The UEFA Champions League

Iniesta Can Show in Final

2009-05-16T10:51:00.000+07:00

Barcelona can not be a concern down Andres Iniesta in the Champions League final fight, it is not evident. Iniesta could be appearing on the match against Manchester United After examination, Iniesta could recover after that time, to appear in the final. Examination results showed maestro bait if this injury is not too severe. Unlike the initial allegations.

The Blaugrana are full, the visible limp when Barca play against Villarreal 3-3, last week. Team directly to check the medical condition, if the doubts can appear opposite Iniesta United in Rome. However, the phase when the new examination to confirm injury is not severe. Barca hero in the match against Chelsea, only a right leg muscle cramps, and can recover quickly. Only, the half will not take part in the Copa del Rey final against Athletic Bilbao, on Thursday (14/5/2009).

Pep Guardiola will also most likely save them to appear before the United opponent. Barcelona have lost their own two back Rafa Marquez Gaby Milito and the injury. Meanwhile, Thierry Henry continues to try to recover. However, Eric Abidal and Dani Alves absent due punishment

Manchester United vs Arsenal

2009-05-06T19:57:00.004+07:00

Tuesday, 05 May 2009
Arsenal 1 - 3 Man United
Agg (1 - 4)
Park 8
Ronaldo 11
Ronaldo 61
Van Persie (pen) 76

Sent off:
Fletcher 75

Fletcher was given a straight red card for an adjudged foul on Cesc Fabregas in the box as United won the second leg of the Champions League semi-final 3-1.

Uefa has confirmed that no appeal can be made against the decision, no matter what the referee says in his report.

United will face Chelsea or Barcelona in the final in Rome on 27 May.

"Manchester United have the right to protest the decision within 24 hours of the match," said a Uefa spokesman.

"However, the protest is only admissible if the referee made an error and mistakenly identified and cautioned or sent off the wrong player.

"There cannot be an appeal against a factual decision taken by the referee and there is nothing to indicate that the referee made a mistake in identifying Fletcher as the player he penalised last night."

Early goals killed off game - Ferguson

After Tuesday's game, United manager Sir Alex Ferguson described the prospect of Fletcher missing out on the final as "a tragedy" but did not criticise Italian referee Roberto Rosetti.

"You can see the ball has moved in a different direction but we shouldn't ask the referee," stated Ferguson.

"He's competent and fair enough to look at it himself possibly. Apparently, you can't appeal and if that's the case it's disappointing for the boy.

"Darren's one of the most honest players in the game and to miss the final is a tragedy."

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger also insisted the red card was "very harsh" after television pictures showed Fletcher played the ball cleanly.

The Smi Finals Champions League : MU VS Arsenal

2009-04-29T08:00:00.000+07:00

Manchester United is the best team in the world at this time. But it does not mean the Red Devils can not afford be caused to bow. The Gunners still have the strength to beat UAs scheduled, the club upbringing Sir Alex Ferguson will entertain the Gunners in the first leg at Old Trafford, on Thursday (30/4/2009).

The second leg will take place at the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal's stall, on Wednesday (6/5/2009).nited in the Champions League semifinal this season. I am not concerned with the sentence as one of the United club in the world, although I want to beat them. United is the best team in the world at this time and we respect them, "said the captain Arsenal.

Manchester United VS Arsenal

In fact, they are one of the best in club history. I respect Sir Alex Ferguson for what has been achieved. There are some great contention for many years. I'm sure both teams will play the same interesting and dramatic, "continued the origin is Spain.
United is probably our biggest competitor. They are a team who play football well. You always enjoy this game, but we are determined to go to Rome, "he explained

The Semi Finals Champions League

2009-04-27T22:14:00.010+07:00

The first leg Champions League semifinal round will begin scrolling. Chelsea interim coach also gave a little advice to the children of troops who will face chelsea champion favorite candidate Barcelona .

Barca success throughout this season is no need to doubt. Seeing the players with high quality such as Lionel Messi, Thierry Henry, Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta, Blaugrana became one of the most skuad death in all competitions.

Defend Bundesliga champion Bayern Munich also become victims oSee Barca play pattern that tends to strike quickly, if Hiddink revealed himself to apply different strategies when compared to Liverpool or Manchester United.

