2020–21 UEFA Europa League
Tournament details | |
---|---|
Dates | Qualifying: 18 August 2020 – 1 October 2020 Competition proper: 22 October 2020 – 26 May 2021 |
Teams | Competition proper: 48+8 Total: 158+55 (from 55 associations) |
Final positions | |
Champions | Villarreal (1st title) |
Runners-up | Manchester United |
Tournament statistics | |
Matches played | 204 |
Goals scored | 618 (3.03 per match) |
Attendance | 108,617 (532 per match) |
Top scorer(s) | Pizzi (Benfica) Borja Mayoral (Roma) Gerard Moreno (Villarreal) Yusuf Yazıcı (Lille) 7 goals each |
Best player(s) | Gerard Moreno (Villarreal)[1] |
The 2020–21 UEFA Europa League was the 50th season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 12th season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League.
Villarreal defeated Manchester United in the final, played at the Stadion Gdańsk in Gdańsk, Poland, 11–10 on penalties following a 1–1 draw after extra time, winning the competition for the first time in club history.[2] Villarreal thus automatically qualified for the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League group stage and earned the right to play in the 2021 UEFA Super Cup. The stadium was originally appointed to host the 2020 UEFA Europa League Final, but this was moved due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe in 2020.[3]
As the title holders of the Europa League, Sevilla qualified for the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League, although they had already qualified before the final through their league performance. They were unable to defend their title as they advanced to the Champions League knockout stage, and were eliminated by Borussia Dortmund in the round of 16.
Association team allocation
[edit]A total of 213 teams from all 55 UEFA member associations participated in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League. The association ranking based on the UEFA country coefficients was used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:[4]
- Associations 1–50 (except Liechtenstein) each had three teams qualify.
- Associations 51–55 each had two teams qualify (starting from this season, with association 51 losing one spot and association 55 gaining one spot).[5]
- Liechtenstein had one team qualify (Liechtenstein organised only a domestic cup and no domestic league).
- Moreover, 55 teams eliminated from the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League were transferred to the Europa League (default number was 57, but two fewer teams competed in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League).
Association ranking
[edit]For the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League, the associations were allocated places according to their 2019 UEFA country coefficients, which took into account their performance in European competitions from 2014–15 to 2018–19.[6]
Apart from the allocation based on the country coefficients, associations could have additional teams participating in the Champions League, as noted below:
- (UCL) – Additional teams transferred from the UEFA Champions League
|
|
|
Distribution
[edit]The following was the access list for this season.[7]
Teams entering in this round | Teams advancing from previous round | Teams transferred from Champions League | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Preliminary round (16 teams) |
|
|||
First qualifying round (94 teams) |
|
|
||
Second qualifying round | Champions Path (20 teams) |
| ||
Main Path (72 teams) |
|
|
||
Third qualifying round | Champions Path (18 teams) |
|
| |
Main Path (52 teams) |
|
|
| |
Play-off round | Champions Path (16 teams) |
|
| |
Main Path (26 teams) |
|
|||
Group stage (48 teams) |
|
|
| |
Knockout phase (32 teams) |
|
|
Changes were made to the default access list since the Champions League title holders, Bayern Munich, and the Europa League title holders, Sevilla, which were guaranteed berths in the Champions League group stage, already qualified for the Champions League group stage via their domestic leagues, meaning there were fewer teams transferred from the Champions League due to changes in the Champions League access list. However, as a result of schedule delays to both the 2019–20 and 2020–21 European seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020–21 European season started before the conclusion of the 2019–20 European season. Therefore, the changes to the access list that should have been made based on the Champions League and Europa League title holders could not be certain until matches of the earlier qualifying rounds had been played and/or their draws had been made. UEFA used "adaptive re-balancing" to change the access list once the berths for the Champions League and Europa League title holders were determined, and rounds which had already been drawn or played by the time the title holders were determined would not be impacted (Regulations Article 3.07)[4] The following changes were made:
- Since the Champions League title holder berth in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League group stage was vacated, only five losers of the Champions League third qualifying round (Champions Path), instead of the original six, were transferred to the Europa League play-off round (Champions Path). In this case, two losers of Champions League second qualifying round (Champions Path), determined by draw, received a bye to the play-off round (Champions Path) instead of entering the third qualifying round (Champions Path).
