2018–19 CAF Champions League
| 2018–19 Total CAF Champions League | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Dates | 27 November 2018 – 31 May 2019 |
| Teams | 57 (from 46 associations) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 142 |
| Goals scored | 335 (2.36 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Moataz Al-Mehdi (7 goals) |
The 2018–19 CAF Champions League (officially the 2018–19 Total CAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons)[1] is the 55th edition of Africa's premier club football tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), and the 23rd edition under the current CAF Champions League title.
This season follows a transitional calendar which allows the CAF club competitions to switch from a February-to-November schedule to an August–to-May schedule, as per the decision of the CAF Executive Committee on 20 July 2017.[2] It began in December 2018, right after the 2018 season had finished, and ends in May 2019, before the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (which has been switched from January/February to June/July). The next season will then start after the Africa Cup of Nations and follow the new calendar.[3]
The winners of the 2018–19 CAF Champions League will earn the right to play against the winners of the 2018–19 CAF Confederation Cup in the 2019 CAF Super Cup.[4] Espérance de Tunis are the defending champions.
Association team allocation
All 56 CAF member associations may enter the CAF Champions League, with the 12 highest ranked associations according to their CAF 5-Year Ranking eligible to enter two teams in the competition.[4] As a result, theoretically a maximum of 68 teams could enter the tournament – although this level has never been reached.
For the 2018–19 CAF Champions League, the CAF uses the 2013–2017 CAF 5-Year Ranking, which calculates points for each entrant association based on their clubs’ performance over those 5 years in the CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup. The criteria for points are the following:[5][6][7]
| CAF Champions League | CAF Confederation Cup | |
|---|---|---|
| Winners | 6 points | 5 points |
| Runners-up | 5 points | 4 points |
| Losing semi-finalists | 4 points | 3 points |
| Losing quarter-finalists (from 2017) | 3 points | 2 points |
| 3rd place in groups | 2 points | 1 point |
| 4th place in groups | 1 point | 0.5 point |
The points are multiplied by a coefficient according to the year as follows:
- 2017 – 5
- 2016 – 4
- 2015 – 3
- 2014 – 2
- 2013 – 1
Teams
The following 57 teams from 46 associations entered the competition.
- For this season, the title holders (in bold italics) receive a bye to the group stage.[8]
- Four teams (in bold) received a bye to the first round.
- The other 52 teams entered the preliminary round.
Associations are shown according to their 2013–2017 CAF 5-Year Ranking – those with a ranking score have their rank and score indicated.[9]
- Notes
- ^ Malawi (MWI): Malawi were represented by Nyasa Big Bullets, the 2017 Malawi Premier Division runners-up, as the 2018 Malawi Premier Division was not finished in time for the 2018–19 CAF competitions (Be Forward Wanderers, the 2017 Malawi Premier Division champions, chose not to enter).[10]
- ^ Mali (MLI): Mali were represented by Stade Malien, the 2018 Malian Cup winners, as the Malian Première Division was not played in 2018.[11]
- ^ Mozambique (MOZ): Mozambique were represented by UD Songo, the 2017 Moçambola champions, as the 2018 Moçambola was not finished in time for the 2018–19 CAF competitions (other teams chose not to enter despite Mozambique eligible for two entrants).[12]
- ^ Nigeria (NGA): Nigeria were represented by Lobi Stars, the 2018 Nigeria Professional Football League leaders after 24 rounds when the league was suspended, following a decision by the Nigeria Professional Football League.[13]
- ^ Seychelles (SEY): Seychelles were represented by Light Stars, the 2018 Seychelles League Cup winners, as the 2018 Seychelles First Division was not finished in time for the 2018–19 CAF competitions.[14]
- ^ Zimbabwe (ZIM): Zimbabwe were represented by FC Platinum, the 2017 Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League champions, as the 2018 Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League was not finished in time for the 2018–19 CAF competitions.[15]
- Associations which did not enter a team
Benin
Cape Verde
Eritrea
Ghana (22nd – 4 pts)
Guinea-Bissau
Mauritius
Réunion
São Tomé and Príncipe
Sierra Leone (suspended by FIFA)[16]
Somalia
Schedule
The schedule of the competition is as follows (matches scheduled in midweek in italics).[8] Effective from the Champions League group stage, weekend matches are played on Fridays and Saturdays while midweek matches are played on Tuesdays, with some exceptions. Kick-off times are also fixed at 13:00 (Saturdays and Tuesdays only), 16:00 and 19:00 GMT.[17]
| Phase | Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying | Preliminary round | 3 November 2018 (Rabat, Morocco)[18] |
27–28 November 2018 | 4–5 December 2018 |
| First round | 14–16 December 2018 | 21–23 December 2018 | ||