The key, John Terry et al must maintain tranquility until the end of the fight.f violence in the black-Barca final quarter ago. We will face a team best in Europe, even in the world at this time. They were happy to play attack, as well as us. But, when you face United or Liverpool, the team control of the same, "said Dutch coach's home. When the United or Liverpool, the match rhythm can be increased in a flash. However, Barca are a very smart team.

They can raise or lower the match rhythm. You might think that the control is in your hands, and suddenly they unleash attacks, "Hiddink supplement. The Barca players are very shrewd and very high quality control make the ball so frustrated opponent. We should not feel frustrated. If Barca score print (first), then we must have confidence that we can respond at any time, "the man who is also close refine the Russian team.The Blues will visit to Camp Nou for the first leg middle of next weekend, before acting as host to the fight response (6/5/2009)okezone

Champions League Semi-Finals

2009-04-16T22:17:00.009+07:00

European champions Manchester United will meet compatriots Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals after both sides celebrated victories on Wednesday. The two teams will commence their continental rivalry at Old Trafford on 28 April before disputing the second leg at the Emirates Stadium on 5 May. In the other last-four encounter, Barcelona will host Chelsea at Camp Nou on 29 April and attempt to book a berth in the final in the second leg at Stamford Bridge on 6 May.

For the third consecutive year, three English teams will be present in the semi-finals. That suggests a certain stability among Europe's finest clubs and a closer look at the sides involved confirms the impression, with three of last season's semi-finalists back at the same stage again this year. Only Arsenal have proved capable of breaking into the select group, at Liverpool's expense.

Porto 0-1 Manchester United (2-3 on aggregate)
Goal: Cristiano Ronaldo 6 (United)

Stunned near the start by a long-range effort from Portuguese international Cristiano Ronaldo, Jesualdo Ferreira's men took several minutes before forcing their way back into the game. Just as they began to settle, however, they lost their captain and midfield orchestrator Lucho Gonzalez to an unprovoked injury.

Far from admitting defeat, Porto's exciting forwards soon began making nuisances of themselves, yet they found it much harder to trouble United's rearguard with Rio Ferdinand fit enough to feature again. Aside from a Lisandro Lopez volley well stopped by Edwin van der Sar, the Portuguese outfit seldom appeared dangerous and often left themselves open to United counterattacks. In the end, the hosts were helpless to avoid suffering their first ever home loss to an English outfit in Champions League history.

Not for the first time, Ronaldo emerged as the crucial player for United, making the difference in a match in which he displayed admirable humility, refusing to celebrate too vociferously on native Portuguese soil. His stunning intervention came as early as the sixth minute, when, finding himself in possession and without a defender in sight, the 24-year-old quickly unleashed a fearsome right-footed effort from 35 metres out that sailed into the far corner of the net.

Ronaldo's early goal completely altered the face of the tie, wrenching the advantage back from the Portuguese Liga leaders after their 2-2 draw at Old Trafford last week. Porto needed to find the back of the net at least once all of a sudden and they attempted to play a more attacking game after setting themselves out to move forward on the break. Making that transition took time and their supporters had to wait until the 23rd minute to witness their first shot on target.

Contesting their tenth Champions League quarter-final, United extended their unbeaten run in the competition to 23 matches.

Arsenal 3-0 Villarreal (4-1 on aggregate)
Goals: Theo Walcott 10, Emmanuel Adebayor 60, Robin van Persie 69 pen. (Arsenal)

Arsenal raced out of the blocks against their talented rivals, whose timid showing had much to do with injuries to Spanish internationals Santi Cazorla and Marcos Senna. The Yellow Submarine finally began to pose a threat early in the second half, but their insistence on attacking through the middle failed to pay dividends, despite the home side having been forced to field a makeshift rearguard following a series of injury withdrawals.

At the other end, meanwhile, Emmanuel Adebayor made them suffer with a smart finish, before Robin van Persie effectively ended the tie from the penalty spot following Diego Godin's foul on Theo Walcott. A red card for Uruguayan midfielder Sebastian Eguren merely increased the likelihood that the Gunners would emerge unscathed.