- At the time when the draws for the preliminary round and first qualifying round were held on 9 and 10 August 2020, it was not certain whether the Europa League title holder berth in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League group stage would be vacated as four of the quarter-finalists of the 2019–20 UEFA Europa League, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Bayer Leverkusen, Copenhagen and Basel, did not qualify for the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League group stage via their domestic leagues. Therefore, these draws proceeded as normal per the default access list, and the matches drawn, which were played on 18–21 and 25–27 August 2020, were not changed even though after the quarter-finals of the 2019–20 UEFA Europa League, which were played on 10–11 August 2020, it was confirmed all four semi-finalists, Sevilla, Manchester United, Inter Milan and Shakhtar Donetsk, already qualified for the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League group stage via their domestic leagues, meaning the Europa League title holder berth would be vacated. As a result, only three losers of the Champions League third qualifying round (League Path), instead of the original four, were transferred to the Europa League group stage, and "adaptive re-balancing" started from the second qualifying round (Main Path), whose draw was held on 31 August 2020, and the following changes to the access list were made:
- The cup winners of association 13 (Czech Republic), entered the group stage instead of the third qualifying round (Main Path).
- The cup winners of associations 18 (Cyprus) and 19 (Serbia), entered the third qualifying round (Main Path) instead of the second qualifying round (Main Path).
Redistribution rules
[edit]A Europa League place was vacated when a team qualified for both the Champions League and the Europa League, or qualified for the Europa League by more than one method. When a place was vacated, it was redistributed within the national association by the following rules:
- When the domestic cup winners (considered as the "highest-placed" qualifier within the national association with the latest starting round) also qualified for the Champions League, their Europa League place was vacated. As a result, the highest-placed team in the league which had not yet qualified for European competitions qualified for the Europa League, with the Europa League qualifiers which finished above them in the league moved up one "place".
- When the domestic cup winners also qualified for the Europa League through league position, their place through the league position was vacated. As a result, the highest-placed team in the league which had not yet qualified for European competitions qualified for the Europa League, with the Europa League qualifiers which finished above them in the league moved up one "place" if possible.
- For associations where a Europa League place was reserved for either the League Cup or end-of-season European competition play-offs winners, they always qualified for the Europa League as the "lowest-placed" qualifier. If the League Cup winners had already qualified for European competitions through other methods, this reserved Europa League place was taken by the highest-placed team in the league which had not yet qualified for European competitions.
Teams
[edit]In early April 2020, UEFA announced that due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, the deadline for entering the tournament had been postponed until further notice.[8] UEFA also sent a letter to all member associations that domestic leagues must be completed in full without ending prematurely in order to qualify for European competitions.[9] After meeting with the 55 UEFA associations on 21 April 2020, UEFA strongly recommended them to finish domestic top league and cup competitions, although in some special cases where it was not possible, UEFA developed guidelines concerning participation in its club competitions in case of a cancelled league or cup.[10][11] After the UEFA Executive Committee meeting on 23 April 2020, UEFA announced that if a domestic competition was prematurely terminated for legitimate reasons in accordance with conditions related to public health or economic problems, the national associations concerned were required to select their participating teams for the 2020–21 UEFA club competitions based on sporting merit in the 2019–20 domestic competitions, and UEFA reserved the right to refuse their admission if UEFA deemed the termination of the competitions not legitimate, or the selection procedure not objective, transparent and non-discriminatory, or the team was perceived by the public as qualifying unfairly. A suspended domestic competition could also be restarted with a different format from the original one in a manner which would still facilitate qualification on sporting merit.[12][13] All leagues were initially to communicate to UEFA by 25 May 2020 whether they intended to restart their competitions,[14] but this deadline was later extended. On 17 June 2020, UEFA announced that associations had to enter their teams by 3 August 2020.[3] If a cup was abandoned or not completed by the UEFA registration deadline, the Europa League places were distributed by league positions only.
The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:
- CW: Cup winners
- 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, etc.: League position of the previous season
- LC: League Cup winners
- RW: Regular season winners
- PW: End-of-season Europa League play-offs winners
- UCL: Transferred from the Champions League
- GS: Third-placed teams from the group stage
- CH/LP PO: Losers from the play-off round (Champions/League Path)
- CH/LP Q3: Losers from the third qualifying round (Champions/League Path)
- CH/LP Q2: Losers from the second qualifying round (Champions/League Path)
- Q1: Losers from the first qualifying round
- PR: Losers from the preliminary round (F: final; SF: semi-finals)
- 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[15]
The second qualifying round, third qualifying round and play-off round were divided into Champions Path (CH) and Main Path (MP).
Notes
- ^ Champions Path (CH): Tirana and Ludogorets Razgrad, two of the ten losers of 2020–21 UEFA Champions League second qualifying round (Champions Path), were determined by a draw held on 31 August 2020 after the Europa League second qualifying round draw,[16] to receive a bye to the play-off round.
