The Netherlands are virtually ahead of France, thanks to the bonus points obtained by PSV for qualifying, while the qualified French clubs have not yet been credited with these points. Explanations.
PSV Eindhoven, by winning in Seville (1-3), validated its qualification for the round of 16 of the Champions League, scoring 1 point for the Netherlands (5 bonus points, divided by 5), in addition to 0.666 victory points. Above all, RC Lens was eliminated from the competition and lost to Arsenal (6-0). It is this bad operation which brings France back to 6th place in the UEFA rankings behind the Netherlands. But this situation is not expected to last, because the other French clubs have been very successful and their bonus points have not yet been awarded, unlike the Dutch clubs. PSG remains well placed in its group, while Feyenoord is eliminated after its defeat against Atletico (1-3) and will be transferred to the Europa League, therefore will not pocket a bonus point.
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 more points 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. Already last week, thanks to the good results of the clubs involved in the Europa League (Toulouse, Marseille, Rennes), France had returned to the level of the Netherlands.
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 (5 bonus points each) or in second place (2 bonus points). Toulouse is also in a very good position to qualify for the round of 16, pocketing 2 bonus points, and Lille could finish first (2 bonus points) or second (1 bonus point) in their group in the Conference League. As the final places of the French clubs are not fixed, their bonus points have not been awarded, but they should allow France to get back ahead of the Netherlands at the end of the group stage. Not to mention that Ajax might not even be transferred to the Conference League, and that AZ is in a bad position to qualify in this competition.
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.
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