Adebayor posed Villarreal problems throughout the entire encounter, keeping defenders occupied and keeping himself barely onside before demonstrating impressive calm to get his name on the scoresheet with the outside of his boot following an excellent pass from partner-in-crime Van Persie.

The complexion of the tie began to change as early as the tenth minute, Emmanuel Eboue initiating an attack with a long through ball flicked beyond the visitors' defence with impressive speed of thought by Cesc Fabregas. Walcott collected the pass and lobbed the ball over goalkeeper Diego Lopez with supreme ease, thus forcing Manuel Pellegrini's troops to chase the game.

Arsenal are a fearsome proposition in north London, particularly in European competition, and have now gone 24 Champions League games unbeaten on home soil. Likewise, Arsene Wenger's young side have yet to lose a home Champions League fixture since moving into the Emirates Stadium, recording 12 wins and five draws.
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Roma City Destination

2009-03-31T11:30:00.000+07:00

According to a legend, Rome was founded by the twins Romulus and Remus on 21 April, 753 BC. When capital of the Roman Empire from 27BC onwards, the city was one of the richest and largest in the world, with a population of over one million.

Cosmopolitan
During the reign of Emperor Constantine (306-324BC), the Bishop of Rome gained political as well as religious importance, eventually becoming known as the Pope and establishing Rome as the centre of the Catholic Church, a seat it still holds to this day in controlling the Vatican City as its sovereign territory. Today, Rome is a cosmopolitan city and one of most visited tourist destinations in Europe due to its ancient history and mix of Roman, Baroque and Renaissance architecture. The historic centre is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

Getting there
Rome is served by two airports: Leonardo da Vinci, better known as Fiumicino, and Ciampino. Fiumicino is Italy's largest airport and has its own train station where passengers can be transported to the city's main station, Termini, in around 30 minutes. The airport is around 22 miles from central Rome. Ciampino has no direct train service although shuttle buses do run to Termini on a regular basis. Regular services run from Termini to all major Italian cities as well as to Paris, Munich, Geneva and Basel. The city's two metro lines (A&B) also intersect here and outside the front of the station, in the Piazza Cinquecento, is a major bus station.

What to see
Rome offers a wealth of different attractions. The Forum, the central area around which ancient Roman civilisation developed, houses some of the oldest structures of the ancient city, while the Colosseum – the largest amphitheatre built in the Roman Empire – is one of the city's defining symbols. Staying with Roman architecture, the Pantheon was built as a temple to the gods of ancient Rome. Across the River Tiber is St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City, the home of the Catholic Church and the Vatican museums, including the Raphael Stanze and the Sistine Chapel. Alternatively, the Spanish steps and the Trevi Fountain are also worth a visit.

Where to relax
Visitors to Rome are simply spoiled for choice for places to while away the hours. The city's Villa Borghese park houses several museums and is a great place for a walk, while the Giardino degli Aranci (Garden of Oranges) offers a sensational view of the city. The Testaccio, Trastevere and Campo de' Fiori districts are great hang-outs for those wishing to wine, dine and possibly take in a club while bargain hunters would be wise to do as the Romans do and head to the flea market at the Porta Portese on a Sunday morning.

When in Rome...
One must visit the Colosseum as well as going to the Trevi Fountain to toss a coin into the water and buy an authentic Italian ice cream from one of the many sellers dotted near by.
uefa 1998-2009 All rights reserved

Champions League

2009-03-24T07:37:00.000+07:00

The match brings back memories of 2004, when then Porto boss Jose Mourinho charged up the Old Trafford touchline in delight after a 90th-minute Costinha goal took the Portuguese side through at the expense of the English team.
Liverpool drew Chelsea yet again and means Rafa Benitez's 2005 champions will face last season's beaten finalists for the fourth time in the knock-out stages in five seasons. The duo have also previously met in the group stages of the competition, making it five meetings in a row.
Arsenal will play their first leg away to Villarreal in a repeat of the semi-final of 2006, although the Gunners played the first match at home on that occasion and went through 1-0 on aggregate after success at Highbury.
Barcelona, winners in 2006 drew Bayern Munich, champions in 2001 and the German giants have never lost to the La Liga leaders in Europe.
The winners of Liverpool's match against Chelsea will face the winners of Barcelona's match against Bayern for a place in the final.
United will take on Arsenal for a place in the Rome showdown - assuming both Premier League teams win their quarter-final ties.