| Group stage | Matchday 1 | 28 December 2018 (Cairo, Egypt)[19] |
11–12 January 2019 | |
| Matchday 2 | 18–19 January 2019 | |||
| Matchday 3 | 1–2 February 2019 | |||
| Matchday 4 | 12 February 2019 | |||
| Matchday 5 | 8–9 March 2019 | |||
| Matchday 6 | 15–16 March 2019 | |||
| Knockout stage | Quarter-finals | 20 March 2019 (Cairo, Egypt)[20] |
5–6 April 2019 | 12–13 April 2019 |
| Semi-finals | 26–27 April 2019 | 3–4 May 2019 | ||
| Final | 24–25 May 2019 | 31 May – 1 June 2019 | ||
Qualifying rounds
The draw for the preliminary round and first round was held on 3 November 2018 in Rabat, Morocco, and was officially announced by the CAF on 9 November due to a special situation with the transitional calendar.[21][22][23]
In the qualifying rounds, each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If the aggregate score was tied after the second leg, the away goals rule would be applied, and if still tied, extra time would not be played, and the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner (Regulations III. 13 & 14).[4]
Preliminary round
First round
The 15 winners of the first round advanced to the group stage to join Espérance de Tunis, who received a bye to the group stage as the title holders, while the 15 losers of the first round entered the Confederation Cup play-off round.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Wydad AC 
|
3–3 (a) |  ASC Diaraf
|
2–0 | 1–3 |
JS Saoura 
|
2–1 | Ittihad Tanger
|
2–0 | 0–1 |
Ismaily 
|
3–2 |  Coton Sport
|
2–0 | 1–2 |
TP Mazembe 
|
2–1 |  ZESCO United
|
1–0 | 1–1 |
Orlando Pirates 
|
1–0 |  African Stars
|
0–0 | 1–0 |
| Al-Ahly Benghazi
|
0–4 | Mamelodi Sundowns
|
0–0 | 0–4 |
Gor Mahia 
|
3–3 (a) |  Lobi Stars
|
3–1 | 0–2 |
| Nkana
|
3–4 |  Simba
|
2–1 | 1–3 |
| Al-Ahly
|
2–1 |  Jimma Aba Jifar
|
2–0 | 0–1 |
| CS Constantine
|
3–0 |  Vipers
|
1–0 | 2–0 |
Stade Malien 
|
0–2 |  ASEC Mimosas
|
0–1 | 0–1 |
| AS Vita Club
|
5–2 |  Bantu
|
4–1 | 1–1 |
Club Africain 
|
3–2 |  Al-Hilal
|
3–1 | 0–1 |
| Al-Nasr
|
5–6 |  Horoya
|
3–0 | 2–6 |
AS Otohô 
|
1–1 (a) |  FC Platinum
|
1–1 | 0–0 |
Group stage
| Tiebreakers |
|---|
Group A
Template:2018–19 CAF Champions League group tables
Group B
Template:2018–19 CAF Champions League group tables
Group C
Template:2018–19 CAF Champions League group tables
Group D
Template:2018–19 CAF Champions League group tables
Knockout stage
Each tie in the knockout phase was played over two legs, with each team playing one leg at home. The team that scored more goals on aggregate over the two legs advanced to the next round. If the aggregate score was level, the away goals rule was applied, i.e. the team that scored more goals away from home over the two legs advanced. If away goals were also equal, then extra time was not played and the winners were decided by a penalty shoot-out (Regulations III. 26 & 27).[4]
Bracket
The bracket was decided after the draw for the knockout stage (quarter-finals and semi-finals), which was held on 20 March 2019, 20:00 CAT (UTC+2), at the Marriot Hotel in Cairo, Egypt.[24][25]
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||||||||
| Horoya
| 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| Wydad AC
| 0 | 5 | 5 | ||||||||||||||
| Wydad AC
| 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| Mamelodi Sundowns
| 1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Mamelodi Sundowns
| 5 | 0 | 5 | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Ahly
| 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Wydad AC
| 1 | abd. | |||||||||||||||
| Espérance de Tunis
| 1 | abd. | awd. | ||||||||||||||
| CS Constantine
| 2 | 1 | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| Espérance de Tunis
| 3 | 3 | 6 | ||||||||||||||
| Espérance de Tunis
| 1 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| TP Mazembe
| 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| Simba
| 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| TP Mazembe
| 0 | 4 | 4 | ||||||||||||||
Quarter-finals
In the quarter-finals, the winners of one group played the runners-up of another group (teams from same group could not play each other), with the group winners hosting the second leg, and the matchups decided by draw.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CS Constantine
|
3–6 | Espérance de Tunis
|
2–3 | 1–3 |
| Mamelodi Sundowns
|
5–1 | Al-Ahly
|
5–0 | 0–1 |
| Horoya
|
0–5 | Wydad AC
|
0–0 | 0–5 |
| Simba
|
1–4 | TP Mazembe
|
0–0 | 1–4 |
Semi-finals
In the semi-finals, the four quarter-final winners played in two ties, with the matchups and order of legs decided by draw.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wydad AC
|
2–1 | Mamelodi Sundowns
|
2–1 | 0–0 |
| Espérance de Tunis
|
1–0 | TP Mazembe
|
1–0 | 0–0 |
Final
In the final, the two semi-final winners play each other, with the order of legs determined by the semi-final draw.
| Wydad AC | 1–1 | Espérance de Tunis |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
| Espérance de Tunis | Abandoned at the result 1–0[note 1] | Wydad AC |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
Espérance de Tunis were declared champions after second leg was abandoned.
