GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

What are the rules for UEFA Champions League semifinal format?

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The UEFA Champions League semifinal consists of two legs (matches) played between two teams, where each team plays at home once. The team that scores the most goals across both matches advances to the final.

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Number of matches2 legs (home and away)
Advancement criteriaTeam with most total goals across both matches wins
Away goals ruleAbolished in 2021; no longer used as tiebreaker
Extra time and penaltiesUsed in second leg only if aggregate score is tied
Match spacingTypically 7-10 days between first and second leg

Two-Leg Format

The semifinal round uses a two-leg format where the same two teams play each other twice. The first leg is played at one team's home stadium, and the second leg is played at the other team's home stadium about a week later. This gives both teams the advantage of playing in front of their own fans.

How Winners Are Determined

The team that scores the most goals across both matches advances to the final. For example, if Team A wins 2-1 at home and loses 1-0 away, their total is 3 goals for and 1 against, and they advance. If both teams score the same total number of goals after two legs, the match goes to extra time and a penalty shootout in the second leg to determine the winner.

Rule Changes

Until 2021, the away goals rule was used as a tiebreaker. This meant that if teams were tied on total goals, the team that scored more goals away from home would advance. UEFA abolished this rule starting with the 2021-22 season, so now all tied matches go directly to extra time and penalties in the second leg.

Extra Time and Penalty Shootout

If the aggregate score is level after both legs, extra time is played only in the second leg. Extra time consists of two 15-minute periods. If no winner is decided during extra time, a penalty shootout occurs where each team takes five penalties, with the team scoring more penalties winning the match.

Sources

  1. uefa.com (uefa.com)
  2. wikipedia.org (wikipedia.org)
  3. espn.com (espn.com)