A total of 52 teams competed in the qualifying system of the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League, which included the qualifying phase and the play-off round, with 42 teams in Champions Path and 10 teams in League Path. The six winners in the play-off round (four from Champions Path, two from League Path) advanced to the group stage, to join the 26 teams that enter in the group stage.[2]
Times are CEST (UTC+2), as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).
Teams
Champions Path
The Champions Path included all league champions which did not qualify directly for the group stage, and consisted of the following rounds:
Preliminary round (4 teams playing one-legged semi-finals and final): 4 teams which entered in this round.
First qualifying round (30 teams): 29 teams which entered in this round, and 1 winner of the preliminary round.
Second qualifying round (20 teams): 5 teams which entered in this round, and 15 winners of the first qualifying round.
Third qualifying round (12 teams): 2 teams which entered in this round, and 10 winners of the second qualifying round.
Play-off round (8 teams): 2 teams which entered in this round, and 6 winners of the third qualifying round.
Each tie, apart from the preliminary round, 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 at the end of normal time of the second leg, extra time was played, and if the same number of goals were scored by both teams during extra time, the tie was decided by a penalty shoot-out.[4]
In the preliminary round, the semi-finals and final were played as a single match hosted by one of the participating teams. If the score was level at the end of normal time, extra time was played, and if the same number of goals were scored by both teams during extra time, the tie was decided by a penalty shoot-out.
The 2022–23 season saw the video assistant referee (VAR) used for the first time during the qualification phase following its introduction in the third qualifying round.[5]
In the draws for each round, teams were seeded based on their UEFA club coefficients at the beginning of the season, with the teams divided into seeded and unseeded pots containing the same number of teams. A seeded team was drawn against an unseeded team, with the order of legs (or the administrative "home" team in the preliminary round matches) in each tie decided by draw. As the identity of the winners of the previous round was not known at the time of the draws, the seeding was carried out under the assumption that the team with the higher coefficient of an undecided tie advanced to this round, which means if the team with the lower coefficient was to advance, it simply took the seeding of its opponent. Prior to the draws, UEFA formed "groups" in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee, but they were purely for convenience of the draw and did not resemble any real groupings in the sense of the competition. Teams from associations with political conflicts as decided by UEFA should not be drawn into the same tie. After the draws, the order of legs of a tie could be reversed by UEFA due to scheduling or venue conflicts.
Schedule
The schedule of the competition was as follows (all draws were held at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland).[1]
Schedule for the qualifying phase of the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League
Round
Draw date
First leg
Second leg
Preliminary round
7 June 2022
21 June 2022 (semi-finals)
24 June 2022 (final)
First qualifying round
14 June 2022
5–6 July 2022
12–13 July 2022
Second qualifying round
15 June 2022
19–20 July 2022
26–27 July 2022
Third qualifying round
18 July 2022
2–3 August 2022
9 August 2022
Play-offs
2 August 2022
16–17 August 2022
23–24 August 2022
Preliminary round
The preliminary round consisted of two semi-finals on 21 June 2022 and the final on 24 June 2022. The draw for the preliminary round was held on 7 June 2022.
Seeding
A total of four teams played in the preliminary round. Seeding of teams was based on their 2022 UEFA club coefficients,[3] with two seeded teams and two unseeded teams in the semi-final round. The matches took place at Víkingsvöllur in Reykjavík, Iceland so the first team drawn in each tie in the semi-final round, and also the final round (between the two winners of the semi-finals, whose identity was not known at the time of draw), would be the "home" team for administrative purposes.
The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 14 June 2022.[12]
Seeding
A total of 30 teams played in the first qualifying round: 29 teams which enter in this round, and 1 winner of the preliminary round. Seeding of teams was based on their 2022 UEFA club coefficients.[3] For the winner of the preliminary round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw, the club coefficient of the highest-ranked remaining team was used. Prior to the draw, UEFA formed three groups of five seeded teams and five unseeded teams in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee. The first team drawn in each tie would be the home team of the first leg.
† Winner of the preliminary round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw. Teams in italics defeated a team with a higher coefficient, thus effectively taking the coefficient of their opponent in the draw.
Summary
The first legs were played on 5 and 6 July, and the second legs were played on 12 and 13 July 2022.
The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 15 June 2022.[75]
Seeding
A total of 24 teams played in the second qualifying round. They were divided into two paths:
Champions Path (20 teams): 5 teams which enter in this round, and 15 winners of the first qualifying round.
League Path (4 teams): 4 teams which enter in this round.
