2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League

The 2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League (officially the 2014–15 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons starting from 2015)[1][2] was the 7th edition of the CONCACAF Champions League under its current name, and overall the 50th edition of the premier football club competition organized by CONCACAF, the regional governing body of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.

2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League
2014–15 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League
Tournament details
DatesAugust 5, 2014 – April 29, 2015
Teams24 (from 12 associations)
Final positions
ChampionsMexico América (6th title)
Runners-upCanada Montreal Impact
Tournament statistics
Matches played62
Goals scored216 (3.48 per match)
Top scorer(s)Argentina Darío Benedetto
Mexico Oribe Peralta
(7 goals each)
Best player(s)Argentina Darío Benedetto
Best young playerMexico Martín Zúñiga
Best goalkeeperUnited States Evan Bush
Fair play awardMexico Pachuca

In the final, Mexican team América defeated Canadian team Montreal Impact 5–3 on aggregate to win their sixth CONCACAF club title (and their first during the CONCACAF Champions League era), tying the record of the most CONCACAF club title with Cruz Azul (who were the defending champions, but were eliminated in the group stage). The final marked the first time, where a Canadian based team took part in.[3] As the winners of the 2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League, América earned the right to represent CONCACAF at the 2015 FIFA Club World Cup.[4]

Qualification
Location of teams of the 2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League
Brown: Group 1; Red: Group 2; Orange: Group 3; Yellow: Group 4;
Green: Group 5; Blue: Group 6; Purple: Group 7; Pink: Group 8.

A total of 24 teams participate in the CONCACAF Champions League: nine from the North American Zone (from three associations), twelve from the Central American Zone (from at most seven associations), and three from the Caribbean Zone (from at most three associations).

Clubs may be disqualified and replaced by a club from another association if the club does not have an available stadium that meets CONCACAF regulations for safety. If a club's own stadium fails to meet the set standards then it may find a suitable replacement stadium within its own country. However, if it is still determined that the club cannot provide the adequate facilities then it runs the risk of being replaced.

North America

Nine teams from the North American Football Union qualify to the Champions League. Mexico and the United States are each allocated four berths, the most of any of CONCACAF's member associations, while Canada is granted one berth in the tournament.

For Mexico, the winners of Liga MX Apertura and Clausura tournaments earn berths in Pot A of the tournament's group stage, while the Apertura and Clausura runners-up earn berths in Pot B.

For the United States, three berths are allocated through the Major League Soccer (MLS) regular season and playoffs; the fourth berth is allocated to the winner of its domestic cup competition, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. The MLS Cup winner and the Supporters' Shield winner (if U.S.-based) are placed in Pot A; the other regular season conference winner (if U.S.-based) and the U.S. Open Cup winner are placed in Pot B. If any of the above berths are taken by a Canada-based MLS team, the Champions League place is allocated to the U.S.-based team with the best MLS regular season record who has failed to otherwise qualify.

For Canada, the winner of the domestic cup competition, the Voyageurs Cup competed for in the Canadian Championship, earns the lone Canadian berth into the tournament, in Pot B.

Central America

Twelve teams from the Central American Football Union qualify to the Champions League. The allocation is as follows: two berths for each of Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala, Panama and El Salvador, and one berth for each of Nicaragua and Belize.

For the Central American teams that qualify via split seasons, the aggregate record of the two tournaments within the season is used to determine which team gains the association's top berth. The pots of the teams are as follows:

  • The top teams from the leagues of Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala and Panama are placed in Pot A.
  • The top team from the league of El Salvador, and the second teams from the leagues of Costa Rica and Honduras are placed in Pot B.
  • The second teams from the leagues of Guatemala, Panama and El Salvador, and the teams from the leagues of Nicaragua and Belize are placed in Pot C.

If one or more clubs is precluded, it is supplanted by a club from another Central American association. The reallocation is based on results from previous Champions League tournaments.

Caribbean

Three teams from the Caribbean Football Union qualify to the Champions League. The three berths, in Pot C, are allocated to the top three finishers of the CFU Club Championship, a subcontinental tournament for clubs from associations of the Caribbean Football Union. In order for a team to qualify for the CFU Club Championship, they usually need to finish as the champion or runner-up of their respective association's league in the previous season, but professional teams may also be selected by their associations if they play in the league of another country.

If any Caribbean club is precluded, it is supplanted by the fourth-place finisher from the CFU Club Championship.

