# 2023 CONCACAF Champions League

The 2023 CONCACAF Champions League (officially the 2023 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons) was the 15th and final edition of the CONCACAF Champions League under its former name, and overall the 58th edition of the premier football club competition organized by CONCACAF, the regional governing body of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.
Seattle Sounders FC were the title holders, but they did not qualify for this tournament and were unable to defend their title.
León won their first title, defeating Los Angeles FC of MLS in the final 3–1 on aggregate. As winners, they earned the right to play in the 2023 FIFA Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia as well as the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup in the United States alongside the winners from 2021 to 2024.

## Teams

The following 16 teams (from eight associations) qualified for the tournament.
* North American Zone: 9 teams (from three associations)
* Central American Zone: 6 teams (from four associations), all of them qualified through the 2022 CONCACAF League
* Caribbean Zone: 1 team (from one association), qualified through the 2022 Caribbean Club Championship
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).
Direct entrants (10 teams) :
| Association | Team | Qualifying method | App. (last) | Previous best (last) |
| Mexico (4 berths) | Atlas | Apertura 2021 champions and Clausura 2022 champions | 1st | Debut |
| Mexico (4 berths) | León | Apertura 2021 runners-up | 5th (2022) | Quarter-finals (2022) |
| Mexico (4 berths) | Pachuca | Clausura 2022 runners-up | 4th (2016–17) | Champions (2016–17) |
| Mexico (4 berths) | UANL | Best ranked team on aggregate table that have not already qualified | 7th (2020) | Champions (2020) |
| United States (4 berths) | Los Angeles FC | 2022 MLS Cup champions and 2022 MLS Supporters' Shield champions | 2nd (2020) | Runners-up (2020) |
| United States (4 berths) | Philadelphia Union | 2022 Eastern Conference regular season champions | 2nd (2021) | Semi-finals (2021) |
| United States (4 berths) | Orlando City SC | 2022 U.S. Open Cup champions | 1st | Debut |
| United States (4 berths) | Austin FC | Highest-ranked U.S. based Division I club (based on 2022 MLS regular season record) not already qualified | 1st | Debut |
| Canada (1 berth) | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 2022 Canadian Championship champions | 3rd (2016–17) | Semi-finals (2016–17) |
| Haiti (CFU berth) | Violette | 2022 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship champions | 1st | Debut |
Qualified teams from CONCACAF League (6 teams) :
| Association | Team | Qualifying method | App. (last) | Previous best (last) |
| Honduras | Olimpia | 2022 CONCACAF League champions (1st overall) | 13th (2021) | Semi-finals (2020) |
| Honduras | Real España | 2022 CONCACAF League semifinalist (3rd overall) | 4th (2014–15) | Group stage (2011–12) |
| Honduras | Motagua | 2022 CONCACAF League semifinalist (4th overall) | 7th (2022) | Round of 16 (2020) |
| Costa Rica | Alajuelense | 2022 CONCACAF League runners-up (2nd overall) | 7th (2021) | Semi-finals (2014–15) |
| El Salvador | Alianza | 2022 CONCACAF League best-ranked losing quarter-finalist (5th overall) | 5th (2020) | Round of 16 (2019) |
| Panama | Tauro | 2022 CONCACAF League second-ranked losing quarter-finalist (6th overall) | 7th (2018) | Quarter-finals (2018) |

## Draw

The draw took take place in Miami, Florida, United States on 7 November 2022. The seeding of teams was based on the CONCACAF Club Index. The CONCACAF Club Index, instead of ranking each team, was based on the on-field performance of the teams that 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 used the following formula:
| Points per | Participation | Win | Draw | Stage advanced | Champions |
| Points per | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
The slots were assigned by the following rules:
* For teams from North America, nine teams qualified based on criteria set by their association (e.g., tournament champions, runners-up, cup champions), resulting in an assigned slot (e.g., MEX1, MEX2) for each team. If a team from Canada qualified through the CONCACAF League, they were ranked within their association, resulting in an assigned slot (i.e., CAN2) for them.
* For teams from Central America, they qualified through the CONCACAF League, and were ranked per association by their CONCACAF League ranking, resulting in an assigned slot (e.g., CRC1, CRC2) for each team.
* For teams from the Caribbean, the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship champions were assigned the Caribbean champion slot (i.e., CCC1). If teams from the Caribbean qualified through the CONCACAF League, they were ranked per association by their CONCACAF League ranking, resulting in an assigned slot (e.g., JAM1, SUR1) for each team.
The 16 teams were distributed in the pots as follows:
| Pot | Rank | Slot | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | Total | Team |
| Pot 1 | 1 | MEX2 | 25 | 21 | 24 | 16 | 17 | 103 | León |
| Pot 1 | 2 | MEX3 | 17 | 26 | 11 | 20 | 19 | 93 | Pachuca |
| Pot 1 | 3 | MEX1 | 12 | 20 | 11 | 28 | 12 | 83 | Atlas |
| Pot 1 | 4 | USA4 | 5 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 25 | 65 | Austin FC |
| Pot 1 | 5 | USA2 | 7 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 8 | 62 | Philadelphia Union |
| Pot 1 | 6 | USA1 | 11 | 11 | 6 | 12 | 16 | 56 | Los Angeles FC |
| Pot 1 | 7 | USA3 | 17 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 7 | 56 | Orlando City SC |
| Pot 1 | 8 | CAN1 | 21 | 5 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 54 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC |
| Pot 2 | 9 | MEX4 | 9 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 32 | UANL |
| Pot 2 | 10 | CRC1 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 27 | Alajuelense |
| Pot 2 | 11 | HON1 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 26 | Olimpia |
| Pot 2 | 12 | HON2 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 21 | Real España |
| Pot 2 | 13 | PAN1 | 8 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | Tauro |
| Pot 2 | 14 | SLV1 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 19 | Alianza |
| Pot 2 | 15 | CCC1 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 16 | Violette |
| Pot 2 | 16 | HON3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Motagua |