Quarter-finals
Tuesday, April 7
Villarreal v Arsenal
Man.United v FC Porto

Wednesday, April 8
Liverpool v Chelsea
Barcelona v Bayern Munich

Tuesday, April 14
Chelsea v Liverpool
Bayern Munich v Barcelona

Wednesday, April 15
Arsenal v Villarreal
FC Porto v Manchester United

Semi-Finals:

SEMI-FINALS: Ties to be played April 28/29 and May 5/6
Manchester United or FC Porto v Villarreal or Arsenal
Barcelona or Bayern Munich v Liverpool or Chelsea

Roma Finale 2009- Qurter Final

2009-03-21T04:12:00.000+07:00

UEFA Champions League holders Manchester United FC will take on 2004 winners FC Porto while Chelsea FC and Liverpool FC are matched again in the quarter-finals after the draw for the remainder of the competition was made today in Nyon.

United bid
United were beaten by Porto when the Portuguese side won the competition, with the English titleholders aiming to become the first team to successfully defend the trophy since the UEFA Champions League was introduced in 1992/93. The winners of that tie will play the side that emerges from the tie involving Villarreal CF, the only surviving team never to have reached a UEFA Champions League final, and Arsenal FC, the club that defeated the Spanish outfit at this juncture three seasons ago.

Rivals rematched
Chelsea and Liverpool have faced off in the semi-finals in three of the past four campaigns but they meet a stage earlier this time round. The last-four opposition for the winners will be FC Barcelona or FC Bayern München, the two leading scorers in the competition this term with 24 goals apiece.

Dates
The quarter-final ties will take place on 7/8 and 14/15 April and the semi-finals on 28/29 April and 5/6 May. The final will be held at the Stadio Olimpico, Rome, on Wednesday 27 May at 20.45CET.

Rome Final Ticket Sales

2009-03-19T05:52:00.000+07:00

Ticket sales to the general public for the 2009 UEFA Champions League final in Rome are under way – exclusively on uefa.com. The final of European club football's most prestigious competition will take place at the Stadio Olimpico in the Italian capital on Wednesday 27 May.

Application process
The international general public ticket sales process started on Monday 2 March at 12.00CET and will run until the same time on Monday 16 March. The application process is carried out exclusively via uefa.com, with each applicant having to complete in full the online application form.

Ballot
Should the demand for final tickets exceed the supply, then every valid application will enter a lottery or ballot to decide the allocation of the 10,000 tickets that are being made available for sale to fans worldwide. These tickets are intended for neutral fans wishing to attend the final whoever the finalists may be, and in the event of a lottery each valid application will go into the ballot regardless of the time of submission, provided it falls within the application period.

Ticket categories
Each successful candidate will be entitled to a maximum of two tickets. With the submission of the application, the applicant accepts the ticketing terms and conditions. Ticket price categories available to the general public are: Category 1 (centrally positioned): €200; Category 2 (mainly in the corners): €140; Category 3 (behind the goals): €90; and Wheelchair: €70. The administrative fee is: €21 for successful applicants within Italy; €33 for ticket orders made elsewhere in Europe; or €45 for neutral fans from the rest of the world.

Payment
Payment is by credit card only (MasterCard is the preferred payment system). Applicants will be informed by email by 31 March if they have been successful or not, with tickets being dispatched from 27 April by secure mail. Candidates will be able to check the status of their application on uefa.com with their log-in information from 1 April.

Capacity
The net capacity of the Stadio Olimpico for the UEFA Champions League final will be about 67,000. Supporters of the two finalist clubs will be served via their clubs directly, with approximately 60 per cent of the stadium capacity being reserved for followers of the two teams. Each finalist will be able to take up to 20,000 tickets and distribute these directly to their fans. The remaining tickets will be allocated to the European football family, comprising UEFA, the local organising committee, national associations and commercial partners.