Teams

The following 24 teams (from 12 associations) qualified 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 Pot Qualifying method App Last App Previous Best
North America (9 teams)
Mexico Mexico
4 berths		 León A 2013 Apertura and 2014 Clausura champions 1st N/A N/A
América B 2013 Apertura runners-up 2nd 2013–14 Group stage
Pachuca A 2014 Clausura runners-up 2nd 2009–10 Champions
Cruz Azul B Non-finalist with best regular season record in 2014 Clausura 5th 2013–14 Champions
United States United States
4 berths		 Sporting Kansas City A 2013 MLS Cup champions 2nd 2013–14 Quarterfinals
New York Red Bulls A 2013 MLS Supporters' Shield champions 2nd 2009–10 Preliminary round
Portland Timbers B 2013 MLS Western Conference regular season champions[Note USA] 1st N/A N/A
D.C. United B 2013 U.S. Open Cup champions 3rd 2009–10 Group stage
Canada Canada
1 berth		 Montreal Impact B 2014 Canadian Championship champions 3rd[CAN] 2013–14 Quarterfinals
Central America (12 teams)
Costa Rica Costa Rica
2 (+1) berths		 Alajuelense A 2013 Invierno champions 5th 2013–14 Semifinals
Saprissa B 2014 Verano champions 4th 2010–11 Semifinals
Herediano C 2013 Invierno runners-up[Note CRC] 5th 2013–14 Quarterfinals
Honduras Honduras
2 berths		 Real España B 2013 Apertura champions 3rd 2011–12 Group stage
Olimpia A 2014 Clausura champions 7th 2013–14 Quarterfinals
Guatemala Guatemala
2 berths		 Comunicaciones A 2013 Apertura and 2014 Clausura champions 4th 2013–14 Quarterfinals
Municipal C Runners-up with better aggregate record in 2013–14 season 5th 2012–13 Group stage
Panama Panama
2 berths		 Tauro A 2013 Apertura champions 5th 2012–13 Group stage
Chorrillo C 2014 Clausura champions 2nd 2012–13 Group stage
El Salvador El Salvador
2 berths		 Isidro Metapán B 2013 Apertura and 2014 Clausura champions 7th 2013–14 Quarterfinals
FAS C Runners-up with better aggregate record in 2013–14 season 3rd 2012–13 Group Stage
Nicaragua Nicaragua
1 berth		 Real Estelí C 2013 Apertura and 2014 Clausura champions 5th 2013–14 Group stage
Caribbean (3 teams)
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Bayamón C 2014 CFU Club Championship Group 1 winners[Note CFU] 1st N/A N/A
Jamaica Jamaica Waterhouse C 2014 CFU Club Championship Group 2 winners[Note CFU] 1st N/A N/A
Guyana Guyana Alpha United C 2014 CFU Club Championship Group 3 winners[Note CFU] 2nd 2011–12 Preliminary round
Notes
  1. ^
    Caribbean (CFU): Valencia, which were given a bye to the final round of the 2014 CFU Club Championship, could not participate in the competition after the Haitian Football Federation failed to confirm the club as an active member of the federation due to a fallout between the club and the federation. After consultation with CONCACAF and the three first round group winners which were to play with Valencia in the final round, the three group winners, Puerto Rico Bayamón, Waterhouse, and Alpha United, were chosen to represent the CFU in the 2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League, subject to the clubs meeting the minimum standards for participation. Moreover, the final round was cancelled to save expenses for the three teams.[5][6]
  2. ^
    Costa Rica (CRC): Belmopan Bandits, the representative of Belize as the 2013–14 Opening Season champions and 2014 Closing Season champions, were removed from the 2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League as the FFB Stadium in Belmopan did not meet CONCACAF's stadium requirements. The berth was reallocated to Costa Rica, based on the results of the 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League, and was given to Herediano.[7]
  3. ^
    United States (USA): This is the first time in the tournament that a berth is given to the MLS Eastern/Western Conference regular season champions that are not the Supporters' Shield champions. Prior to the 2013 season, the berth was previously reserved for the MLS Cup runners-up. Major League Soccer proposed to change the qualification rules for U.S. clubs, and the United States Soccer Federation submitted the proposal to CONCACAF, and it was approved on December 13, 2013, and enacted starting from the 2014–15 tournament.[8][9]
  4. ^
    Canada (CAN): Montreal Impact's first appearance in 2008–09 was made by an earlier incarnation of the franchise with the same name, which played in the USL First Division. The current MLS club began play in 2012, and has made two appearances since then.

