PSG’s qualification put France back ahead of the Netherlands on Wednesday, and the C3 and C4 matches will bring more points to the French clubs than to their Dutch counterparts.
PSG has done a great service to other French clubs. By obtaining its qualification for the round of 16, thanks to its draw in Dortmund but especially to Newcastle’s defeat against AC Milan (1-2), Paris allowed France to move back ahead of the Netherlands in the UEFA coefficient . A dynamic which should further amplify this evening, following the Europa League and Conference League matches.
Beyond the points from the draw (0.166), valuable bonus points (0.833) were scored by the Parisians for their qualification in the round of 16. For its part, Feyenoord lost against Celtic (2-1) and the Dutch did not score any bonus points, finishing third in their group. France regains more than a point from the Batavians, after the victory in Lens on Tuesday, and goes in front with almost half a point in advance (59.997 against 59.500).
The excellent results of French clubs in the Europa League should allow them to bring home a lot of bonus points on Thursday, which would give a decisive advantage to France, while Ajax and AZ take the path of elimination in C3 and C4. In the best case scenario, France could score 3,666 points tonight, and the Netherlands zero. In the worst case, France will score 0.833 points and the Netherlands 1 point: not enough for the places to reverse. Realistically, the French score should rather be between 2 and 2.5 points, because the matches of French clubs are rather affordable.
The OM and Rennes qualifiers will bring in points that have not yet been counted. Indeed, they are guaranteed to qualify but this could happen in first place (0.833 bonus points each) or in second place (0.333 bonus points). To finish first, Marseille must not lose at Brighton, and Rennes must not lose at home against Villarreal.
Toulouse is also in a very good position to qualify for the round of 16, pocketing 0.333 bonus points, and Lille could finish first (0.333 bonus points) or second (0.166 bonus points) in their Conference League group. As the final places of the French clubs are not fixed, their bonus points have not yet been awarded. Not counting the points from possible French victories this Thursday evening. On the Dutch side, Ajax might not even be transferred to the Conference League, and AZ is in a bad position to qualify in this competition.
At the start of the season, France rose to 6th in the UEFA rankings, overtaken by the Batavian clubs. The points from the 2018-2019 season, during which French clubs scored two points more than Dutch clubs, have in fact been erased from the shelves since the index is calculated over the last five seasons. This 5th place is essential, because it grants a fourth ticket in the Champions League and a seventh in the European Cup.
Each victory by a French club brings 0.33 points to the index (2 points for a group victory, divided by six, the number of French representatives in the European Cup). But a Dutch victory brings even more to the Netherlands (0.4 points), as they only have five representatives in Europe (2 points divided by 5 = 0.4). Even if each of their victories brings them more points, they have already lost one of their five representatives and therefore an opportunity to gain points with Twente, eliminated during the Conference League play-offs. At the end of the group stages, the Netherlands could even have only 2 representatives left in Europe, compared to 6 for France.
In the meantime, French clubs will have four places in the Champions League next year, because France was still ahead of the Netherlands at the end of last season. The 6th or 7th place in Ligue 1 will also qualify for the European Cup, in addition to the winner of the Coupe de France. In detail, the top three in Ligue 1 next season will automatically qualify for the C1 league phase in 2024-2025, with the name “group stage” having to disappear. The fourth in the French Championship will have to go through two qualifying rounds: the third preliminary round then the play-offs. The fifth and the winner of the Coupe de France will go to the Europa League, and the sixth will go to the Conference League. Note also that from this season, the two best nations in the UEFA index over a season are rewarded with an additional place for the following edition of the C1.
It is this ranking which determines the qualifying places for the Champions League or the Europa League and the Europa Conference League. The higher the country’s rank, the more places they have for European competitions. Here is the current ranking:
If the ranking by country is important, that by club is also important to establish the seeds during the various draws. Here is the latest club ranking:
France is currently in 5th place and competing with the Netherlands to keep this 5th position, which offers a fourth qualifying place in the Champions League (and a seventh in the European Cup).
The club coefficient rankings are calculated based on club results over the previous five seasons of the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League. The rankings are used to determine each club’s position in UEFA club competition draws as explained on the official website.
The club coefficient ranking for the season is established based on the results of clubs competing in the current UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League. This ranking, combined with that of the previous four seasons, determines whether the club is seeded in UEFA competition draws.
Club coefficients are determined by either the sum of all points won over the past five years OR the association coefficient over the same period, with priority given to the highest.
The season coefficient of an association (country) is calculated by adding the points obtained by all its clubs in a given season in the UEFA Champions League (UCL), UEFA Europa League (UEL) and UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL). ), then dividing the total by the number of clubs from that association having participated in the three UEFA club competitions in question.
All points indicated are to be divided by the number of clubs participating in the European Cups for each country: for example 6 for France or 5 for the Netherlands.
UEFA Champions League points Any win from the group stage onwards: 2 points Any draw from the group stage onwards: 1 point Group stage participation bonus: 4 points Round of 16 participation bonus: 4 points Each round reached by clubs from the round of 16: 1 point
UEFA Europa League points Any win from the group stage onwards (excluding the knockout stage play-offs): 2 points Any draw from the group stage onwards (excluding the knockout stage play-offs): 1 point Winner group: 4 pointsSecond group: 2 pointsEach round reached by the clubs from the round of 16: 1 point
UEFA Conference League points
Any win from the group stage onwards (except the knockout stage play-offs): 2 points Any draw from the group stage onwards (except the knockout stage play-offs): 1 point Group winner: 2 pointsSecond group: 1 pointQualification in semi-final and final: 1 point