Contact details
Any information requests should be addressed to Lottomatica, the ticket agency appointed by the host Italian Football Federation. Phone: 199 109 783 (from inside Italy, from 2 March to 16 March); 892 982 (from inside Italy, from 17 March to 30 May); or +39 06 37 00 106 (from outside Italy from 2 March to 30 May). Email: uclfinalroma2009@lottomaticaservizi.it

Terms and conditions
All applicants are bound by the ticketing terms and conditions. Action will be taken in cases of infringement. Online applications will be checked against police data to ensure that anyone banned from stadiums is unsuccessful in any attempt to purchase tickets. General public applicants attending the final are warned that tickets are non-transferable and that ID and security checks at the stadium are planned. UEFA underlines that no tickets are being distributed via agencies or brokers. UEFA also encourages fans not to be lured into deals with touts who not only demand exorbitant prices but are often not in possession of the tickets they purport to have for sale.

uefa 1998-2009 All rights reserved

General ticket sales for Rome close

2009-03-18T05:10:00.000+07:00

Ticket sales to the general public for the 2009 UEFA Champions League final in Rome have closed.

The international general public ticket sales process began – exclusively via uefa.com – on Monday 2 March and ended today, 16 March, at 12.00CET. The allocation will be decided by lottery, with every valid application entering the ballot, independently of the time of submission within the application period. Each successful candidate will be entitled to a maximum of two tickets.

Applicants will be informed via email by 31 March if they have been successful or not, and tickets will be dispatched from 27 April by secure mail. Candidates will be able to check the status of their application on uefa.com with their log-in information from 1 April – until then it will not be possible to log on to the ticket portal, which is closed for now.

Finalists' tickets
The UEFA Champions League final takes place at the Stadio Olimpico at 20.45CET. Stadium capacity for the final will be about 67,000, with around 60 per cent of the seats reserved for supporters of the two teams. Each finalist will have up to 20,000 tickets for distribution to fans, with the remaining tickets allocated to the European football family, comprising UEFA, the local organising committee, national associations and commercial partners.

Applicants vetted
Online applications will be checked to ensure that anyone banned from attending football matches is unsuccessful in any attempt to purchase tickets. UEFA underlines that no tickets are being distributed via agencies or brokers. UEFA also encourages fans not to be lured into deals with touts who not only demand exorbitant prices, but are often not in possession of the tickets they purport to have for sale.

uefa.com 1998-2009. All rights reserved

2009 final: Rome

2009-03-16T00:08:00.000+07:00

Rome's Stadio Olimpico will stage the European Champion Clubs' Cup final for the fourth time this season as the UEFA Champions League reaches its climax in the Italian capital on Wednesday 27 May.

Rome events
The home of 2008/09 group stage entrants AS Roma and their Serie A rivals S.S. Lazio, the stadium could prove a lucky omen for Liverpool FC, who won the 1977 final there against VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach and repeated the trick seven years later against Roma. That match went to penalties, as did the 1996 UEFA Champions League decider in which Juventus defeated holders AFC Ajax. Other major events at the stadium include the 1990 FIFA World Cup final, the 1987 IAAF World Championships in Athletics and the 1960 Olympic Games, for which the stadium was constructed in 1953, set between the Tiber river and Monte Mario hill.

Finals
It will be the eighth European Cup final to be held in Italy, as Milan's San Siro Stadium was the venue for 1965, 1970 and 2001 finals while in 1991 FK Crvena Zvezda defeated Olympique de Marseille at Bari's Stadio San Nicola. The 2010 final will be played at Madrid's Santiago Bernabéu in its new date on a Saturday.

2009 - 10 Competition Format

2009-03-15T23:27:00.000+07:00

The UEFA Champions League, UEFA's most prestigious club competition, will undergo a series of significant changes from 2009/10 following a decision from the UEFA Executive Committee in November 2007.

The main points are:

• No changes to the format of the main competition, which will still involve 32 teams, split into eight groups of four in the group stage, followed by the knockout phase. The eight teams that finish the groups in third place cross over into the knockout phase of the new UEFA Europa League, formerly the UEFA Cup.

