holders qualify for the group stage via their domestic leagues (if both teams qualify for the group stage via their domestic leagues, the champions of association 13 enter directly into the group stage). Otherwise, the Europa League title holders enter directly the play-off round, with the route they enter depending on the Champions League title holders:
- League Route: If the Champions League title holders have qualified for any round of the League Route, or have not qualified for the tournament via their domestic league and are from the associations 1–12 in the access list.
- Champions Route: If the Champions League title holders have qualified for any round of the Champions Route, or have not qualified for the tournament via their domestic league and are from the associations 13–54 in the access list.
The final access list will then be adjusted accordingly, with teams entering either earlier or later into the competition in order to ensure that the group stage consists of 32 teams and the play-off round consists of 20 teams. UEFA has published a detailed document outlining several possible qualification scenarios,[3] which are also covered in the regulations (Article 3.07).[4]
Teams
League positions of the previous season shown in parentheses (CL: Champions League title holders; EL: Europa League title holders).[11]
| Group stage | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Barcelona (1st/2nd/3rd) |
 Bayern Munich (1st) |
 (2nd)[Note POR] |
.svg.png){kind=small} (1st) |
| Real Madrid (1st/2nd/3rd) |
(2nd)[Note GER] |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
| (1st/2nd/3rd) |
(3rd)[Note GER] |
(2nd) |
 Olympiacos (1st) |
 Chelsea (1st/2nd) |
 Juventus (1st/2nd) |
 (1st) |
 (EL) |
| (1st/2nd) |
(1st/2nd) |
 PSV Eindhoven (1st) |
|
| (3rd) |
(1st)[Note POR] |
 (1st) | |
| Play-off round | |||
| Champions Route | League Route | ||
| (4th) |
(4th)[Note GER] |
(3rd)[Note POR] | |
| (4th) |
(3rd) |
||
| Third qualifying round | |||
| Champions Route | League Route | ||
 (1st)[Note SUI] |
(3rd) |
(2nd) |
 (2nd) |
| (1st) |
(2nd) |
(2nd) |
 (2nd) |
| (1st) |
Ajax (2nd) |
(2nd) |
|
| (2nd) |
(2nd)[Note SUI] | ||
| Second qualifying round | |||
 (1st) |
 Malmö FF (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 Žalgiris Vilnius (1st) |
 (1st) |
 Molde (1st) |
 Astana (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 Dundalk (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 HJK (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 Stjarnan (1st) |
 Hibernians (1st) |
 BATE Borisov (1st) |
 (1st) |
 Ventspils (1st) |
|
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) | |
| First qualifying round | |||
 Crusaders (1st) |
 (1st) |
 B36 Tórshavn (1st) |
 (1st) |
 The New Saints (1st) |
 Levadia Tallinn (1st) |
 (1st) |
 (1st) |
- Notes
- ^ Germany (GER): Wolfsburg, Borussia Mönchengladbach and Bayer Leverkusen have qualified for the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League, as they will finish in the top four of the 2014–15 Bundesliga.
- ^ Portugal (POR): Benfica and Porto have qualified for the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League, as they will finish in the top three of the 2014–15 Primeira Liga.
- ^ Switzerland (SUI): Basel have qualified for the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League, as they will finish in the top two of the 2014–15 Swiss Super League.
Round and draw dates
The schedule of the competition is as follows (all draws held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, unless stated otherwise).[8][12]
| Phase | Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying | First qualifying round | 22 June 2015 | 30 June–1 July 2015 | 7–8 July 2015 |
| Second qualifying round | 14–15 July 2015 | 21–22 July 2015 | ||
| Third qualifying round | 17 July 2015 | 28–29 July 2015 | 4–5 August 2015 | |
| Play-off | Play-off round | 7 August 2015 | 18–19 August 2015 | 25–26 August 2015 |
| Group stage | Matchday 1 | 27 August 2015 (Monaco) |
15–16 September 2015 | |
| Matchday 2 | 29–30 September 2015 | |||
| Matchday 3 | 20–21 October 2015 | |||
| Matchday 4 | 3–4 November 2015 | |||
| Matchday 5 | 24–25 November 2015 | |||
| Matchday 6 | 8–9 December 2015 | |||
| Knockout phase | Round of 16 | 14 December 2015 | 16–17 & 23–24 February 2016 | 8–9 & 15–16 March 2016 |
| Quarter-finals | 18 March 2016 | 5–6 April 2016 | 12–13 April 2016 | |
| Semi-finals | 15 April 2016 | 26–27 April 2016 | 3–4 May 2016 | |
| Final | 28 May 2016 at San Siro, Milan | |||
Qualifying rounds
In the qualifying rounds and the play-off round, teams are divided into seeded and unseeded teams based on their 2015 UEFA club coefficients,[13][14] and then drawn into two-legged home-and-away ties. Teams from the same association cannot be drawn against each other.