- ^ Azerbaijan (AZE): The 2019–20 Azerbaijan Premier League and the 2019–20 Azerbaijan Cup were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Azerbaijan. The second-placed, third-placed and fourth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Neftçi, Keşla and Sumgayit, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan, entering the first qualifying round.[17]
- ^ Belgium (BEL): The 2019–20 Belgian First Division A was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium. The third-placed and fifth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Charleroi and Standard Liège, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Royal Belgian Football Association, entering the third qualifying round and second qualifying round respectively.[18]
- ^ Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH): The 2019–20 Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the 2019–20 Bosnia and Herzegovina Football Cup were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The second-placed, third-placed and fourth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Željezničar, Zrinjski Mostar and Borac Banja Luka, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entering the first qualifying round.[19]
- ^ Cyprus (CYP): The 2019–20 Cypriot First Division and the 2019–20 Cypriot Cup were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Cyprus. The second-placed, third-placed and fourth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Anorthosis, APOEL and Apollon Limassol, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Cyprus Football Association, entering the third qualifying round (second-placed team) and first qualifying round respectively.[20]
- ^ France (FRA): The 2019–20 Ligue 1 was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France. The fourth-placed, fifth-placed and sixth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment based on the average number of points per matches played for each team, Lille, Nice and Reims, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the French Football Federation, entering the group stage and second qualifying round (sixth-placed team) respectively.[21]
- ^ Gibraltar (GIB): The 2019–20 Gibraltar National League and the 2020 Rock Cup were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Gibraltar. The second-placed and third-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, St Joseph's and Lincoln Red Imps, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Gibraltar Football Association, entering the preliminary round.[22]
- ^ Greece (GRE):
- The 2019–20 Greek Football Cup was not completed by the UEFA registration deadline. However, since both finalists, Olympiacos and AEK Athens, were in the top three of the 2019–20 Super League Greece, the result of the final would have no impact on qualification for the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League.
- Panathinaikos, the fourth-placed team of the 2019–20 Super League Greece, would have qualified for the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round, but were banned from UEFA club competitions for the first season they would qualify between the 2018–19 and 2020–21 seasons by the UEFA Club Financial Control Body on 24 April 2018 due to overdue payables, which turned out to be the 2020–21 season since they did not qualify for either the 2018–19 or 2019–20 season.[23] As a result, OFI, the sixth-placed team, qualified for this berth.
- ^ Liechtenstein (LIE): The 2019–20 Liechtenstein Cup was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Liechtenstein. The team remaining in the cup with the highest UEFA club coefficient, Vaduz, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Liechtenstein Football Association, entering the first qualifying round.[24]
- ^ Luxembourg (LUX): The 2019–20 Luxembourg National Division and the 2019–20 Luxembourg Cup were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Luxembourg. The second-placed, third-placed and fourth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Progrès Niederkorn, Differdange 03 and Union Titus Pétange, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Luxembourg Football Federation, entering the first qualifying round.[25]
- ^ Malta (MLT): The 2019–20 Maltese Premier League and the 2019–20 Maltese FA Trophy were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Malta. The second-placed, third-placed and fourth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Valletta, Hibernians and Sirens, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Malta Football Association, entering the first qualifying round.[26]
- ^ Montenegro (MNE): The 2019–20 Montenegrin First League and the 2019–20 Montenegrin Cup were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Montenegro. The second-placed, third-placed and fourth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Sutjeska Nikšić, Iskra Danilovgrad and Zeta, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Football Association of Montenegro, entering the first qualifying round (second-placed team) and preliminary round respectively.[27]
- ^ Netherlands (NED): The 2019–20 Eredivisie and the 2019–20 KNVB Cup were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands. The third-placed, fourth-placed and fifth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Feyenoord, PSV Eindhoven and Willem II, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Royal Dutch Football Association, entering the group stage, third qualifying round and second qualifying round respectively.[28]
- ^ North Macedonia (MKD): The 2019–20 Macedonian First Football League and the 2019–20 Macedonian Football Cup were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in North Macedonia. The third-placed, fourth-placed and fifth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Shkëndija, Renova and Shkupi, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Football Federation of North Macedonia, entering the first qualifying round, as the second-placed team, Sileks, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League to replace the top team, Vardar, who failed to obtain a UEFA licence.[29]
- ^ Northern Ireland (NIR): The 2019–20 NIFL Premiership was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Northern Ireland. The second-placed team of the league at the time of the abandonement, Coleraine, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Irish Football Association, entering the preliminary round.[30]
- ^ Republic of Ireland (IRL): Derry City are a club based in Northern Ireland but play in the Republic of Ireland's league system, and qualify for the Europa League through one of the berths for the Republic of Ireland.
