Real Madrid and Spain top UEFA rankings again
Tuesday, May 29, 2018
Article summary
The 2017/18 UEFA club and association rankings have been confirmed.
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The end-of-season UEFA club and association coefficients, which impact entries for the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, have been confirmed.
UEFA club coefficient
Unsurprisingly, Real Madrid are top for the fifth year running. Yet behind them the chasing pack has been shuffled. Atlético jumped two places to second after their UEFA Europa League triumph (the first time a city has provided the top two), with Bayern München and Barcelona each dropping a spot. Manchester City, the best-ranked English side, enter the top ten for the first time while Liverpool leap 12 places to 22nd.
| Ranking | Club | 2016/17 rank | |
| 1 | Real Madrid | ESP | 1 |
| 2 | Atlético Madrid | ESP | 4 |
| 3 | Bayern München | GER | 2 |
| 4 | Barcelona | ESP | 3 |
| 5 | Juventus | ITA | 5 |
| 6 | Sevilla | ESP | 8 |
| 7 | Paris Saint-Germain | FRA | 6 |
| 8 | Manchester City | ENG | 12 |
| 9 | Arsenal | ENG | 11 |
| 10 | Dortmund | GER | 7 |
UEFA association club coefficient
For the sixth successive season, Spain lead the way. England and Italy both moved up one place, with Germany losing out as they slipped from second to fourth. The rest of the top ten are unchanged. Helped in no small part by Salzburg's run to the UEFA Europa League semi-finals, Austria are up to 11th. That could prove very significant, as we explain below.
| Ranking | Association | 2016/17 rank |
| 1 | Spain | 1 |
| 2 | England | 3 |
| 3 | Italy | 4 |
| 4 | Germany | 2 |
| 5 | France | 5 |
| 6 | Russia | 6 |
| 7 | Portugal | 7 |
| 8 | Ukraine | 8 |
| 9 | Belgium | 9 |
| 10 | Turkey | 10 |
| 11 | Austria | 15 |
| 12 | Switzerland | 12 |
Why does it matter?
- The association club coefficient is used to determine the access lists for the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League – i.e. how many teams enter from each country and when.
- The rankings after 2017/18 mean it will be as you were in terms of the automatic UEFA Champions League group stage places in 2019/20, with four places for Spain, England, Italy and Germany; two spots for France and Russia; and one apiece for Portugal, Ukraine, Belgium and Turkey.
- The winners of the 2018/19 UEFA Europa League are assured of a place in the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League group stage. If they qualify through their domestic championship then that spot goes to the third side in the fifth-ranked association – France, as it was this season.
- The UEFA Champions League holders are also guaranteed a group berth. If they qualify through their domestic championship then the champions of the 11th-ranked association take that place. The Czech Republic are beneficiaries of that in 2018/19 but Austria's rise means it could be them in 2019/20.
- In the UEFA Europa League, Spain, England, Italy, Germany and France all get two places in the group stage; Russia, Portugal, Ukraine, Belgium, Austria and Switzerland have one apiece. That means a solitary change to 2018/19, with Austria replacing the Czech Republic.
The associations' positions in the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League access list are determined on the basis of the associations' coefficients established at the finish of the 2017/18 campaign, on the basis of the associations' coefficients from seasons 2013/14 to 2017/18.
The line-ups for the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League will be subject to final confirmation by UEFA in summer 2019.