• The 2009/10 access list has been changed according to the following principles: 22 teams (21 teams + the titleholder) qualify directly for the group phase instead of 16. The three national associations with the highest UEFA coefficient ranking will each have three teams who gain automatic entry to the group stage, with the countries ranked 4 to 6 in the standings having two automatic qualifiers and the associations ranked 7 to 12 having one.

• As from the 2009/10 season onwards, there will be four qualifying rounds (including a play-off round), to be played in home-and-away ties, to complete the 32 participants in the UEFA Champions League group stage. There are two qualifying routes; the Champions Path and the Best-placed Path.

• Champions Path: The first qualifying round comprises three two-legged ties involving the champions of the countries ranked 48 to 53 in UEFA competition. The winners of those ties progress to the second qualifying round where they are joined by the champions of the 31 countries ranked 16 to 47 (except Liechtenstein). The victorious sides from those 17 ties join the champions from the associations ranked 13 to 15 in the third qualifying round, with the winners of those ten pairings reaching the play-off round. These five play-off ties will take place on a home-and-away basis with the winners qualifying for the UEFA Champions League group stage.

• Best-placed path: The third-placed side from the sixth-ranked member association, plus the runners-up from the associations ranked 7 to 15, start the competition in the third qualifying round. The winners of these five ties progress to the play-off round, where they are joined by the fourth-placed sides from the associations ranked 1 to 3 and the third-placed teams from the associations ranked 4 and 5. The victorious teams from the five play-off ties qualify for the UEFA Champions League group stage.

• Teams from the Champions Path and the Best-Placed Path cannot meet in UEFA Champions League qualifying.

• The losing team from each of the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round ties will go into the UEFA Europa League play-offs.

• The losing team from each of the UEFA Champions League play-off ties will go into the UEFA Europa League group stage.

• The team who finishes in third position in each of the UEFA Champions League groups goes into the UEFA Europa League Round of 32. The four best third-ranked teams will be seeded for the Round of 32 with the group winners of the UEFA Europa League group stage.

• The matches in the UEFA Champions League first knockout round will be split over four weeks instead of two, using dates reserved for the UEFA club competition in February and March to maximise live match opportunities.

• The final is to be played on a Saturday, with kick-off time at 20.45 CET.

• The UEFA Champions League play-off rounds will be centrally marketed by UEFA in accordance with the concept already used for the group stage.

Manchester United will defend the trophy in 2008/09

First qualifying round
1st leg 30.06/01.07.2009 First qualifying round,
2nd leg 07/08.07.2009 Second qualifying round,
1st leg 14/15.07.2009 Second qualifying round,
2nd leg 21/22.07.2009 Third qualifying round,
1st leg 28/29.07.2009 Third qualifying round,
2nd leg 04/05.08.2009 Play-off round,
1st leg 18/19.08.2009 Play-off round,
2nd leg 25/26.08.2009 Group stage,
Matchday 115/16.09.2009 Group stage,
Matchday 229/30.09.2009 Group stage,
Matchday 320/21.10.2009 Group stage,
Matchday 403/04.11.2009 Group stage,
Matchday 524/25.11.2009 Group stage,
Matchday 608/09.12.2009

First knockout round
first leg1 6/17/23/ 24.02.2010

First knockout round
second leg 09/10/16/ 17.03.2010

Quarter-finals
first leg 30/31.03.2010
Quarter-finals, second leg 06/07.04.2010
Semi-finals, first leg 20/21.04.2010
Semi-finals, second leg 27/28.04.2010
Final (Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid) 22.05.2010

Champions League

2009-02-16T19:11:00.000+07:00

The UEFA Champions League is the main soccer tournament for the European top clubs. Every year the teams from all the major leagues compete against each other, firstly in a group stage, followed by a series of straight knock out rounds culminating with the final match held in a different European city every year. The current holders of the competition are AC Milan, who beat Liverpool 2-1 in the 2007 final held in Athens, Greece.

Origins of the Competition

Established in 1992, the UEFA Champions League evolved from the now defunct European Cup. Originally only the previous champions of each European league were eligible to enter the competition. To satisfy the growing pressure from Europe's top clubs for a European league, UEFA decided to set up a tournament that will allow not only the champions but also the other top three or four clubs in each league to compete.