- ^ Romania (ROU): Astra Giurgiu, the third-placed team of the 2019–20 Liga I, would have qualified for the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round, but failed to obtain a UEFA licence.[31] As a result, Botoșani, the fourth-placed team, qualified for this berth.
- ^ San Marino (SMR): The 2019–20 Campionato Sammarinese di Calcio and the 2019–20 Coppa Titano were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in San Marino. The second-placed and third-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment, Folgore and Tre Penne, were originally selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the San Marino Football Federation, entering the preliminary round.[32] However, Folgore were banned by UEFA due to previous match-fixing, and were replaced by the fourth-placed team, La Fiorita.[33]
- ^ Scotland (SCO): The 2019–20 Scottish Premiership was abandoned and the 2019–20 Scottish Cup was not completed by the UEFA registration deadline due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland. The second-placed, third-placed and fourth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment based on the average number of points per matches played for each team, Rangers, Motherwell and Aberdeen, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Scottish Football Association, entering the second qualifying round (second-placed team) and first qualifying round respectively.[34]
- ^ Spain (ESP): The 2019–20 Copa del Rey was not completed by the UEFA registration deadline due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain. As a result, the seventh-placed team of the 2019–20 La Liga was selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, entering the second qualifying round, and the sixth-placed team of the league entered the group stage.[35] The 2019–20 Copa del Rey was ultimately won by Real Sociedad, who entered the group stage as sixth-placed team, in 2021.
- ^ Switzerland (SUI): The 2019–20 Swiss Cup was not completed by the UEFA registration deadline due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Switzerland. As a result, the fourth-placed team of the 2019–20 Swiss Super League was selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Swiss Football Association, entering the first qualifying round, and the second-placed and third-placed teams of the league entered the third qualifying round and second qualifying round respectively.[36]
- ^ Turkey (TUR): Trabzonspor, the second-placed team of the 2019–20 Süper Lig, would have qualified for the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League second qualifying round, but were banned from all UEFA club competitions for the 2020–21 season by the UEFA Club Financial Control Body on 3 June 2020 due to breaches of the UEFA Financial Fair Play Regulations.[37] Trabzonspor appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport,[38] but on 30 July 2020, it was announced that the ban on them participating in UEFA club competitions was upheld.[39] As a result, Beşiktaş, the third-placed team, qualified for this berth instead of entering the Europa League group stage, Sivasspor, the fourth-placed team, entered the Europa League group stage instead of the third qualifying round, Alanyaspor, the fifth-placed team, entered the third qualifying round instead of the second qualifying round, and Galatasaray, the sixth-placed team, qualified for the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round.
- ^ Wales (WAL): The 2019–20 Cymru Premier and the 2019–20 Welsh Cup were abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Wales. The second-placed, third-placed and fourth-placed teams of the league at the time of the abandonment based on the average number of points per matches played for each team, The New Saints, Bala Town and Barry Town United, were selected to play in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League by the Football Association of Wales, entering the first qualifying round and preliminary round (fourth-placed team) respectively.[40]
Schedule
[edit]The schedule of the competition was as follows (all draws were held at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland).[41] The tournament would originally have started in June 2020, but was delayed to August due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe.[42] The new schedule was announced by the UEFA Executive Committee on 17 June 2020.[43] All qualifying matches, including the play-off round, were played as single leg matches, hosted by one of the teams decided by draw.[3][44]
The group stage draw was originally to be held at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center in Athens, Greece, but UEFA announced on 9 September 2020 that it would be relocated to Nyon.[45]
Note: Matches could also be played on Tuesdays or Wednesdays instead of the regular Thursdays due to scheduling conflicts.