## Format

Each tie, including the final, was played over two legs, with each team playing on a home-and-away basis.
* In the round of 16, quarter-finals, and semi-finals, the away goals rule was applied if the aggregate score was tied after the second leg. If still tied, a penalty shoot-out was used to determine the winner (Regulations Article 12.7).
* In the final, extra time was played if the match was tied after regulation time. If the score was still tied after extra time, a penalty shoot-out was used to determine the winner (Regulations Article 12.8).

## Schedule

Schedule for 2023 CONCACAF Champions League :
| Round | First leg | Second leg |
| Round of 16 | 7–9 March | 14–16 March |
| Quarter-finals | 4–5 April | 11–13 April |
| Semi-finals | 25–26 April | 2–3 May |
| Final | 31 May | 4 June |

## Bracket

| Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| Motagua (a) | 0 | 1 | 1 | | | | | | | | |
| Pachuca | 0 | 1 | 1 | | | | | | | | |
| Pachuca | 0 | 1 | 1 | Motagua | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | |
| | | | | UANL | 1 | 5 | 6 | | | | |
| UANL (a) | 0 | 1 | 1 | UANL | 1 | 5 | 6 | | | | |
| Orlando City SC | 0 | 1 | 1 | | | | | | | | |
| Orlando City SC | 0 | 1 | 1 | | | | | UANL | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| | | | | | | | | León | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Tauro | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | León | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| León | 1 | 2 | 3 | | | | | | | | |
| León | 1 | 2 | 3 | León | 5 | 1 | 6 | | | | |
| | | | | Violette | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | |
| Violette | 3 | 0 | 3 | Violette | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | |
| Austin FC | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Austin FC | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | | | | | | León | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | Los Angeles FC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Alianza | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | Los Angeles FC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Philadelphia Union | 0 | 4 | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Philadelphia Union | 0 | 4 | 4 | Philadelphia Union | 1 | 2 | 3 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | Atlas | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | | | | | |
| Olimpia | 4 | 0 | 4 | Atlas | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | | | | | | |
| Atlas | 1 | 4 | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Atlas | 1 | 4 | 5 | | | | | Philadelphia Union | 1 | 0 | 1 | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | Los Angeles FC | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 5 | 2 | 7 | | | | | Los Angeles FC | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Real España | 0 | 3 | 3 | | | | | | | | |
| Real España | 0 | 3 | 3 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | |
| | | | | Los Angeles FC | 3 | 3 | 6 | | | | |
| Alajuelense | 0 | 2 | 2 | Los Angeles FC | 3 | 3 | 6 | | | | |
| Los Angeles FC | 3 | 1 | 4 | | | | | | | | |

## Round of 16

In the round of 16, the matchups were decided by draw: R16-1 through R16-8. The teams from Pot 1 in the draw hosted the second leg.

### Summary

The first legs were played on 7–9 March, and the second legs were played on 14–16 March 2023.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Violette | 3–2 | Austin FC | 3–0 | 0–2 |
| Tauro | 0–3 | León | 0–1 | 0–2 |
| UANL | 1–1 (a) | Orlando City SC | 0–0 | 1–1 |
| Motagua | 1–1 (a) | Pachuca | 0–0 | 1–1 |
| Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 7–3 | Real España | 5–0 | 2–3 |
| Alajuelense | 2–4 | Los Angeles FC | 0–3 | 2–1 |
| Olimpia | 4–5 | Atlas | 4–1 | 0–4 |
| Alianza | 0–4 | Philadelphia Union | 0–0 | 0–4 |
Notes
* ↑ Order of legs were reversed after original draw

### Matches

Violette won 3–2 on aggregate.
León won 3–0 on aggregate.
1–1 on aggregate. UANL won on away goals.
1–1 on aggregate. Motagua won on away goals.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC won 7–3 on aggregate.
Los Angeles FC won 4–2 on aggregate.
Atlas won 5–4 on aggregate.
Philadelphia Union won 4–0 on aggregate.

## Quarter-finals

In the quarter-finals, the matchups were determined as follows:
* QF1: Winner R16-1 vs. Winner R16-2
* QF2: Winner R16-3 vs. Winner R16-4
* QF3: Winner R16-5 vs. Winner R16-6
* QF4: Winner R16-7 vs. Winner R16-8
The winners of round of 16 matchups 1, 3, 5 and 7 hosted the second leg.

