2020–21 UEFA Champions League

The 2020–21 UEFA Champions League is the 66th season of the UEFA Champions League.

The final will be played at the Atatürk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey. The stadium was originally suppose to host the 2020 UEFA Champions League Final, but this was moved due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. However, UEFA is moved to Portgual. The winners of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League will automatically qualify for the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League group stage, and will also play against the winners of the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League in the 2021 UEFA Super Cup. They will also qualify for the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup in Japan.

Bayern Munich are holding the current title, but was eliminated in the quarter-finals by Paris Saint-Germain. Paris Saint-Germain was the opponent whom Bayern Munich defeated in the previous final.

Association team allocation 
A total of 79 teams from 54 of the 55 UEFA member associations participate in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League (the exception being Liechtenstein, which does not organise a domestic league). The association ranking based on the UEFA country coefficients is used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:

 Associations 1–4 each have four teams qualify.
 Associations 5–6 each have three teams qualify.
 Associations 7–15 each have two teams qualify.
 Associations 16–55 (except Liechtenstein) each have one team qualify.
 The winners of the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League and 2019–20 UEFA Europa League are each given an additional entry if they do not qualify for the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League through their domestic leagues. However, the Champions League and Europa League title holders have qualified through their domestic leagues, meaning the two additional entries are not necessary for this season.

Distribution 
The following is the access list for this season.

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. 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 be 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 3.04). The following changes were made:

 At the time when the draws for the first qualifying round and second qualifying round (Champions Path) were held on 9 and 10 August 2020, it was not certain whether the Champions League title holder berth would be vacated as one of the eight quarter-finalists of the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League, Lyon, did not qualify for the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League group stage via their domestic league. Therefore, these draws proceeded as normal per the default access list, and the matches drawn, which were played on 18–19 and 25–26 August 2020, were not changed even though after the semi-finals of the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League, which were played on 18–19 August 2020, it was confirmed both finalists, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain, already qualified for the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League group stage via their domestic leagues, meaning the Champions League title holder berth would be vacated. As a result, "adaptive re-balancing" started from the third qualifying round (Champions Path), whose draw was held on 31 August 2020, and the following changes to the access list were made:
 The champions of association 11 (Netherlands), Ajax, entered the group stage instead of the play-off round (Champions Path).
 The champions of associations 13 and 14 (Czech Republic and Greece), Slavia Prague and Olympiacos, entered the play-off round (Champions Path) instead of the third qualifying round (Champions Path).
 At the time when the draw for the second qualifying round (League Path) was held on 10 August 2020, it was not certain whether the Europa League title holder berth 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, this draw proceeded as normal per the default access list, and the matches drawn, which were played on 25–26 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, Internazionale 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, "adaptive re-balancing" started from the third qualifying round (League Path), whose draw was held on 31 August 2020, and the following changes to the access list were made:
 The third-placed team of association 5 (France), Rennes, entered the group stage instead of the third qualifying round (League Path).
 The third-placed team of association 6 (Russia), Krasnodar, entered the play-off round (League Path) instead of the third qualifying round (League Path).

Teams 
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. 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. 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 is not possible, UEFA would develop guidelines concerning participation in its club competitions in case of a cancelled league or cup. After the UEFA Executive Committee meeting on 23 April 2020, UEFA announced that if a domestic competition is prematurely terminated for legitimate reasons in accordance with conditions related to public health or economic problems, the national associations concerned are 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 reserves the right to refuse their admission if UEFA deems the termination of the competitions not legitimate, or the selection procedure not objective, transparent and non-discriminatory, or the team is perceived by the public as qualifying unfairly. A suspended domestic competition may also be restarted with a different format from the original one in a manner which would still facilitate qualification on sporting merit. All leagues should communicate to UEFA by 25 May 2020 whether they intend to restart their competitions, but this deadline was later extended. On 17 June 2020, UEFA announced that associations must enter their teams by 3 August 2020.

The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:

 TH: Champions League title holders
 EL: Europa League title holders
 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc.: League positions of the previous season
 Abd-: League positions of abandoned season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe as determined by the national association; all teams are subject to approval by UEFA as per the guidelines for entry to European competitions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The second qualifying round, third qualifying round and play-off round are divided into Champions Path (CH) and League Path (LP).