Phase | Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
---|---|---|---|---|
Qualifying | Preliminary round | 9 August 2020 | 20 August 2020 | |
First qualifying round | 10 August 2020 | 27 August 2020 | ||
Second qualifying round | 31 August 2020 | 17 September 2020 | ||
Third qualifying round | 1 September 2020 | 24 September 2020 | ||
Play-off | Play-off round | 18 September 2020 | 1 October 2020 | |
Group stage | Matchday 1 | 2 October 2020 | 22 October 2020 | |
Matchday 2 | 29 October 2020 | |||
Matchday 3 | 5 November 2020 | |||
Matchday 4 | 26 November 2020 | |||
Matchday 5 | 3 December 2020 | |||
Matchday 6 | 10 December 2020 | |||
Knockout phase | Round of 32 | 14 December 2020 | 18 February 2021 | 25 February 2021 |
Round of 16 | 26 February 2021 | 11 March 2021 | 18 March 2021 | |
Quarter-finals | 19 March 2021 | 8 April 2021 | 15 April 2021 | |
Semi-finals | 29 April 2021 | 6 May 2021 | ||
Final | 26 May 2021 at Stadion Gdańsk, Gdańsk |
The original schedule of the competition, as planned before the pandemic, was as follows (all draws were to be held at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, unless stated otherwise).
Phase | Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
---|---|---|---|---|
Qualifying | Preliminary round | 9 June 2020 | 25 June 2020 | 2 July 2020 |
First qualifying round | 16 June 2020 | 9 July 2020 | 16 July 2020 | |
Second qualifying round | 17 June 2020 | 23 July 2020 | 30 July 2020 | |
Third qualifying round | 20 July 2020 | 6 August 2020 | 13 August 2020 | |
Play-off | Play-off round | 3 August 2020 | 20 August 2020 | 27 August 2020 |
Group stage | Matchday 1 | 28 August 2020 (Monaco) |
17 September 2020 | |
Matchday 2 | 1 October 2020 | |||
Matchday 3 | 22 October 2020 | |||
Matchday 4 | 5 November 2020 | |||
Matchday 5 | 26 November 2020 | |||
Matchday 6 | 10 December 2020 | |||
Knockout phase | Round of 32 | 14 December 2020 | 18 February 2021 | 25 February 2021 |
Round of 16 | 26 February 2021 | 11 March 2021 | 18 March 2021 | |
Quarter-finals | 19 March 2021 | 8 April 2021 | 15 April 2021 | |
Semi-finals | 29 April 2021 | 6 May 2021 | ||
Final | 26 May 2021 at Estadio Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán, Seville |
Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic
[edit]Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, the following special rules were applicable to the competition:[46][47]
- If there were travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic that prevented the away team from entering the home team's country or returning to their own country, the match could be played at a neutral country or the away team's country that allowed the match to take place.
- If a team refused to play or was considered responsible for a match not taking place, they were considered to have forfeited the match. If both teams refused to play or were considered responsible for a match not taking place, both teams were disqualified.
- If a team had players and/or officials tested positive for SARS-2 coronavirus preventing them from playing the match before the deadline set by UEFA, they were considered to have forfeited the match.
On 24 September 2020, UEFA announced that five substitutions would be permitted from the group stage onward, with a sixth allowed in extra time. However, each team was only given three opportunities to make substitutions during matches, with a fourth opportunity in extra time, excluding substitutions made at half-time, before the start of extra time and at half-time in extra time. Consequently, a maximum of twelve players could be listed on the substitute bench.[48]
All qualifying matches were played behind closed doors.[44] Following the partial return of fans at the 2020 UEFA Super Cup, UEFA announced on 1 October 2020 that matches from the group stage onward could be played at 30% capacity if allowed by the local authorities.[49] Video assistant referees were not introduced for the group stage as planned (now to start in 2021–22), but were still used in the knockout phase.
Qualifying rounds
[edit]Preliminary round
[edit]The draw for the preliminary round was held on 9 August 2020, 13:00 CEST.[50] The matches were played on 18, 20 and 21 August 2020. The match between Lincoln Red Imps and Prishtina on 18 August was postponed due to the whole Prishtina team being put into quarantine after eight players had tested positive for SARS-2 coronavirus. The game was rescheduled to 22 August, with Prishtina using UEFA regulations to sign on emergency loan players from rival Kosovar Superleague clubs Feronikel, Llapi, Trepca '89, Flamurtar, Ballkani, Drenica and Vushtrria in order to fulfil the fixture.[51] However the rearranged fixture also had to be cancelled after 7 more players tested positive for coronavirus, and Lincoln Red Imps were awarded a technical 3–0 win by UEFA.
Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
---|---|---|
Tre Penne | 1–3 | Gjilani |
Lincoln Red Imps | 3–0 (awd.)[A] |
Prishtina |
FC Santa Coloma | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (3–4 p) |
Iskra Danilovgrad |
Engordany | 1–3 | Zeta |
Glentoran | 1–0 | HB Tórshavn |
St Joseph's | 1–2 | B36 Tórshavn |
Coleraine | 1–0 | La Fiorita |
NSÍ Runavík | 5–1 | Barry Town United |
- ^ Lincoln Red Imps were awarded a 3–0 win after the match was cancelled due to Prishtina players testing positive for SARS-CoV-2.[52]
First qualifying round
[edit]The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 10 August 2020, 13:00 CEST.[53] Most matches were played on 25, 26 and 27 August 2020, however two matches were postponed to 9 and 10 September 2020.
