2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League

The 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League was the second edition of the CONCACAF Champions League under its current format, and overall the 45th edition of the premier football club competition organized by CONCACAF, the regional governing body of North America, Central America and the Caribbean. The tournament began on July 28, 2009 and ran through April 28, 2010.[1] All four Mexican teams topped their groups and reached the semi-finals, with Pachuca winning the final against Cruz Azul with a 2–2 aggregate score, via the away goals rule. As winners, Pachuca qualified for the 2010 FIFA Club World Cup as the CONCACAF representative.[2]

2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League
Tournament details
DatesJuly 28, 2009 – April 28, 2010
Teams24 (from 10 associations)
Final positions
Champions Pachuca (4th title)
Runners-up Cruz Azul
Tournament statistics
Matches played78
Goals scored242 (3.1 per match)
Attendance530,883 (6,806 per match)
Top scorer(s) Ulises Mendivil
(9 goals)

Qualification

24 teams participated in the 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League from the North American, Central American, and Caribbean zones. Nine of the teams came from North America, twelve from Central America, and three from the Caribbean.[3] However, after problems in the previous year's tournament, CONCACAF decided that teams may be disqualified and replaced if they don't have a stadium for the tournament that CONCACAF deems suitable.[4]

  • Central America: 12 Central American clubs can qualify to the Champions League. If one or more clubs is precluded, it will be supplanted by a club from another Central American federation. The reallocation would be based on results from the 2008–09 CONCACAF Champions League.
  • Caribbean: If any Caribbean club is precluded, it will supplanted by the "2009 CFU Club Championship" 4th-place finisher.

Also, in response to fixture congestion during the previous year's tournament, the Central American representatives that qualify via split seasons will no longer play-off solely to determine which team will gain entry into the Group Stage. In nations that regularly play a playoff to determine a national champion, these will continue as usual. For those that don't, total points over both seasons, followed by other tiebreakers, will determine which team enters the Group Stage without playing extra matches.[5]

Reallocation of bids

It was announced on May 12, 2009 that Belize had lost their lone qualification to Honduras due to the inability of the Belize federation to meet CONCACAF's minimum requirements in regards to stadium facilities.[6] The spot vacated by Belize was awarded to Honduras, increasing their total to three qualified clubs, due to their association's teams' superior performance in the 2008–09 Champions League.

A second bid was reallocated on June 9 when it was determined that Real Estelí of Nicaragua did not have a suitable venue to host a CONCACAF club match.[7] The Nicaraguan bid was initially intended to be given to a third team from Panama, but Panama only had one stadium pass inspection, which under CONCACAF rules, meant that only two Panamanian clubs could host matches. Thus, the bid was awarded to a third team from Costa Rica, Herediano, the highest non-champion from the combined 2008 Invierno and 2009 Verano seasons. Initially, there was a tie between Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Guatemala, based upon the results of the 2008–09 Champions League, for the reallocated Nicaraguan bid. Therefore, CONCACAF officials drew on results from previous CONCACAF tournaments in order to break the tie, which proved Costa Rica to historically have the strongest representation.

On July 10, 2009 CONCACAF announced that Luís Ángel Firpo of El Salvador was invited to take the place of Chalatenango due to Chalatengo's failure to sign and return the required participation agreement.[8] Firpo was selected as the team with the second-best cumulative record among the runners-up in the El Salvadoran Apertura and Clausura championships.

Teams

Teams in bold qualify directly for the Group Stage.

Association Club Qualifying method
North America (9 teams)
Mexico
4 berths		 Toluca 2008 Apertura champions
UNAM 2009 Clausura champions
Cruz Azul 2008 Apertura runners-up
Pachuca 2009 Clausura runners-up
United States
4 berths		 Columbus Crew 2008 MLS Cup and 2008 MLS Supporters' Shield winner
Houston Dynamo 2008 MLS Supporters' Shield runners-up1
New York Red Bulls 2008 MLS Cup runners-up
D.C. United 2008 U.S. Open Cup champions
Canada
1 berth		 Toronto FC 2009 Canadian Championship winner
Central America (12 teams)
Costa Rica
3 berths		 Saprissa 2008 Invierno champions
Liberia Mía 2009 Verano champions
Herediano 2009 Verano runners-up2
Honduras
3 berths		 Marathón 2008 Apertura champions
Olimpia 2009 Clausura champions
Real España 2008 Apertura and 2009 Clausura runners-up3
Guatemala
2 berths		 Comunicaciones 2008 Apertura champions
Jalapa 2009 Clausura champions
El Salvador
2 berths		 Isidro Metapán 2008 Apertura and 2009 Clausura champions
Luis Ángel Firpo 2009 Clausura runners-up4
Panama
2 berths		 Árabe Unido 2008 Clausura champions
San Francisco 2009 Apertura champions
Caribbean (3 teams)
Trinidad and Tobago W Connection 2009 CFU Club Championship champions
San Juan Jabloteh 2009 CFU Club Championship third place
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Islanders 2009 CFU Club Championship runners-up

1 Columbus Crew were both the 2008 MLS Supporters' Shield and 2008 MLS Cup winner, so Houston Dynamo claimed the second USA berth in the group stage as the 2008 MLS Supporters' Shield runners-up.