First qualifying round
The draw for the first and second qualifying rounds will be held on 22 June 2015. The first legs will be played on 30 June and 1 July, and the second legs will be played on 7 and 8 July 2015.
A total of eight teams are expected to play in the first qualifying round.
- The New Saints Coeff. 5.575
- Levadia Tallinn Coeff. 4.200
- Crusaders Coeff. 2.475
- B36 Tórshavn Coeff. 1.450
- Champions of 2014–15 Armenian Premier League
- Champions of 2014–15 Campionato Sammarinese di Calcio
- Champions of 2014–15 Primera Divisió
- Champions of 2014–15 Gibraltar Premier Division
Second qualifying round
The first legs will be played on 14 and 15 July, and the second legs will be played on 21 and 22 July 2015.
A total of 34 teams are expected to play in the second qualifying round: 30 teams which enter in this round, and the four winners of the first qualifying round.
- BATE Borisov Coeff. 35.150
- Malmö FF Coeff. 12.545
- HJK Coeff. 11.140
- Molde Coeff. 10.375
- Ventspils Coeff. 5.350
- Žalgiris Vilnius Coeff. 3.900
- Astana Coeff. 3.825
- Stjarnan Coeff. 3.100
- Dundalk Coeff. 2.150
- Hibernians Coeff. 1.591
- Champions of 2014–15 Liga I
- Champions of 2014–15 Israeli Premier League
- Champions of 2014–15 Cypriot First Division
- Champions of 2014–15 Danish Superliga
- Champions of 2014–15 Prva HNL
- Champions of 2014–15 Ekstraklasa
- Champions of 2014–15 Scottish Premiership
- Champions of 2014–15 A PFG
- Champions of 2014–15 Serbian SuperLiga
- Champions of 2014–15 Nemzeti Bajnokság I
- Champions of 2014–15 Slovenian PrvaLiga
- Champions of 2014–15 Slovak First Football League
- Champions of 2014–15 Moldovan National Division
- Champions of 2014–15 Azerbaijan Premier League
- Champions of 2014–15 Umaglesi Liga
- Champions of 2014–15 Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Champions of 2014–15 Montenegrin First League
- Champions of 2014–15 Albanian Superliga
- Champions of 2014–15 Macedonian First Football League
- Champions of 2014–15 Luxembourg National Division
Third qualifying round
The third qualifying round is split into two separate sections: Champions Route (for league champions) and League Route (for league non-champions). The losing teams in both sections enter the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League play-off round.
The draw for the third qualifying round will be held on 17 July 2015. The first legs will be played on 28 and 29 July, and the second legs will be played on 4 and 5 August 2015.
A total of 30 teams are expected to play in the third qualifying round:
Champions Route
Three teams which enter in this round, and the 17 winners of the second qualifying round.
- Champions of 2014–15 Swiss Super League
- Champions of 2014–15 Austrian Football Bundesliga
- Champions of 2014–15 Czech First League
League Route
Ten teams which enter in this round.
- Ajax Coeff. 66.195
- Third-placed team of 2014–15 Ligue 1
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Russian Premier League
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Ukrainian Premier League
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Belgian Pro League
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Süper Lig
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Superleague Greece
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Swiss Super League
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Austrian Football Bundesliga
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Czech First League
Play-off round
The play-off round is split into two separate sections: Champions Route (for league champions) and League Route (for league non-champions). The losing teams in both sections enter the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League group stage.
The draw for the play-off round will be held on 7 August 2015. The first legs will be played on 18 and 19 August, and the second legs will be played on 25 and 26 August 2015.
A total of 20 teams play in the play-off round:
Champions Route
The ten Champions Route winners of the third qualifying round.
League Route
Five teams which enter in this round, and the five League Route winners of the third qualifying round.
- Fourth-placed team of 2014–15 La Liga
- Fourth-placed team of 2014–15 Premier League
- Fourth-placed team of 2014–15 Bundesliga
- Third-placed team of 2014–15 Serie A
- Third-placed team of 2014–15 Primeira Liga
Group stage
The draw for the group stage will be held in Monaco on 27 August 2015. The 32 teams are drawn into eight groups of four, with the restriction that teams from the same association cannot be drawn against each other. For the draw, the teams are seeded into four pots based on the following principles (introduced starting this season):[15][16]
- Pot 1 contains the title holders and the champions of the top seven associations based on their 2014 UEFA country coefficients.[6][7] If the title holders are one of the champions of the top seven associations, the champions of the association ranked eighth are also seeded into Pot 1 (regulations Article 13.05).[4]
- Pot 2, 3 and 4 contain the remaining teams, seeded based on their 2015 UEFA club coefficients.[13][14]
In each group, teams play against each other home-and-away in a round-robin format. The group winners and runners-up advance to the round of 16, while the third-placed teams enter the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League round of 32. The matchdays are 15–16 September, 29–30 September, 20–21 October, 3–4 November, 24–25 November, and 8–9 December 2015.