Draw

The draw for the group stage was held on May 28, 2014 at Doral, Florida, United States.[10][11]

The 24 teams were drawn into eight groups of three, with each group containing one team from each of the three pots. The allocation of teams into pots was based on their national association and qualifying berth. Teams from the same association could not be drawn with each other in the group stage, and each group was guaranteed to contain a team from either the United States or Mexico, meaning U.S. and Mexican teams could not play each other in the group stage.[12]

Pot A
Mexico León Mexico Pachuca United States Sporting Kansas City United States New York Red Bulls
Costa Rica Alajuelense Honduras Olimpia Guatemala Comunicaciones Panama Tauro
Pot B
Mexico América Mexico Cruz Azul United States Portland Timbers United States D.C. United
Costa Rica Saprissa Honduras Real España El Salvador Isidro Metapán Canada Montreal Impact[†]
Pot C
Guatemala Municipal El Salvador FAS Panama Chorrillo Nicaragua Real Estelí
Costa Rica Herediano[‡] Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Bayamón Jamaica Waterhouse Guyana Alpha United
Notes
  1. ^
    † The identity of the representative of Canada was not known at the time of the draw, as the 2014 Canadian Championship final had not been played yet.
  2. ^
    ‡ Belmopan Bandits (Belize) were entered at the time of the draw, but they were later replaced by Herediano (Costa Rica) after failing stadium requirements.

Schedule

The schedule of the competition was as follows.[13][14]

Stage Round First leg Second leg
Group stage Matchday 1 August 5–7, 2014
Matchday 2 August 19–21, 2014
Matchday 3 August 26–28, 2014
Matchday 4 September 16–18, 2014
Matchday 5 September 23–25, 2014
Matchday 6 October 21–23, 2014
Championship stage Quarterfinals February 24–26, 2015 March 3–5, 2015
Semifinals March 17–19, 2015 April 7–9, 2015
Final April 22, 2015 April 29, 2015

Group stage
Main article: 2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League group stage

In the group stage, each group was played on a home-and-away round-robin basis. The winners of each group advanced to the championship stage.

Tiebreakers

The teams were ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If tied on points, tiebreakers would be applied in the following order:[4]

  1. Greater number of points earned in matches between the teams concerned;
  2. Greater goal difference in matches between the teams concerned;
  3. Greater number of goals scored away from home in matches between the teams concerned;
  4. Reapply first three criteria if two or more teams are still tied;
  5. Greater goal difference in all group matches;
  6. Greater number of goals scored in group matches;
  7. Greater number of goals scored away in all group matches;
  8. Drawing of lots.

Group 1

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification PAC MUN ESP
1 Mexico Pachuca 4 3 0 1 17 8 +9 9 Advance to championship stage — 4–1 4–1
2 Guatemala Municipal 4 1 1 2 8 12 −4 4[lower-alpha 1] 3–7 — 3–0
3 Honduras Real España 4 1 1 2 5 10 −5 4[lower-alpha 1] 3–2 1–1 —
Source: CONCACAF
Notes:
  1. Municipal finished ahead of Real España based on head-to-head points earned (4–1).

Group 2

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SAP SKC EST
1 Costa Rica Saprissa 4 2 1 1 7 4 +3 7[lower-alpha 1] Advance to championship stage — 2–0 3–0
2 United States Sporting Kansas City 4 2 1 1 7 4 +3 7[lower-alpha 1] 3–1 — 3–0
3 Nicaragua Real Estelí 4 0 2 2 2 8 −6 2 1–1 1–1 —
Source: CONCACAF
Notes:
  1. Saprissa finished ahead of Sporting Kansas City based on head-to-head away goals scored (1–0).