2 Berth originally awarded to Nicaragua (Real Estelí), was rescinded after a failed stadium inspection by CONCACAF officials. The berth was awarded to Costa Rica.

3 Berth originally awarded to Belize (Belize Defence Force), but Belize failed the CONCACAF stadium requirements. The berth was awarded to Honduras.

4 Isidro Metapán won both the 2008 Apertura and 2009 Clausura. As a result, the second Salvadoran bid was awarded to the runners-up in the Apertura and Clausura tournaments with the better aggregate record, Chalatenango (2008 Apertura runners-up). When Chalatenango failed to file the required participation agreement, the runners-up with the second-best aggregate record were invited.

Format

There will be a two-legged Preliminary Round for 16 clubs, with the eight winners advancing to the Group Stage. The other eight qualified teams will be seeded directly into the Group Stage. The clubs involved in the Group Stage will be placed into four groups of four with each team playing the others in its group in both home and away matches. The top two teams from each group will advance to the Championship Round, which will consist of two-legged ties. The Final Round, to be held in late April 2010, will also be two-legged. The away goals rule will be used, but will not apply once a tie enters extra time.[9]

Group Stage
Pot A Toluca UNAM Columbus Crew Houston Dynamo
Pot B Saprissa Marathón Comunicaciones Isidro Metapán
Preliminary Round
Pot A Cruz Azul Pachuca New York Red Bulls D.C. United
Liberia Mía Olimpia San Francisco Toronto FC
Pot B Real España Luis Ángel Firpo Jalapa Árabe Unido
Herediano W Connection Puerto Rico Islanders San Juan Jabloteh

Schedule
Round Draw date First leg Second leg
Preliminary Round Preliminary June 11, 2009
(New York, USA)		 July 28–30, 2009 August 4–6, 2009
Group Stage Matchday 1 August 18–20, 2009
Matchday 2 August 25–27, 2009
Matchday 3 September 15–17, 2009
Matchday 4 September 22–24, 2009
Matchday 5 September 29-October 1, 2009
Matchday 6 October 20–22, 2009
Championship Round Quarterfinals November 17, 2009 March 9–11, 2010 March 16–18, 2010
Semifinals March 30–31, 2010 April 6–7, 2010
Final April 21, 2010 April 28, 2010

Preliminary round
Main article: 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round

The draw for the Preliminary Round was held on June 11, 2009, at the CONCACAF headquarters in New York City.[10][11] The first legs of the Preliminary Round were played the week of July 28, 2009, while the second legs were played the week of August 4, 2009; this is a month earlier than the previous season.[1] The Preliminary Round schedule was announced on June 16, five days after the draw.[12]

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
San Francisco 2–3 San Juan Jabloteh 2–0 0–3
Pachuca 10–1 Jalapa 3–0 7–1
W Connection 4–3 New York Red Bulls 2–2 2–1
Olimpia 2–2 (a) Árabe Unido 2–1 0–1
Herediano 2–6 Cruz Azul 2–6 0–0
D.C. United 2–2 (5–4 p) Luis Ángel Firpo 1–1 1–1 (aet)
Liberia Mía 3–6 Real España 3–0 0–6
Toronto FC 0–1 Puerto Rico Islanders 0–1 0–0

Group stage
Main article: 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage

The Group Stage was played in 6 rounds during August–October 2009. The rounds were August 18–20, August 25–27, September 15–17, September 22–24, September 29–October 1, and October 20–22.[13]

Group A
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
Pachuca 6501154+1115
Árabe Unido 6312139+410
Houston Dynamo 621398+17
Isidro Metapán 6105319−163
 ARAHOUMETPAC
Árabe Unido – 1–1 6–0 4–1
Houston Dynamo 5–1 – 1–0 0–1
Isidro Metapán 0–1 3–2 – 0–4
Pachuca 2–0 2–0 5–0 –

Group B
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
Toluca 6411154+1113
Marathón 64021214−212
D.C. United 6312128+410
San Juan Jabloteh 6006417−130
 DCUMARSJJTOL
D.C. United – 3–0 5–1 1–3
Marathón 3–1 – 3–1 2–0
San Juan Jabloteh 0–1 2–4 – 0–1
Toluca 1–1 7–0 3–0 –

Group C
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
Cruz Azul 6510164+1216
Columbus Crew 622259−48
Saprissa 612368−25
Puerto Rico Islanders 6033612−63
 CLBCRUPRISAP
Columbus Crew – 0–2 2–0 1–1
Cruz Azul 5–0 – 2–0 2–0
P. R. Islanders 1–1 3–3 – 1–1
Saprissa 0–1 1–2 3–1 –