Top goalscorers
- As of 4 May 2019
| Rank | Player | Team | PR1 | PR2 | FR1 | FR2 | MD1 | MD2 | MD3 | MD4 | MD5 | MD6 | QF1 | QF2 | SF1 | SF2 | F1 | F2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moataz Al-Mehdi
|
Al-Nasr
|
2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | ||||||||||||
| 2 |  Meddie Kagere
|
Simba
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | |||||||||||
| Themba Zwane
|
Mamelodi Sundowns
|
1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||||
| 4 | Clatous Chama
|
Simba
|
1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||||||||||||
| Trésor Mputu
|
TP Mazembe
|
1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Jackson Muleka
|
TP Mazembe
|
1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Jean-Marc Makusu Mundele
|
AS Vita Club
|
2 | 2 | 1 | |||||||||||||||
| Mohamed Nahiri
|
Wydad Casablanca
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||||||||||
| Justin Shonga
|
Orlando Pirates
|
1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Alimi Sikiru
|
Lobi Stars
|
1 | 2 | 2 | |||||||||||||||
Source:[citation needed]
See also
References
- ^ "Total, Title Sponsor of the Africa Cup of Nations and Partner of African Football". CAF. 21 July 2016.
- ^ "DECISIONS OF CAF EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE – 20 JULY 2017". CAF. 20 July 2017.
- ^ "Change in dates for Caf club competitions will begin in 2018". BBC Sport. 13 December 2017.
- ^ a b c d "CAF Champions League regulations" (PDF). CAF.
- ^ "16 Clubs for Group Phase of CC and CL effective 2017". CAF. 11 May 2016.
- ^ "New adopted format for Club Competitions". CAF. 30 May 2016.
- ^ "CAF disowns club ranking published by some websites". Cafonline.com. 9 June 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2011.
- ^ a b "Interclubs competition calendar; seasons 2018/19, 2019/20 & 2020/21" (PDF). CAF.
- ^ "Libya gain but Nigeria lose a place in Africa's continental club competitions". BBC Sport. 30 October 2018.
- ^ "Silver, Bullets in CAF tourneys". Malawi Nation. 14 September 2018.
- ^ "Les différents représentants connus dans quelques jours". footmali.com. 27 September 2018.
- ^ "FMF ainda sem resposta das equipas que vão acompanhar a UD Songo nas Afrotaças". opais.sapo.mz. 11 September 2018.
- ^ "League Management Company Public Statement After Consultative Meeting With Club Owners & Representatives". NPFL. 31 August 2018.
- ^ "Northern Dynamo's, LightStars' opponents known". nation.sc. 10 November 2018.
- ^ "FC Platinum agree to Champions League action". Zimbabwe Chronicle. 15 August 2018.
- ^ "FIFA suspends the Sierra Leone Football Association". FIFA.com. 5 October 2018.
- ^ "Friday & Saturday for Champions League, Sunday for Confederation Cup". CAF. 17 April 2018.
- ^ @CAF_Online (1 November 2018). "The draw for the preliminary rounds of the 2018/2019 @CAF_Online Interclubs will be held on Saturday, 03.11.2018 in Rabat, Morocco, during the meeting of the Ad hoc Committee of the CAF Interclubs" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Accreditation for Official draw 2018/19 Total CAF Champions League Group Stage & Total CAF Confederation Cup 2nd 1/16th round". CAF. 20 December 2018.
- ^ "Accreditation for Interclubs Quarter Finals". CAF. 7 March 2019.
- ^ "Interclubs season 2018-2019". CAF. 4 November 2018.
- ^ "Result of the drawing of lots of TOTAL CAF Champions League as well as TOTAL CAF Confederation Cup". CAF. 9 November 2018.
- ^ "Fixtures of the 23rd Edition of Total CAF Champions League" (PDF). CAF.
- ^ "Moteab and Mboma to conduct Interclubs quarterfinals draw". CAF. 20 March 2019.
- ^ "Last eight teams know their opponents". CAF. 20 March 2019.
- ^ "ES Tunis crowned CAF Champions in shambolic circumstances". AS.com. 1 June 2019. Archived from the original on 14 September 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- ^ "Caf Champions League: Esperance ordered to return medals and face Wydad Casablanca again". BBC Sport. 5 June 2019.
- ^ "Le Tribunal Arbitral du Sport (TAS) annule la décision du Comité Exécutif de la CAF" [The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) cancels the decision of the CAF Executive Committee] (PDF) (in French). Court of Arbitration for Sport. 31 July 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
- ^ "Decisions of the Disciplinary Board 7th of August 2019". CAF. 7 August 2019.
- ^ "CAS dismisses the appeal of Wydad Athletic Club" (PDF). Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). 18 September 2020.
External links
- Total CAF Champions League 2018/2019, CAFonline.com
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