Group 3

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MTL NYR FAS
1 Canada Montreal Impact 4 3 1 0 6 3 +3 10 Advance to championship stage — 1–0 1–0
2 United States New York Red Bulls 4 1 2 1 3 2 +1 5 1–1 — 2–0
3 El Salvador FAS 4 0 1 3 2 6 −4 1 2–3 0–0 —
Source: CONCACAF

Group 4

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification DCU WAT TAU
1 United States D.C. United 4 4 0 0 6 1 +5 12 Advance to championship stage — 1–0 2–0
2 Jamaica Waterhouse 4 2 0 2 7 5 +2 6 1–2 — 4–1
3 Panama Tauro 4 0 0 4 2 9 −7 0 0–1 1–2 —
Source: CONCACAF

Group 5

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification OLI POR ALP
1 Honduras Olimpia 4 3 0 1 12 5 +7 9[lower-alpha 1] Advance to championship stage — 3–1 6–0
2 United States Portland Timbers 4 3 0 1 15 6 +9 9[lower-alpha 1] 4–2 — 6–0
3 Guyana Alpha United 4 0 0 4 1 17 −16 0 0–1 1–4 —
Source: CONCACAF
Notes:
  1. Olimpia finished ahead of Portland Timbers based on head-to-head away goals scored (2–1).

Group 6

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification ALA CAZ CHO
1 Costa Rica Alajuelense 4 1 3 0 4 3 +1 6 Advance to championship stage — 1–1 1–0
2 Mexico Cruz Azul 4 1 2 1 5 3 +2 5 1–1 — 3–0
3 Panama Chorrillo 4 1 1 2 2 5 −3 4 1–1 1–0 —
Source: CONCACAF

Group 7

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification HER LEÓ MET
1 Costa Rica Herediano 4 3 1 0 11 4 +7 10 Advance to championship stage — 2–1 4–0
2 Mexico León 4 2 1 1 10 6 +4 7 1–1 — 4–1
3 El Salvador Isidro Metapán 4 0 0 4 5 16 −11 0 2–4 2–4 —
Source: CONCACAF

Group 8

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification AMÉ COM BAY
1 Mexico América 4 3 1 0 19 3 +16 10 Advance to championship stage — 2–0 6–1
2 Guatemala Comunicaciones 4 2 1 1 8 3 +5 7 1–1 — 5–0
3 Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Bayamón 4 0 0 4 2 23 −21 0 1–10 0–2 —
Source: CONCACAF

Championship stage
Main article: 2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League championship stage

In the championship stage, the eight teams played a single-elimination tournament. Each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. The away goals rule would be used if the aggregate score was level after normal time of the second leg, but not after extra time, and so a tie would be decided by penalty shoot-out if the aggregate score was level after extra time of the second leg.[4]

Seeding

The qualified teams were seeded 1–8 in the championship stage according to their results in the group stage.

Seed Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 4 United States D.C. United 4 4 0 0 6 1 +5 12
2 8 Mexico América 4 3 1 0 19 3 +16 10
3 7 Costa Rica Herediano 4 3 1 0 11 4 +7 10
4 3 Canada Montreal Impact 4 3 1 0 6 3 +3 10
5 1 Mexico Pachuca 4 3 0 1 17 8 +9 9
6 5 Honduras Olimpia 4 3 0 1 12 5 +7 9
7 2 Costa Rica Saprissa 4 2 1 1 7 4 +3 7
8 6 Costa Rica Alajuelense 4 1 3 0 4 3 +1 6
Source: CONCACAF
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Away goals scored; 5) Wins; 6) Away wins; 7) Drawing of lots.[4]

Bracket

The bracket of the championship stage was determined by the seeding as follows:[4]

  • Quarterfinals: Seed 1 vs. Seed 8 (QF1), Seed 2 vs. Seed 7 (QF2), Seed 3 vs. Seed 6 (QF3), Seed 4 vs. Seed 5 (QF4), with seeds 1–4 hosting the second leg
  • Semifinals: Winner QF1 vs. Winner QF4 (SF1), Winner QF2 vs. Winner QF3 (SF2), with winners QF1 and QF2 hosting the second leg
  • Finals: Winner SF1 vs. Winner SF2, with winner SF1 hosting the second leg
Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
               
6 Honduras Olimpia 1 0 1
3 Costa Rica Herediano 1 2 3
3 Costa Rica Herediano 3 0 3
2 Mexico América 0 6 6
7 Costa Rica Saprissa 0 0 0
2 Mexico América 3 2 5
2 Mexico América 1 4 5
4 Canada Montreal Impact 1 2 3
5 Mexico Pachuca 2 1 3
4 Canada Montreal Impact (a) 2 1 3
4 Canada Montreal Impact (a) 2 2 4
8 Costa Rica Alajuelense 0 4 4
8 Costa Rica Alajuelense 5 1 6
1 United States D.C. United 2 2 4

