2019 CONCACAF Champions League
| 2019 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Dates | February – April 2019 |
| Teams | 16 (from 9 associations) |
The 2019 CONCACAF Champions League (officially the 2019 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons) will be the 11th edition of the CONCACAF Champions League under its current name, and overall the 54th edition of the premier football club competition organized by CONCACAF, the regional governing body of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.
Guadalajara are the title holders, but did not qualify for this tournament and are unable to defend their title.
Qualification
A total of 16 teams participate in the CONCACAF Champions League:
- North American Zone: 9 teams (from three associations)
- Central American Zone: 5 teams (from five associations)
- Caribbean Zone: 1 team (from one association)
- Winners of the CONCACAF League (from one association, from either Central American Zone or Caribbean Zone)
Therefore, teams from either 9 or 10 out of the 41 CONCACAF member associations may participate in the CONCACAF Champions League.
North America
The nine berths for the North American Football Union (NAFU) are allocated to the three NAFU member associations as follows: four berths each for Mexico and the United States, and one berth for Canada.
For Mexico, the champions and runners-up of the Liga MX Apertura and Clausura Liguilla (playoff) tournaments qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League. If there is any team which are finalists of both tournaments, the vacated berth is reallocated using a formula, based on regular season records, that ensures that two teams qualify via each tournament.
For the United States, because of the restructuring of the CONCACAF Champions League starting from 2018, two teams each from the 2017 and 2018 seasons qualify for the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League:
- The champions of the MLS Cup, the championship match of the MLS Cup Playoffs, in 2017 and 2018
- The champions of the U.S. Open Cup, its domestic cup competition, in 2017 and 2018
This means that the Supporters' Shield champions in 2017 and 2018, and the Eastern Conference or Western Conference regular season champions which are not Supporters' Shield champions in 2017 and 2018, which would have qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League in the usual setup, are not guaranteed a berth in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League. If there is any team which qualifies through multiple berths, or if there is any Canada-based MLS team which are champions of the 2017 or 2018 MLS Cup, the vacated berth is reallocated to the U.S.-based team with the best aggregate record over the 2017 and 2018 MLS regular seasons.[1][2]
For Canada, the champions of the Canadian Championship, its domestic cup competition which awards the Voyageurs Cup, qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League. While some Canada-based teams compete in the MLS, they cannot qualify through either the MLS regular season or Playoffs.
Central America
The five berths for the Central American Football Union (UNCAF) are allocated to five of the seven UNCAF member associations as follows: one berth for each of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Panama. As all of the leagues of Central America employ a split season with two tournaments in one season, the champions with the better aggregate record (or any team which are champions of both tournaments) in the leagues of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Panama qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League.
If teams from any Central American associations are excluded, they are replaced by teams from other Central American associations, with the associations chosen based on results from previous CONCACAF Champions League tournaments.
Caribbean
The sole berth for the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) is allocated via the Caribbean Club Championship, a subcontinental tournament open to the clubs of all 31 CFU member associations. Since 2018, the competition is divided into two tiers: the Tier 1 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship which is open to teams from professional leagues, and the Tier 2 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield which is open to teams from non-professional leagues. To qualify for the Tier 1 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship, teams have to finish as the champions or runners-up of their respective association's league in the previous season.[3] The champions of the Tier 1 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League.
CONCACAF League
Besides the 15 direct entrants of the CONCACAF Champions League, another 16 teams (13 from the Central American Football Union, 3 from the Caribbean Football Union) enter the CONCACAF League, a tournament held from August to October prior to the CONCACAF Champions League.[4] The champions of the CONCACAF League qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League.
Teams
The following 16 teams (from nine associations) will qualify for the tournament.
In the following table, the number of appearances, last appearance, and previous best result count only those in the CONCACAF Champions League era starting from 2008–09 (not counting those in the era of the Champions' Cup from 1962 to 2008).
| Association | Team | Qualifying method | App (Last) | Previous Best (Last) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
UANL | 2017 Apertura champions | 5th (2018) | Runners-up (2016–17) |
| Santos Laguna | 2018 Clausura champions | 6th (2015–16) | Runners-up (2012–13) | |
| Monterrey | 2017 Apertura runners-up | 5th (2016–17) | Champions (2012–13) | |
| Toluca | 2018 Clausura runners-up | 4th (2013–14) | Runners-up (2013–14) | |
 |
U.S. team with best aggregate record in 2017 and 2018 MLS regular seasons[Note USA] | |||
| 2018 MLS Cup champions[Note USA] | ||||
| Sporting Kansas City | 2017 U.S. Open Cup champions[Note USA] | 4th (2016–17) | Quarter-finals (2013–14) | |
| Houston Dynamo | 2018 U.S. Open Cup champions[Note USA] | 5th (2013–14) | Quarter-finals (2012–13) | |
 |
Toronto FC | 2018 Canadian Championship champions | 6th (2018) | Runners-up (2018) |
| Association | Team | Qualifying method | App (Last) | Previous Best (Last) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Saprissa | Champions with better aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2018 Clausura) | 8th (2018) | Semi-finals (2010–11) |
 |
Alianza | 2017 Apertura and 2018 Clausura champions | 3rd (2016–17) | Group stage (2016–17) |
 |
Guastatoya | 2018 Guatemalan CONCACAF Champions League playoff winners[Note GUA] | 1st | N/A |
 |
Marathón | Champions with better aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2018 Clausura) | 5th (2012–13) | Quarter-finals (2009–10) |
 |
Independiente | Champions with better aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2018 Clausura) | 1st | N/A |
 |
2018 CONCACAF League champions |
| Association | Team | Qualifying method | App (Last) | Previous Best (Last) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Atlético Pantoja | 2018 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship champions | 1st | N/A |
- Notes
- ^ Guatemala (GUA): After the suspension of the National Football Federation of Guatemala was lifted by FIFA in June 2018, it was decided that the representative of Guatemala in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League would be decided by a two-legged playoff between Antigua GFC (2017 Apertura champions) and Guastatoya (2018 Clausura champions),[5] which was won by Guastatoya.[6] Under the original qualification method, Antigua GFC would have qualified as champions with better aggregate record in 2017–18 season.