Seeding of teams was based on their 2022 UEFA club coefficients.[3] For the winners of the first qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw, the club coefficient of the highest-ranked remaining team in each tie was used. Prior to the draw, UEFA formed three groups for the champions path draw in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee: two groups that produce three ties each (Groups 1 and 2) and one with four ties (Group 3). The first team drawn in each tie would be the home team of the first leg.
† Winner of the first qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw. Teams in italics defeated a team with a higher coefficient, thus effectively taking the coefficient of their opponent in the draw.
The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 18 July 2022.[125]
Seeding
A total of 20 teams played in the third qualifying round. They were divided into two paths:
Champions Path (12 teams): 2 teams which enter in this round, and 10 winners of the second qualifying round (Champions Path).
League Path (8 teams): 6 teams which enter in this round, and 2 winners of the second qualifying round (League Path).
Seeding of teams was based on their 2022 UEFA club coefficients.[3] For the winners of the second qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw, the club coefficient of the highest-ranked remaining team in each tie was used. Prior to the draw, UEFA formed two groups of three seeded teams and three unseeded teams in accordance with the principles set by the Club Competitions Committee.[126] The first team drawn in each tie would be the home team of the first leg.
† Winner of the second qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw. Teams in italics defeated a team with a higher coefficient, thus effectively taking the coefficient of their opponent in the draw.
Summary
The first legs were played on 2 and 3 August, and the second legs were played on 9 August 2022.
The winners of the ties advanced to the play-off round of their respective path. The Champions Path losers were transferred to the Europa League play-off round, while the League Path losers were transferred to the Europa League group stage.
The draw for the play-off round was held on 2 August 2022.[168]
Seeding
A total of 12 teams played in the play-off round. They were divided into two paths:
Champions Path (8 teams): 2 teams which entered in this round, and 6 winners of the third qualifying round (Champions Path).
League Path (4 teams): 4 winners of the third qualifying round (League Path).
Seeding of teams was based on their 2022 UEFA club coefficients.[3] For the winners of the third qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw, the club coefficient of the highest-ranked remaining team in each tie was used. The first team drawn in each tie would be the home team of the first leg.
† Winner of the third qualifying round, whose identity was not known at the time of draw. Teams in italics defeated a team with a higher coefficient, thus effectively taking the coefficient of their opponent in the draw.
Summary
The first legs were played on 16 and 17 August, and the second legs were played on 23 and 24 August 2022.
^Sutjeska Nikšić played their home match at the DG Arena in Podgorica, instead of their regular stadium, the Gradski stadion, in Nikšić, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
^Tirana played their home match at the Arena Kombëtare, instead of their regular stadium, the Selman Stërmasi Stadium, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
^Ballkani played their home match at the Fadil Vokrri Stadium in Pristina, instead of their regular stadium, the Theranda City Stadium, Suva Reka, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
^RFS played their home match at the Slokas Stadium in Jūrmala, instead of their regular stadium, LNK Sports Parks, in Riga, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
^The KÍ Klaksvík v Bodø/Glimt match, originally scheduled for 12 July 2022, 20:00 (19:00 WEST), was rescheduled to the following day, 19:00 (18:00 WEST), as Bodo/Glimt's flight to the Faroe Islands arrived late due to bad weather conditions.[48]
^Hibernians played their home match at the Centenary Stadium in Ta'Qali, instead of their regular stadium, the Hibernians Stadium, in Paola, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
^ abShkupi played their home matches at the Toše Proeski Arena, instead of their regular stadium, the Čair Stadium, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
^ abcSheriff Tiraspol played their home matches at the Zimbru Stadium in Chișinău, instead of their regular stadium, the Sheriff Stadium, in Tiraspol, due to Transnistria's involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
^ abcDue to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainian teams were required to play their home matches at neutral venues until further notice.[120]
^Apollon Limassol played their home match at the GSP Stadium in Nicosia, instead of their regular stadium, the Tsirio Stadium, in Limassol, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
^Union Saint-Gilloise played their home match at Den Dreef in Leuven, instead of their regular stadium, the Joseph Marien Stadium, in Brussels, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
^Midtjylland played their third qualifying round home match at Randers Stadium in Randers as their regular stadium, the MCH Arena in Herning, was being used for the 2022 FEI World Equestrian Games.[165]
Note: In 1991–92, the competition was still known as the European Cup, but is included as it was the first to use a group stage format. In that season and 1992–93, there was no knockout phase between the group stage and final.