This revamped tournament began in 1992 under the title 'UEFA Champions League'. The winners of the tournament play off in an annual exhibition match against the champions of the South American equivalent of the Champions League, the Copa Libertadores.

Organization of the Tournament

Each year, thirty-two teams are able to enter the tournament at the group stage. There are sixteen teams that qualify automatically by either winning their league or finishing as the runner-up. The remaining teams are the winners from a pre-qualifying round held in August each year. The number of clubs from each country is dependent on the number of points they have accumulated over a five year period. This is calculated through a combination of each country's club results in previous tournaments and the results of their respective national teams in the FIFA World Cup and UEFA European Championships.

The group stage of the Champions League starts every year in September and runs until December. Teams are drawn in groups of four and play each other twice; home and away. The best performing teams from previous years (i.e. the seeded teams) are drawn so that they cannot meet each other in the group stage. After these games have been completed, the top two teams qualify for the first of three knock out stages.

These rounds are played over two games, home and away and the team with the most goals overall qualifies for the next stage. The final is held in May and is decided over one game. If there is no winner after ninety minutes, then an extra period of 30 minutes and then if necessary a penalty shoot-out takes place to decide the winner.

Memorable Games

There have been many great and exciting matches in the Champions League over the years, but the one that many recall from recent history is the 2005 Final between AC Milan and Liverpool. The game was held in Istanbul, Turkey and the Italians came into the game as favorites. This expectation seemed to hold true when at the half time stage Milan led by 3 goals. However, in an amazing eight minute period early in the second half, Liverpool scored three times, including a penalty to create an amazing recovery. In extra time there was further drama when Milan top striker, Andrei Shevchenko missed an easy opportunity to score the winner for Milan. Finally, after this drama, Liverpool won the Champions League in a penalty shoot out.

L’Equipe a French sports journalist initiated the “European Cup” in the year of 1955. The tournament was formally known as “The European Cup” and was renamed “The UEFA Champions League” during the 1992-1993 season. The competition is now managed by the Union of European Football Association (UEFA). It is a seasonal competition where 32 of the best clubs from all over Europe compete to become the best soccer club in the whole of Europe. The clubs compete to achieve the most coveted title in football, “The European Champion Clubs Cup” as it is now known. The matches take place on Tuesdays and Wednesdays all around Europe. The winners of this tournament qualify for the International Cup, which is played against the winners of South America’s official league “Copa Libertadores”. Real Madrid CF was the first team to win the European Cup, since then they have won the league eight times. This includes the five consecutive wins from 1955-1956 to 1959-1960.

So what is it that makes the tournament so special?

The top domestic clubs of every European country that are members of the UEFA are allowed to play the game. The only country not participating in the competition has been Liechtenstein, as they do not have a domestic league.

The game has evolved a lot since L’Equipe initiated it. He wanted to have an all-European club competition while the UEFA’s founder members wanted to have an all-European national competition. In 1992-1993 not only did the name of the tournament change, the way it was organized was also different. An initial group stage was introduced in addition to the knockout matches, and a qualifying round was introduced. This was done so that more teams from other nations of Europe could participate. The number of teams participating shot up from eight teams to thirty-two teams. Now, even clubs that finish from second to fourth in the most competitive domestic leagues are also eligible to participate in the tournament. UEFA coefficient is the basis on which the associations are ranked. This is done to obtain the number of places in the competition for every association.

The tournament is divided into stages:
The group stage: qualifying stage.
The knockout stage: second round, quarter, semi and the finals.

The group stage consists of eight groups each comprising of four teams. In the group stages the teams have to qualify against three other teams to make it to the top of the group. The first and second teams in each group qualify to play the second round, which is a knockout round. Each team has to play twice, (once at home and once away) at every stage except the finals. The final does not have the two-leg system. The venue for the final is decided by UEFA two years in advance.

The introduction of the group stages helped clubs and players alike to learn and understand the way clubs and players of various other nations played soccer.

Why do people love to watch the UEFA Champions League?

The UEFA Champions League is the best place where millions of people get to watch their favourite players like Cristiano Ronado, Ronaldinho, Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite, well known as Kaka in action. People not only get to watch their favorite players but they also get to watch the best clubs from all over Europe compete against each other throughout the year.