- ^ United States (USA): Due to the tournament's restructuring from 2017–18, the United States will be represented in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League by two teams each in the 2017 and 2018 seasons: the MLS Cup champions in 2017 and 2018, and the U.S. Open Cup champions in 2017 and 2018. This means that the Supporters' Shield champions in 2017 and 2018, and the Eastern Conference and/or Western Conference regular season champions which are not Supporters' Shield champions in 2017 and 2018, which would have qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League in the usual setup, will not be guaranteed a berth in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League. If a team qualifies through multiple berths, or if any of the MLS berths are taken by a Canada-based MLS team, the vacated berth is reallocated to the U.S.-based team with the best aggregate record over the 2017 and 2018 MLS regular seasons.[1][2] As the 2017 MLS Cup was won by the Canadian team Toronto FC, this berth is reallocated based on the above method.[7]
Draw
The draw for the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League will be held in December 2018.
The draw determines each tie in the round of 16 (numbered 1 through 8) between a team from Pot 1 and a team from Pot 2, each containing eight teams. The "Bracket Position Pots" (Pot A and Pot B) contains the bracket positions numbered 1 through 8 corresponding to each tie. The teams from Pot 1 are assigned a bracket position from Pot A and the teams from Pot 2 are assigned a bracket position from Pot B. Teams from the same association cannot be drawn against each other in the round of 16 except for "wildcard" teams which replace a team from another association.
The seeding of teams are based on the CONCACAF Club Index.[8] Each team qualifies for the CONCACAF Champions League based on criteria set by the respective associations (e.g., tournament champions, runners-up, cup champions), resulting in an assigned slot (e.g., MEX1, MEX2) for each team. The CONCACAF Club Index, instead of ranking each team, is based on the on-field performance of the teams that have occupied the respective qualifying slots in the previous five editions of the CONCACAF Champions League. To determine the total points awarded to a slot in any single edition of the CONCACAF Champions League, CONCACAF uses the following formula:
| Points per | Participation | Win | Draw | Stage advanced | Champions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
The 16 teams are distributed in the pots as follows:
| Pot | Rank | Slot | 2013–14 | 2014–15 | 2015–16 | 2016–17 | 2018 | Total | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pot 1 | 1 | MEX3 | 29 | 32 | 23 | 15 | 17 | 116 | |
| 2 | MEX1 | 22 | 11 | 33 | 27 | 12 | 105 | | |
| 3 | MEX2 | 10 | 16 | 20 | 30 | 25 | 101 | | |
| 4 | CAN1 | 10 | 23 | 8 | 22 | 21 | 84 | | |
| 5 | USA3 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 20 | 17 | 77 | | |
| 6 | MEX4 | 29 | 9 | 18 | 10 | 9 | 75 | | |
| 7 | USA4 | 16 | 20 | 16 | 8 | 5 | 65 | | |
| 8 | USA1 | 17 | 11 | 14 | 11 | 11 | 64 | | |
| Pot 2 | 9 | PAN1 | 15 | 4 | 10 | 20 | 8 | 57 | |
| 10 | USA2 | 13 | 9 | 13 | 14 | 7 | 56 | | |
| 11 | CRC1 | 19 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 54 | | |
| 12 | HON1 | 11 | 15 | 10 | 11 | 5 | 52 | | |
| 13 | GUA1 | 10 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 0 | 38 | | |
| 14 | SLV1 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 35 | | |
| 15 | CCC1 | 5 | 4 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 26 | | |
| 16 | SCL1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | |
- ^ USA3 Sporting Kansas City may still qualify as United States 2.
See also
References
- 1 2 Brian Straus (April 6, 2017). "MLS clubs have resolution over qualifying for future CCL after format change". Sports Illustrated.
- 1 2 Stejskal, Sam. "How CONCACAF Champions League qualifiers are determined in MLS". www.mlssoccer.com. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
- ↑ "CONCACAF Announces Expanded CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship for 2018". CONCACAF. 15 December 2017.
- ↑ "Details revealed for newly launched Scotiabank CONCACAF League". CONCACAF League. 8 May 2017.
- ↑ "Antigua y Guastatoya jugarán la "serie definitiva" para ir a la Liga de Concacaf 2019". publinews.gt. 27 June 2018.
- ↑ "Guatemala's Guastatoya punches ticket to SCCL". CONCACAF Champions League. 23 August 2018.
- ↑ "UPDATED: 2019 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League Qualified Clubs". CONCACAF Champions League. 8 January 2018.
- 1 2 "Q&A: Club Index for 2018 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League Draw". CONCACAF.com. 29 November 2017.