Notes

Schedule 
The schedule of the competition is as follows (all draws are held at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland unless otherwise stated). The tournament would originally have started in June 2020, but had been delayed to August due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe. The new schedule was announced by the UEFA Executive Committee on 17 June 2020. All qualifying matches, excluding the play-off round, were played as single leg matches, hosted by one of the teams decided by draw (except the preliminary round which was played at neutral venue).

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, but it was eventually held at nearby Geneva.

The original schedule of the competition, as planned before the pandemic, was as follows (all draws held at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, unless stated otherwise).

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, the following special rules are applicable to the competition:

 If there are travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic that prevent the away team from entering the home team's country or returning to their own country, the match may be played at a neutral country or the away team's country that allows the match to take place.
 If a team refuses to play or is considered responsible for a match not taking place, they are considered to have forfeited the match. If both teams refuse to play or are considered responsible for a match not taking place, both teams are disqualified.
 If a team has players and/or officials tested positive for SARS-2 coronavirus preventing them from playing the match before the deadline set by UEFA, they are 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 is 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 can be listed on the substitute bench.

All qualifying matches were played behind closed doors. 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.

Preliminary round 

|+Semi-final round

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|+Final round

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Qualifying rounds

First qualifying round 
The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 9 August 2020, 12:00 CEST. The matches were played on 18 and 19 August 2020. The match between KÍ and Slovan Bratislava was cancelled due to Slovan Bratislava players being put into quarantine after one player had tested positive for coronavirus, and KÍ were awarded a technical 3–0 win.

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Second qualifying round 
The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 10 August 2020, 12:00 CEST. The matches were played on 25 and 26 August 2020.

|+Champions Path

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|+League Path

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From the ten losers of Champions Path, two teams, Tirana and Ludogorets Razgrad, determined by a draw held on 31 August 2020 after the Europa League second qualifying round draw,entered the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League play-off round (Champions Path), while the other eight teams entered the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League third qualifying round (Champions Path). The losers of League Path entered the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League third qualifying round (Main Path).

Third qualifying round 

|+Champions Path

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|+League Path

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The losers of Champions Path entered the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League play-off round (Champions Path). The losers of League Path entered the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League group stage.

Play-off round 

|+Champions Path

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|+League Path

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The losers of both Champions Path and League Path entered the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League group stage.

Group stage 

A total of 32 teams play in the group stage, from 15 countries: 26 teams which entered in this stage, and the six winners of the play-off round (four from Champions Path, two from League Path).

The draw for the group stage was held on 1 October 2020, 17:00 CEST, at the RTS Studios in Geneva, Switzerland. The 32 teams were drawn into eight 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 the following principles (introduced starting 2015–16 season):

 Pot 1 contained the Champions League and Europa League title holders, and the champions of the top six associations based on their 2019 UEFA country coefficients. As the Champions League title holder, Bayern Munich, were also their national champions, the champion of the association ranked seventh was also seeded in pot 1.
 Pot 2, 3 and 4 contained the remaining teams, seeded based on their 2020 UEFA club coefficients.

In each group, teams play against each other home-and-away in a round-robin format. The group winners and runners-up advance to the round of 16, while the third-placed teams enter the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League round of 32. The matchdays are 20–21 October, 27–28 October, 3–4 November, 24–25 November, 1–2 December and 8–9 December 2020.

The youth teams of the clubs that qualify for the group stage also participate in the 2020–21 UEFA Youth League, along with the youth domestic champions of the top 32 associations, in a single leg knockout tournament.

İstanbul Başakşehir, Krasnodar, Midtjylland and Rennes made their debut appearances in the group stage. With İstanbul Başakşehir's appearance in the group stage, Istanbul became the first city that has been represented in the group stage by four different teams (had been previously represented by Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray). This season became the first in the history of the Champions League in which three Russian clubs will play in the group stage.

Group A

Group B

Group C

Group D

Group E

Group F

Group G

Group H

Knockout phase

In the knockout phase, teams played against each other over two legs on a home-and-away basis, except for the one-match final.

Bracket

Round of 16

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

Statistics
Statistics exclude qualifying rounds and play-off round.

Top goalscorers

Top assists

Squad of the season
The UEFA technical study group selected the following 23 players as the squad of the tournament.

Related pages 

 2020–21 UEFA Europa League
 2021 UEFA Super Cup
 2020–21 UEFA Women's Champions League
 2020–21 UEFA Youth League
 2020–21 UEFA Futsal Champions League

Notes

References

Other websites
 
 Fixtures and Results, 2020–21, UEFA.com

2020-21
2020 in association football
2021 in association football