The five Dutch participants remained unbeaten in the first round of the group stage of the three European tournaments. The score could have been even better, but AZ and PSV failed to win their match at the last minute. Nevertheless, the Netherlands is more than a full point behind Portugal this round, which will now feel the hot breath on the coefficient ranking.
Ajax and Vitesse won their European duel, each bringing in 0.4 point for the Netherlands. The draws of Feyenoord, PSV and AZ each yielded 0.2 points, a total of 1.4 points. The Netherlands is seventh in the coefficient ranking and will probably remain there this season. The gap to Portugal and France is huge at the moment, but after this season the score from 2017/18 will disappear. This means that a dramatic score is lost for the Netherlands, which means that the country will immediately take a giant step forward towards the two competitors.
The coefficient ranking as of 16-09-2021
| COUNTRY | CURRENT SCORE | SCORE AS OF 01/07/’22 | ACTIVE TEAMS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5. France | 45.081 (+1.333) | 33,581 | 6/6 |
| 6. Portugal | 44.549 (+0.333) | 34.883 | 4/6 |
| 7. Netherlands | 34,900 (+1,400) | 31,200 | 5/5 |
| 8. Austria | 32,250 (+0.6) | 22,100 | 4/5 |
| 9. Scotland | 31,300 (+0) | 27,300 | 2/5 |
| 10. Russia | 30.882 (+0.200) | 18,282 | 3/5 |
| 11. Ukraine | 30,400 (+0) | 22,400 | 3/5 |
| 12. Serbia | 27,375 (+1,000) | 21,000 | 2/4 |
| 13. Belgium | 30,900 (+1,000) | 24,700 | 4/5 |
Portugal experienced a dramatic round of play and only saw FC Porto and Benfica draw a draw (both 0.167 points), while Sporting Portugal lost a direct coefficient duel to Ajax. Sporting Braga also fell, leaving Portugal only 0.333 points. The Southern Europeans were in fifth place for a while, but were overtaken by France this round. All six French participants remained unbeaten: Paris Saint-Germain, Lille OSC, Stade Rennais and Olympique Marseille drew (each +0.167), while Olympique Lyon and AS Monaco managed to win: in total France scores 1.333 points, only slightly less than the Netherlands .
As mentioned, the Netherlands should mainly look at the long term. As soon as the score from the 17/18 season disappears on July 1, 2022, the Netherlands will take a step forward. On the virtual position as at that date, the Netherlands is now 2.4 points behind France and 3.7 points behind Portugal. Still a considerable gap, for which the Netherlands has the current season and the next season to make up for it. That is important, because countries in the top 6 of the ranking provide two participants for the group stage of the Champions League. In seventh place, the Netherlands now has only one regular participant in that group stage.
Points achieved this round per club
| COUNTRY | SCORE | SCORE BY CLUB |
|---|---|---|
| Portugal | +0.333 | Sporting Portugal +0 | Benfica +0.167 | FC Porto +0.167 | Sporting Braga +0 |
| France | +1.333 | PSG +0.167 | Lille +0.167 | Lyon +0.333 | Rennais +0.167 | Marseille +0.167 | Monaco +0.333 |
| The Netherlands | +1,400 | Ajax +0.4 | PSV +0.2 | AZ +0.2 | Feyenoord +0.2 | Speed +0.4 |
| Austria | +0.600 | RB Salzburg +0.2 | Rapid Vienna +0 | LASK +0.4 | Sturm Graz +0 |
| Scotland | +0 | Rangers +0 | Celtic +0 |
| Russia | +0.200 | Zenit +0 | Lokomotiv Moscow +0.2 | Spartak Moscow +0 |
| Ukraine | +0.200 | Shakhtar Donetsk +0 | Dynamo Kyiv +0.2 | Zorya Luhansk +0 |
| Serbia | +1,000 | Partizan Belgrade +0.5 | Red Star Belgrade +0.5 |
| Belgium | +1,000 | Club Brugge +0.2 | AA Ghent +0.4 | Royal Antwerp +0 | KRC Genk +0.4 |
Which place is good for which tickets?
| PLACE | CL TICKETS | EL TICKETS | COL TICKETS* |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 to 4 | 4 direct | 2 direct | 1 preliminary round |
| 5 | 2 direct, 1 preliminary round | 2 direct | 1 preliminary round |
| 6 | 2 direct, 1 preliminary round | 1 direct | 2 preliminary round |
| 7 to 10 | 1 direct, 1 preliminary round | 1 preliminary round | 2 preliminary round |
| 11 to 15 | 2 preliminary round | 1 preliminary round | 2 preliminary round |
| 16 to 50 | 1 preliminary round | 0 | 3 preliminary round |
| 51 to 55 | 1 preliminary round | 0 | 2 preliminary round |