Second qualifying round
[edit]The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 31 August 2020, 13:00 CEST.[16] The matches were played on 16, 17 and 18 September 2020.
Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
---|---|---|
Inter Club d'Escaldes | 0–1 | Dundalk |
KuPS | 1–1 (a.e.t.) (4–3 p) |
Slovan Bratislava |
Linfield | 0–1 | Floriana |
Riga | 1–0 | Tre Fiori |
Djurgårdens IF | 2–1 | Europa |
Flora | 2–1 | KR |
Sileks | 0–2 | Drita |
Astana | 0–1 | Budućnost Podgorica |
Ararat-Armenia | 4–3 (a.e.t.) | Fola Esch |
Connah's Quay Nomads | 0–1 | Dinamo Tbilisi |
Notes
Third qualifying round
[edit]The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 1 September 2020, 13:00 CEST.[55] The matches were played on 23 and 24 September 2020.
Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
---|---|---|
Tirana | Bye | N/A |
Ludogorets Razgrad | Bye | N/A |
Sarajevo | 2–1 | Budućnost Podgorica |
Sheriff Tiraspol | 1–1 (a.e.t.) (3–5 p) |
Dundalk |
Ararat-Armenia | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | Celje |
Riga | 0–1 | Celtic |
KuPS | 2–0 | Sūduva |
Legia Warsaw | 2–0 | Drita |
KÍ | 6–1 | Dinamo Tbilisi |
Djurgårdens IF | 0–1 | CFR Cluj |
Floriana | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (2–4 p) |
Flora |
Play-off round
[edit]The draw for the play-off round was held on 18 September 2020, 14:00 CEST.[56] The matches were played on 1 October 2020.
Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
---|---|---|
Young Boys | 3–0 | Tirana |
Dinamo Zagreb | 3–1 | Flora |
CFR Cluj | 3–1 | KuPS |
Ararat-Armenia | 1–2 | Red Star Belgrade |
Dynamo Brest | 0–2 | Ludogorets Razgrad |
Sarajevo | 0–1 | Celtic |
Legia Warsaw | 0–3 | Qarabağ |
Dundalk | 3–1 | KÍ |
Group stage
[edit]Celtic
Rangers
London teams
Arsenal
Tottenham Hotspur
Prague teams
Slavia Prague
Sparta Prague
A total of 48 teams played in the group phase: 18 teams which entered in this phase, the 21 winners of the play-off round (eight from Champions Path, thirteen from Main Path), the six losers of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League play-off round (four from Champions Path, two from League Path), and the three League Path losers of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round.
The draw for the group phase was held on 2 October 2020, 13:00 CEST.[57] The 48 teams were drawn into twelve groups of four, with the restriction that teams from the same association could not be drawn against each other. For the draw, the teams were seeded into four pots based on their 2020 UEFA club coefficients.[58]
In each group, teams played against each other home-and-away in a round-robin format. The group winners and runners-up advanced to the round of 32, where they were joined by the eight third-placed teams of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League group phase.
Antwerp, Granada, Leicester City, Omonia and Sivasspor made their debut appearances in the group stage. Furthermore, Granada qualified for any European competition for the first time in the club's history.