Group D
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
UNAM 6411156+913
Comunicaciones 630368−29
W Connection 6213109+17
Real España 6204614−86
 COMRESUNAMWCO
Comunicaciones – 2–0 2–1 0–3
Real España 2–0 – 1–5 1–0
UNAM 1–0 4–0 – 2–1
W Connection 1–2 3–2 2–2 –

Championship round
Main article: 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Championship Round

The championship round draw was conducted on November 17.[14]

Bracket
  Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
                                   
Marathón 2 1 3  
UNAM 0 6 6  
  UNAM 1 0 1  
  Cruz Azul 0 5 5  
Árabe Unido 0 0 0
Cruz Azul 1 3 4  
  Cruz Azul 2 0 2
  Pachuca (a) 1 1 2
Columbus Crew 2 2 4  
Toluca 2 3 5  
  Toluca 1 0 1
  Pachuca 1 1 2  
Comunicaciones 1 1 2
Pachuca 1 2 3  

Each of the Championship rounds will be played over two legs.[1]

Quarterfinals

The first legs of the Quarterfinals were played the week of March 9, 2010, while the second legs were played the week of March 16, 2010.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Comunicaciones 2–3 Pachuca 1–1 1–2
Columbus Crew 4–5 Toluca 2–2 2–3
Marathón 3–6 UNAM 2–0 1–6
Árabe Unido 0–4 Cruz Azul 0–1 0–3

Semifinals

The first legs of the Semifinals were played the week of March 30, 2010, while the second legs were played the week of April 6, 2010.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
UNAM 1–5 Cruz Azul 1–0 0–5
Toluca 1–2 Pachuca 1–1 0–1

Final
Main article: 2010 CONCACAF Champions League Final

The first leg of the Final was played on April 21, 2010, while the second leg was played on April 28, 2010.

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Cruz Azul 2–2 (a) Pachuca 2–1 0–1
CONCACAF Champions League
2009–10 Champion
Pachuca
Fourth Title

Top goalscorers
Rank Name Club Goals
1 Ulises Mendivil Pachuca 9
2 Orlando Rodríguez Árabe Unido 8
3 Javier Orozco Cruz Azul 5
Jonathan Faña W Connection
Carlos Pavón Real España
Rolando Fonseca Comunicaciones
Pablo Zeballos Cruz Azul
Edgar Benítez Pachuca
9 Paul Aguilar Pachuca 4
Douglas Caetano Real España
Christian Gómez D.C. United
Francisco Palencia UNAM

References
  1. "Next season's CONCACAF Champions League to begin last week of July" (Press release). CONCACAF. 13 November 2008. Archived from the original on 21 December 2008. Retrieved 13 November 2008.
  2. "Pachuca win CONCACAF Champions League". Soccerway.com. 29 April 2020. Archived from the original on 23 August 2010. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
  3. "Qualifying 2009/2010". Archived from the original on 2011-04-29. Retrieved 2011-05-17.
  4. CONCACAF Executive Committee tightens stadium standards for next year's Champions League, New York: CONCACAF, 2008-11-07, archived from the original on 2009-01-07, retrieved 2008-11-13
  5. Champions League qualifying simplified for Central America, New York: CONCACAF, 2008-12-02, archived from the original on 7 December 2008, retrieved 2008-12-03
  6. "Honduras gets 3rd CONCACAF team; Belize out", Sports Illustrated, Associated Press, 2009-05-11, retrieved 2009-05-12
  7. Costa Rica awarded third berth in Champions League, given Nicaragua's place in 24-team field, New York: CONCACAF, 2009-06-09, archived from the original on 12 June 2009, retrieved 2009-06-09
  8. Firpo invited to replace fellow Salvadoran club Chalatenango in CONCACAF Champions League, New York: CONCACAF, 2009-07-10, archived from the original on 2009-07-16, retrieved 2009-07-10
  9. "CONCACAF Champions League Regulations 2009/2010" (PDF). CONCACAF. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-08-24. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
  10. Bell, Jack (2009-06-01), "M.L.S. Recap: Chicago's Streak Ends", The New York Times, archived from the original on 4 June 2009, retrieved 2009-06-02
  11. Champions League draw set for June 11, New York City: CONCACAF, 2009-05-28, archived from the original on 16 June 2009, retrieved 2009-06-02
  12. "D.C. United-Chalatenango to open 2009-2010 CONCACAF Champions League", CONCACAF, 2009-06-16, archived from the original on 20 June 2009, retrieved 2009-06-17
  13. 2009-2010 Schedule, CONCACAF, archived from the original on 2009-02-14, retrieved 2009-02-22
  14. "Mexican, U.S. regular season champs to square off in Champions League quarterfinals", concacaf.com, CONCACAF, 2009-11-17, archived from the original on 21 November 2009, retrieved 2009-11-17
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