Quarterfinals
Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Alajuelense Costa Rica 6–4 United States D.C. United 5–2 1–2
Saprissa Costa Rica 0–5 Mexico América 0–3 0–2
Olimpia Honduras 1–3 Costa Rica Herediano 1–1 0–2
Pachuca Mexico 3–3 (a) Canada Montreal Impact 2–2 1–1

Semifinals
Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Montreal Impact Canada 4–4 (a) Costa Rica Alajuelense 2–0 2–4
Herediano Costa Rica 3–6 Mexico América 3–0 0–6

Final
Main article: 2015 CONCACAF Champions League Final
Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
América Mexico 5–3 Canada Montreal Impact 1–1 4–2
CONCACAF Champions League
2014–15 Champion
Mexico
América
Sixth Title

Awards
Award Player Team
Golden Ball[15] Argentina Darío Benedetto Mexico América
Golden Boot[16] Argentina Darío Benedetto
Mexico Oribe Peralta		 Mexico América
Golden Glove[17] United States Evan Bush Canada Montreal Impact
Bright Future[18] Mexico Martín Zúñiga Mexico América
Fair Play Award[19] — Mexico Pachuca

Top goalscorers
Rank Player Club Goals
1 Argentina Darío Benedetto Mexico América 7
Mexico Oribe Peralta Mexico América
3 Argentina Ariel Nahuelpan Mexico Pachuca 5
Costa Rica Ariel Rodríguez Costa Rica Saprissa
Costa Rica Yendrick Ruiz Costa Rica Herediano
Mexico Martín Zúñiga Mexico América
7 Panama Rolando Blackburn Guatemala Comunicaciones 4
Italy Marco Di Vaio Canada Montreal Impact
Argentina Fabián Espíndola United States D.C. United
Honduras Anthony Lozano Honduras Olimpia

Source: CONCACAF.com[20]

See also

References
  1. "Scotiabank Joins CONCACAF as Official Partner". CONCACAF.com. December 9, 2014.
  2. "Official Logo Unveiled for Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League". CONCACAF.com. February 10, 2015.
  3. "Club America wins SCCL title". CONCACAF.com. April 29, 2015. Archived from the original on May 4, 2015. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  4. "CONCACAF Champions League 2014–15 Regulations" (PDF). CONCACAF.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  5. "CFU Gives Club Championship Group Winners Good News". CFU. Archived from the original on 23 December 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2014.
  6. "CFU to send trio of group winners to CCL". CONCACAF.com. April 1, 2014. Archived from the original on April 4, 2014. Retrieved April 2, 2014.
  7. "Costa Rica's Club Sport Herediano Earns Wildcard Replacement Bid to Group 7". CONCACAF.com. August 12, 2014. Archived from the original on August 14, 2014. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
  8. "Portland Timbers headed to 2014-15 CONCACAF Champions League after USSF rule change approved". mlssoccer.com. Major League Soccer. Archived from the original on 26 March 2014. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  9. "CONCACAF Approves U.S. Soccer's/MLS Request to Amend Their Qualification Process to CONCACAF Champions League". CONCACAF.com. December 13, 2013. Archived from the original on 2014-10-08. Retrieved 2013-12-14.
  10. "CONCACAF Champions League: MLS teams to learn fate for 2014-15 group stage in May 28 draw". mlssoccer.com. May 21, 2014.
  11. "CCL draw sets 2014/15 groups". CONCACAF.com. May 28, 2014.
  12. "Pots, rules for Wednesday's CCL draw announced". CONCACAF.com. May 28, 2014. Archived from the original on May 30, 2014. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
  13. "CONCACAF Champions League 2014/15 Group Stage Schedule, Groups and Stadiums" (PDF). CONCACAF.com.
  14. "CONCACAF Champions League Championship Stage 2014–2015" (PDF). CONCACAF.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2014-11-25.
  15. "Twitter @TheChampions". CONCACAF. April 30, 2015.
  16. "Twitter @TheChampions". CONCACAF. April 30, 2015.
  17. "Twitter @TheChampions". CONCACAF. April 30, 2015.
  18. "Twitter @TheChampions". CONCACAF. April 30, 2015.
  19. "Twitter @TheChampions". CONCACAF. April 30, 2015.
  20. "CONCACAF Champions League – Statistics". CONCACAF.com. Archived from the original on 2018-01-21. Retrieved 2014-08-08.
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