2017 CAF Champions League
| 2017 Orange CAF Champions League | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Dates | March – November 2017 |
| Teams | Maximum of 69 (from Maximum of 56 associations) |
The 2017 CAF Champions League (officially the 2017 Orange CAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons) will be the 53rd edition of Africa's premier club football tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), and the 21st edition under the current CAF Champions League format.
Starting from this season, the group stage will be expanded from eight to 16 teams, divided into four groups of four.[1][2]
The winners of the 2017 CAF Champions League will qualify as the CAF representative at the 2017 FIFA Club World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, and also earn the right to play against the winners of the 2017 CAF Confederation Cup in the 2018 CAF Super Cup.[3]
Contents
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. The title holders can also enter.[3] As a result, theoretically a maximum of 69 teams could enter the tournament – although this level has never been reached.
For the 2017 CAF Champions League, the CAF uses the 2011–2015 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:[4]
| CAF Champions League | CAF Confederation Cup | |
|---|---|---|
| Winner | 5 points | 4 points |
| Runner-up | 4 points | 3 points |
| Losing semi-finalists | 3 points | 2 points |
| 3rd place in groups | 2 points | 1 point |
| 4th place in groups | 1 point | 1 point |
The points are multiplied by a coefficient according to the year as follows:
- 2015 – 5
- 2014 – 4
- 2013 – 3
- 2012 – 2
- 2011 – 1
Teams
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Associations are shown according to their 2011–2015 CAF 5-Year Ranking – those with a ranking score have their rank and score indicated.
Schedule
The schedule of the competition is as follows.
| Phase | Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying | Preliminary round | |||
| First round | ||||
| Group stage | Matchday 1 | |||
| Matchday 2 | ||||
| Matchday 3 | ||||
| Matchday 4 | ||||
| Matchday 5 | ||||
| Matchday 6 | ||||
| Knock-out stage | Quarter-finals | |||
| Semi-finals | ||||
| Final | ||||
Qualifying rounds
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Qualification ties are played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If the aggregate score is tied after the second leg, the away goals rule is applied, and if still level, the penalty shoot-out is used to determine the winner (no extra time is played).[3]
Preliminary round
First round
The 16 winners of the first round advance to the group stage, while the 16 losers of the first round enter the Confederation Cup play-off round.
Group stage
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The 16 teams are drawn into four groups of four. Each group is played on a home-and-away round-robin basis. The winners and runners-up of each group advance to the quarter-finals.
| Tiebreakers |
|---|
The teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If tied on points, tiebreakers are applied in the following order:[3]
|
Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
Knock-out stage
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Knock-out ties are played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If the aggregate score is tied after the second leg, the away goals rule is applied, and if still level, the penalty shoot-out is used to determine the winner (no extra time is played).[3]
Bracket
Quarter-finals
In the quarter-finals, the winners of one group play the runners-up of another group, with the group winners hosting the second leg.
Semi-finals
Final
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