Tiebreakers |
---|
Teams were ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria were applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings (Regulations Articles 16.01):[4]
|
Group A
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | ROM | YB | CLJ | CSS | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Roma | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 5 | +8 | 13 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 3–1 | 5–0 | 0–0 | |
2 | Young Boys | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 7 | +2 | 10 | 1–2 | — | 2–1 | 3–0 | ||
3 | CFR Cluj | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 10 | −6 | 5[a] | 0–2 | 1–1 | — | 0–0 | ||
4 | CSKA Sofia | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 7 | −4 | 5[a] | 3–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | — |
Group B
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | ARS | MOL | RW | DUN | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Arsenal | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 5 | +15 | 18 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 4–1 | 4–1 | 3–0 | |
2 | Molde | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 11 | −2 | 10 | 0–3 | — | 1–0 | 3–1 | ||
3 | Rapid Wien | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 13 | −2 | 7 | 1–2 | 2–2 | — | 4–3 | ||
4 | Dundalk | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 19 | −11 | 0 | 2–4 | 1–2 | 1–3 | — |
Group C
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | LEV | SLP | HBS | NCE | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Bayer Leverkusen | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 21 | 8 | +13 | 15 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 4–0 | 4–1 | 6–2 | |
2 | Slavia Prague | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 10 | +1 | 12 | 1–0 | — | 3–0 | 3–2 | ||
3 | Hapoel Be'er Sheva | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 13 | −6 | 6 | 2–4 | 3–1 | — | 1–0 | ||
4 | Nice | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 16 | −8 | 3 | 2–3 | 1–3 | 1–0 | — |
Group D
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | RAN | BEN | STL | LCH | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Rangers | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 7 | +6 | 14 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 2–2 | 3–2 | 1–0 | |
2 | Benfica | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 18 | 9 | +9 | 12 | 3–3 | — | 3–0 | 4–0 | ||
3 | Standard Liège | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 14 | −7 | 4 | 0–2 | 2–2 | — | 2–1 | ||
4 | Lech Poznań | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 14 | −8 | 3 | 0–2 | 2–4 | 3–1 | — |
Group E
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | PSV | GRA | PAOK | OMO | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | PSV Eindhoven | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 9 | +3 | 12 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 1–2 | 3–2 | 4–0 | |
2 | Granada | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 11 | 0–1 | — | 0–0 | 2–1 | ||
3 | PAOK | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 7 | +1 | 6 | 4–1 | 0–0 | — | 1–1 | ||
4 | Omonia | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 12 | −7 | 4 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 2–1 | — |
Group F
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | NAP | RSO | AZ | RJK | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Napoli | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 11 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | |
2 | Real Sociedad | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 9 | 0–1 | — | 1–0 | 2–2 | ||
3 | AZ | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 5 | +2 | 8 | 1–1 | 0–0 | — | 4–1 | ||
4 | Rijeka | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 12 | −6 | 4 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | — |
Group G
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | LEI | BRA | ZOR | AEK | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Leicester City | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 5 | +9 | 13[a] | Advance to knockout phase | — | 4–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | |
2 | Braga | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 10 | +4 | 13[a] | 3–3 | — | 2–0 | 3–0 | ||
3 | Zorya Luhansk | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 11 | −5 | 6 | 1–0 | 1–2 | — | 1–4 | ||
4 | AEK Athens | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 15 | −8 | 3 | 1–2 | 2–4 | 0–3 | — |
Group H
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | MIL | LOSC | SPP | CEL | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Milan | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 7 | +5 | 13 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 0–3 | 3–0 | 4–2 | |
2 | Lille | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 8 | +6 | 11 | 1–1 | — | 2–1 | 2–2 | ||
3 | Sparta Prague | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 12 | −2 | 6 | 0–1 | 1–4 | — | 4–1 | ||
4 | Celtic | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 19 | −9 | 4 | 1–3 | 3–2 | 1–4 | — |
Group I
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | VIL | MTA | SIV | QRB | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Villarreal | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 5 | +12 | 16 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 4–0 | 5–3 | 3–0[a] | |
2 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 7 | −1 | 11 | 1–1 | — | 1–0 | 1–0 | ||
3 | Sivasspor | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 11 | −2 | 6 | 0–1 | 1–2 | — | 2–0 | ||
4 | Qarabağ | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 13 | −9 | 1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 2–3 | — |
- ^ The Villarreal v Qarabağ match was awarded as a 3–0 win to Villarreal after being cancelled as several players of the Qarabağ squad tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2.
Group J
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | TOT | ANT | LASK | LUD | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Tottenham Hotspur | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 5 | +10 | 13 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 2–0 | 3–0 | 4–0 | |
2 | Antwerp | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 5 | +3 | 12 | 1–0 | — | 0–1 | 3–1 | ||
3 | LASK | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 12 | −1 | 10 | 3–3 | 0–2 | — | 4–3 | ||
4 | Ludogorets Razgrad | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 19 | −12 | 0 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 1–3 | — |
Group K
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | DZG | WAC | FEY | CSM | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Dinamo Zagreb | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 1 | +8 | 14 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 1–0 | 0–0 | 3–1 | |
2 | Wolfsberger AC | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 6 | +1 | 10 | 0–3 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 | ||
3 | Feyenoord | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 5 | 0–2 | 1–4 | — | 3–1 | ||
4 | CSKA Moscow | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 8 | −5 | 3 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | — |
Group L
[edit]
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | HOF | ZVE | LIB | GNT | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | TSG Hoffenheim | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 2 | +15 | 16 | Advance to knockout phase | — | 2–0 | 5–0 | 4–1 | |
2 | Red Star Belgrade | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 4 | +5 | 11 | 0–0 | — | 5–1 | 2–1 | ||
3 | Slovan Liberec | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 13 | −9 | 7 | 0–2 | 0–0 | — | 1–0 | ||
4 | Gent | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 15 | −11 | 0 | 1–4 | 0–2 | 1–2 | — |
Knockout phase
[edit]In the knockout phase, teams played 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 was as follows:
- In the draw for the round of 32, the twelve group winners and the four third-placed teams from the Champions League group stage with the better group records were seeded, and the twelve group runners-up and the other four third-placed teams from the Champions League group stage 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 cannot be drawn against each other.