The youth teams of the clubs that qualify for the group stage also participate in the 2015–16 UEFA Youth League, where they are joined by the youth domestic champions of the top 32 associations.
A total of 32 teams play in the group stage: 22 teams which enter in this stage, and the 10 winners of the play-off round (5 from Champions Route, 5 from League Route).
- Real Madrid Coeff. TBD (Pot 1 if CL winners or league champions)
- Barcelona Coeff. TBD (Pot 1 if CL winners or league champions)
- Bayern Munich Coeff. TBD (Pot 1)
- Chelsea Coeff. 142.078 (Pot 1 if league champions)
- Juventus Coeff. TBD (Pot 1 if CL winners or league champions)
- Olympiacos Coeff. 62.380
- PSV Eindhoven Coeff. 58.195 (Pot 1 if title holders also win league)
- Champions, Runners-up or Third-placed team of 2014–15 La Liga (Pot 1 if league champions)
- Champions or Runners-up of 2014–15 Premier League (Pot 1 if league champions)
- Third-placed team of 2014–15 Premier League
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Bundesliga
- Third-placed team of 2014–15 Bundesliga
- Champions or Runners-up of 2014–15 Serie A (Pot 1 if league champions)
- Champions of 2014–15 Primeira Liga (Pot 1)
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Primeira Liga
- Champions of 2014–15 Ligue 1 (Pot 1)
- Runners-up of 2014–15 Ligue 1
- Champions of 2014–15 Russian Premier League (Pot 1)
- Champions of 2014–15 Ukrainian Premier League
- Champions of 2014–15 Belgian Pro League
- Champions of 2014–15 Süper Lig
- Winners of 2014–15 UEFA Europa League
| Tiebreakers |
|---|
The teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If two or more teams are equal on points on completion of the group matches, the following criteria are applied in the order given to determine the rankings (regulations Article 17.01):[4]
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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 are seeded, and the eight group runners-up are unseeded. The seeded teams are drawn against the unseeded teams, with the seeded teams hosting the second leg. Teams from the same group or the same association cannot be drawn against each other.
- In the draws for the quarter-finals onwards, there are no seedings, and teams from the same group or the same association can be drawn against each other.
Round of 16
The draw for the round of 16 will be held on 14 December 2015. The first legs will be played on 16, 17, 23 and 24 February, and the second legs will be played on 8, 9, 15 and 16 March 2016.
Quarter-finals
The draw for the quarter-finals will be held on 18 March 2016. The first legs will be played on 5 and 6 April, and the second legs will be played on 12 and 13 April 2016.
Semi-finals
The draw for the semi-finals and final (to determine the "home" team for administrative purposes) will be held on 15 April 2016. The first legs will be played on 26 and 27 April, and the second legs will be played on 3 and 4 May 2016.
Final
The final will be played on 28 May 2016 at the San Siro in Milan, Italy.
See also
References
- ↑ "Milan to host 2016 UEFA Champions League final". UEFA.org. 18 September 2014.
- ↑ "Added bonus for UEFA Europa League winners". UEFA.org. 24 May 2013.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "UEFA Access List 2015/18 with explanations" (PDF). Bert Kassies.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Regulations of the UEFA Champions League 2015/16 Season" (PDF). UEFA.com. 1 May 2015.
- ↑ "How the Europa League winners will enter the Champions League". UEFA.com. 27 February 2015.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Country coefficients 2013/14". UEFA.com.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "UEFA Country Ranking 2014". Bert Kassies.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Preliminary Access List 2015/16" (PDF). Bert Kassies.
- ↑ "Access list 2015/2016". Bert Kassies.
- ↑ "UEFA Champions League Access List 2015/16". UEFA.com.
- ↑ "Qualification for European Cup Football 2015/2016". Bert Kassies.
- ↑ "UEFA European Football Calendar 2015/2016". Bert Kassies.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Club coefficients". UEFA.com.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 "UEFA Team Ranking 2015". Bert Kassies.
- ↑ "Champions League: Domestic title winners to receive top-seed status". BBC Sport. 9 October 2014.
- ↑ "Champions' bonus for group stage draw". UEFA.com. 24 April 2015.
External links
- UEFA Champions League (official website)
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