### Summary

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Violette | 2–6 | León | 0–5 | 2–1 |
| Motagua | 0–6 | UANL | 0–1 | 0–5 |
| Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 0–6 | Los Angeles FC | 0–3 | 0–3 |
| Atlas | 2–3 | Philadelphia Union | 0–1 | 2–2 |

### Matches

León won 6–2 on aggregate.
UANL won 6–0 on aggregate.
Los Angeles FC won 6–0 on aggregate.
Philadelphia Union won 3–2 on aggregate.

## Semi-finals

In the semi-finals, the matchups were determined as follows:
* SF1: Winner QF1 vs. Winner QF2
* SF2: Winner QF3 vs. Winner QF4
The semi-finalists in each tie which had the better performance across all previous rounds hosted the second leg.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Host |
| 1 (SF1) | León | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 2 | +7 | 9 | Second leg |
| 2 (SF1) | UANL | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 1 | +6 | 8 | First leg |
| 1 (SF2) | Los Angeles FC | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 2 | +8 | 9 | Second leg |
| 2 (SF2) | Philadelphia Union | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 2 | +5 | 8 | First leg |

### Summary

The first legs were played on 25–26 April, and the second legs were played on 2–3 May 2023.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| UANL | 3–4 | León | 2–1 | 1–3 |
| Philadelphia Union | 1–4 | Los Angeles FC | 1–1 | 0–3 |

### Matches

León won 4–3 on aggregate.
Los Angeles FC won 4–1 on aggregate.

## Final

In the final (Winner SF1 vs. Winner SF2), the finalist which had the better performances in previous rounds hosted the second leg.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Host |
| 1 | Los Angeles FC | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 3 | +11 | 13 | Second leg |
| 2 | Club León | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 5 | +8 | 12 | First leg |

### Summary

The first leg was played on 31 May, and the second leg was played on 4 June 2023.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| León | 3–1 | Los Angeles FC | 2–1 | 1–1 |
León won 3–1 on aggregate.

## Statistics
### Top goalscorers

| Rank | Player | Club | By round | By round | By round | By round | By round | By round | By round | By round | Total goals |
| Rank | Player | Club | 1R1 | 1R2 | QF1 | QF2 | SF1 | SF2 | F1 | F2 | Total goals |
| 1 | Denis Bouanga | Los Angeles FC | 3 | | 2 | | | 1 | 1 | | 7 |
| 2 | Miche-Naider Chéry | Violette | 2 | | | 2 | | | | | 4 |
| 3 | Víctor Dávila | León | | | 2 | | 1 | | | | 3 |
| 3 | Dániel Gazdag | Philadelphia Union | | 1 | 1 | | 1 | | | | | 3 |
| 3 | Ángel Mena | León | | | 1 | | | 1 | 1 | | 3 |
| 3 | Julián Quiñones | Atlas | | 2 | | 1 | | | | | | | 3 |
| 3 | Luis Quiñones | UANL | | | 1 | 1 | 1 | | | | | 3 |
| 3 | Carlos Vela | Los Angeles FC | | 1 | | 2 | | | | | 3 |
| 9 | Jorge Benguché | Olimpia | 2 | | | | | | | | 2 |
| 9 | Julián Carranza | Philadelphia Union | | | | 2 | | | | | | 2 |
| 9 | Sebastián Córdova | UANL | | 1 | | | 1 | | | | | 2 |
| 9 | Sebastián Driussi | Austin FC | | 2 | | | | | | | | | | 2 |
| 9 | André-Pierre Gignac | UANL | | | | 2 | | | | | | 2 |
| 9 | Elias Hernández | León | | 1 | 1 | | | | | | 2 |
| 9 | Getsal Montes | Real España | | 2 | | | | | | | | | | 2 |
| 9 | Andrés Perea | Philadelphia Union | | 2 | | | | | | | | 2 |
| 9 | Brian Rubio | León | | 1 | | 1 | | | | | 2 |
| 9 | Brian White | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 1 | 1 | | | | | | | | | 2 |

### Team of the Season

CONCACAF selected the following players as the team of the tournament.
| Pos. | Player | Team |
| GK | John McCarthy | Los Angeles FC |
| DF | Diego Palacios | Los Angeles FC |
| DF | Aaron Long | Los Angeles FC |
| DF | Adonis Frías | León |
| DF | Iván Moreno | León |
| MF | Fidel Ambríz | León |
| MF | Luis Quiñones | UANL |
| MF | Elías Hernández | León |
| FW | Víctor Dávila | León |
| FW | Denis Bouanga | Los Angeles FC |
| FW | Carlos Vela | Los Angeles FC |

### Player of the Season

* Víctor Dávila ( León)

### Goalkeeper of the Season

* John McCarthy ( Los Angeles FC)

### Young Player of the Season

* Fidel Ambríz ( León)

### Top Scorer

* Denis Bouanga ( Los Angeles FC)

### Fair Play Trophy

* Los Angeles FC