- In the draws for the round of 16 onwards, 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 was played at a neutral venue).
Bracket
[edit]Round of 32
[edit]The draw for the round of 32 was held on 14 December 2020, 13:00 CET.[59] The first legs were played on 18 February, and the second legs were played on 24 and 25 February 2021.
Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
---|---|---|---|---|
Wolfsberger AC | 1–8 | Tottenham Hotspur | 1–4 | 0–4 |
Dynamo Kyiv | 2–1 | Club Brugge | 1–1 | 1–0 |
Real Sociedad | 0–4 | Manchester United | 0–4 | 0–0 |
Benfica | 3–4 | Arsenal | 1–1 | 2–3 |
Red Star Belgrade | 3–3 (a) | Milan | 2–2 | 1–1 |
Antwerp | 5–9 | Rangers | 3–4 | 2–5 |
Slavia Prague | 2–0 | Leicester City | 0–0 | 2–0 |
Red Bull Salzburg | 1–4 | Villarreal | 0–2 | 1–2 |
Braga | 1–5 | Roma | 0–2 | 1–3 |
Krasnodar | 2–4 | Dinamo Zagreb | 2–3 | 0–1 |
Young Boys | 6–3 | Bayer Leverkusen | 4–3 | 2–0 |
Molde | 5–3 | TSG Hoffenheim | 3–3 | 2–0 |
Granada | 3–2 | Napoli | 2–0 | 1–2 |
Maccabi Tel Aviv | 0–3 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 0–2 | 0–1 |
Lille | 2–4 | Ajax | 1–2 | 1–2 |
Olympiacos | 5–4 | PSV Eindhoven | 4–2 | 1–2 |
Round of 16
[edit]The draw for the round of 16 was held on 26 February 2021, 13:00 CET.[60] The first legs were played on 11 March, and the second legs were played on 18 March 2021.
Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
---|---|---|---|---|
Ajax | 5–0 | Young Boys | 3–0 | 2–0 |
Dynamo Kyiv | 0–4 | Villarreal | 0–2 | 0–2 |
Roma | 5–1 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 3–0 | 2–1 |
Olympiacos | 2–3 | Arsenal | 1–3 | 1–0 |
Tottenham Hotspur | 2–3[A] | Dinamo Zagreb | 2–0 | 0–3 (a.e.t.) |
Manchester United | 2–1 | Milan | 1–1 | 1–0 |
Slavia Prague | 3–1 | Rangers | 1–1 | 2–0 |
Granada | 3–2 | Molde | 2–0 | 1–2 |
Notes
- ^ Order of legs between Tottenham Hotspur and Dinamo Zagreb were reversed after original draw, in order to avoid a scheduling conflict with the Arsenal v Olympiacos second leg in the same city on 18 March, as Arsenal were the domestic cup winners and given higher priority over Tottenham Hotspur.[61][62]
Quarter-finals
[edit]The draw for the quarter-finals was held on 19 March 2021, 13:00 CET.[63] The first legs were played on 8 April, and the second legs were played on 15 April 2021.
Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
---|---|---|---|---|
Granada | 0–4 | Manchester United | 0–2 | 0–2 |
Arsenal | 5–1 | Slavia Prague | 1–1 | 4–0 |
Ajax | 2–3 | Roma | 1–2 | 1–1 |
Dinamo Zagreb | 1–3 | Villarreal | 0–1 | 1–2 |
Semi-finals
[edit]The draw for the semi-finals was held on 19 March 2021, 13:00 CET, after the quarter-final draw.[63] The first legs were played on 29 April, and the second legs were played on 6 May 2021.
Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
---|---|---|---|---|
Manchester United | 8–5 | Roma | 6–2 | 2–3 |
Villarreal |