Friday, April 15, 2022 at 00:01• Jeroen van Poppel • Last update: 00:05

The Netherlands has dealt a new blow on the coefficient ranking to Portugal. Feyenoord took the full loot with a win at Slavia Prague (1-3) and the Netherlands hits a deeper crater towards the Portuguese. The competitor is ready in Europe and can only pray that the Netherlands extend their lead even further in the remainder of the season. The Netherlands already has a margin of almost 2 points over Portugal (on the position that will apply from July 1) and has a great starting position to secure two direct Champions League tickets next May.

It could have been much better for the Netherlands, but PSV saw a 1-0 lead in the final phase turned into a 1-2 defeat against Leicester City: 0 points. Feyenoord accomplished its mission, earning 2 club points for the win in the Czech Republic, plus 1 bonus club point for reaching the Conference League semi-finals. The 3 points for the Netherlands are shared by 5 European participants: 0.6 additional points. In this phase of the season, in which almost all points have already been divided, a big boost for the Netherlands, which has an absolute record score of 18.4 points this season.

Portugal managed to scrape its last points of the season via Benfica on Wednesday. The draw against Liverpool (3-3) yielded 1 club point (shared by 6 Portuguese participants) and thus 0.167 points. Benfica was eliminated and the same fate befell SC Braga a day later in the Europa League. Braga had won at home against Rangers, but had to recognize his superior in Scotland in the team of Giovanni van Bronckhorst (3-1 after extra time).

In the decisive phase of the European season, the Netherlands still has one trump card to further increase the lead. Feyenoord can still rake in a total of 8 club points (1.6 country points), but then the Rotterdam team must win both semifinals in the Conference League against Olympique Marseille and then also control the final. In any case, every win gives you two club points, a draw one point, and there are still two bonus points to be awarded (for reaching the final and also for winning it).

Explanation of the coefficient ranking
Since 2003, the Netherlands has only received one guaranteed group stage ticket for the Champions League (plus one preliminary round ticket), but due to exceptional performances in recent years, it is suddenly close to an extra ticket for the runner-up in the Eredivisie. It would be great news for Dutch football, which in that case describes an insured extra premium of 30 million euros (approximately the minimum starting premium for the Champions League). In addition, the Eredivisie will in that case receive an extra sixth European ticket (now there are five), and the Europa League ticket for the cup winner then gives direct access to the group stage (it is now a play-off ticket).

In order to achieve this, a place in the top 6 on the coefficient ranking must be achieved. Based on that ranking, for which the clubs in Europe earn points, UEFA annually distributes the European tickets for the new season. For a long time, Portugal seemed unthreatened to be assured of sixth position, but number seven, the Netherlands, is making a gigantic advance. The Netherlands is now aiming at the finish line at the end of the 2022/23 season, so the tickets for the 2024/25 season can only be obtained definitively in a year’s time. For the current season, the backlog is too great to be able to catch up with Portugal, but on the cleaned up ranking that applies from 1 July 2022, the Netherlands now has a lead of almost 1,884 over Portugal.