UEFA Champions League 2021-22 was the 67th season of Europe’s premier club football tournament organized by UEFA, and the 30th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs’ Cup to the UEFA Champions League.
Champions: 
Real Madrid (14th title)
Runner- Up: 
Liverpool
Top Scorer: 
Karim Benzema
Best Player : Karim Benzema
Best Young Player : 
Vinícius Júnior
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Summary
Real Madrid defeated Liverpool 1–0 in the final, which was played at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, France, for a record-extending 14th European Cup title, and their fifth in nine years. It was originally scheduled to be played at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany. However, due to the postponement and relocation of the 2020 final, the hosts were shifted back a year, with Saint Petersburg scheduled to host the 2022 final. Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine which commenced in February 2022, the final was eventually moved to Saint-Denis. As the winners, Real Madrid automatically qualified for the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League group stage, as well as earning the right to play against the winners of the 2021–22 UEFA Europa League, Eintracht Frankfurt, in the 2022 UEFA Super Cup and participate in the 2022 FIFA Club World Cup, both of which they went on to win.
Chelsea were the defending champions, but they were eliminated in the quarter-finals by eventual winners Real Madrid.
UCL 2021-22 Play-off round
The draw for the play-off round was held on 2 August 2021, 12:00 CEST. The first legs were played on 17 and 18 August, and the second legs were played on 24 and 25 August 2021.
The winners of the ties advanced to the group stage. The losers were transferred to the Europa League group stage.
Champions Path
Team 1 Aggregate Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Red Bull Salzburg 
4–2 
Brøndby2–1 2–1
Young Boys 
6–4 
Ferencváros3–2 3–2
Malmö FF 
3–2 
Ludogorets Razgrad2–0 1–2
Sheriff Tiraspol 
3–0 
Dinamo Zagreb3–0 0–0
League Path
Team 1 Aggregate Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Monaco 2–3 
Shakhtar Donetsk0–1 2–2 (a.e.t.)
Benfica 
2–1 
PSV Eindhoven2–1 0–0
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Group Standings
Group A
Position Team Played Win Draw Loss GF GA GD Points Qualification
1 
Manchester City6 4 0 2 18 10 +8 12 Advance to knockout phase
2 PSG6 3 2 1 13 8 +5 11 Advance to knockout phase
3 
RB Leipzig6 2 1 3 15 14 +1 7 Transfer to Europa League
4 
Club Brugge6 1 1 4 6 20 −14 4
Group B
Position Team Played Win Draw Loss GF GA GD Points Qualification
1 Liverpool6 6 0 0 17 6 +11 18 Advance to knockout phase
2 Atlético Madrid6 2 1 3 7 8 −1 7 Advance to knockout phase
3 
Porto6 1 2 3 4 11 −7 5 Transfer to Europa League
4 
Milan6 1 1 4 6 9 −3 4
Group C
Position Team Played Win Draw Loss GF GA GD Points Qualification
1 
Ajax6 6 0 0 20 5 +15 18 Advance to knockout phase
2 Sporting CP6 3 0 3 14 12 +2 9 Advance to knockout phase
3 Borussia Dortmund6 3 0 3 10 11 −1 9 Transfer to Europa League
4 
Beşiktaş6 0 0 6 3 19 −16 0
Note: Tied on head-to-head points. Head-to-head goal difference: Sporting CP +1, Borussia Dortmund −1.
Group D
Position Team Played Win Draw Loss GF GA GD Points Qualification
1 Real Madrid6 5 0 1 14 3 +11 15 Advance to knockout phase
2 Inter Milan6 3 1 2 8 5 +3 10 Advance to knockout phase
3 
Sheriff Tiraspol6 2 1 3 7 11 −4 7 Transfer to Europa League
4 
Shakhtar Donetsk6 0 2 4 2 12 −10 2
Group E
Position Team Played Win Draw Loss GF GA GD Points Qualification
1 Bayern Munich6 6 0 0 22 3 +19 18 Advance to knockout phase
2 Benfica6 2 2 2 7 9 −2 8 Advance to knockout phase
3 Barcelona6 2 1 3 2 9 −7 7 Transfer to Europa League
4 Dynamo Kyiv6 0 1 5 1 11 −10 1
Group F
Position Team Played Win Draw Loss GF GA GD Points Qualification
1 Manchester United6 3 2 1 11 8 +3 11 Advance to knockout phase
2 Villarreal6 3 1 2 12 9 +3 10 Advance to knockout phase
3 Atalanta6 1 3 2 12 13 −1 6 Transfer to Europa League
4 Young Boys6 1 2 3 7 12 −5 5
Group G
Position Team Played Win Draw Loss GF GA GD Points Qualification
1 Lille6 3 2 1 7 4 +3 11 Advance to knockout phase
2 Red Bull Salzburg6 3 1 2 8 6 +2 10 Advance to knockout phase
3 Sevilla6 1 3 2 5 5 0 6 Transfer to Europa League
4 VfL Wolfsburg6 1 2 3 5 10 −5 5
Group H
Position Team Played Win Draw Loss GF GA GD Points Qualification
1 
Juventus6 5 0 1 10 6 +4 15
2 Chelsea6 4 1 1 13 4 +9 13
3 
Zenit Saint Petersburg6 1 2 3 10 10 0 5
4 Malmö FF6 0 1 5 1 14 −13 1
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Knockout phase
In the knockout phase, teams played against each other over two legs on a home-and-away basis, except for the one-match final. The mechanism of the draws for each round was as follows:
In the draw for the round of 16, the eight group winners were seeded, and the eight group runners-up were unseeded. The seeded teams were drawn against the unseeded teams, with the seeded teams hosting the second leg. Teams from the same group or the same association could not be drawn against each other.
In the draws for the quarter-finals onwards, there were no seedings, and teams from the same group or the same association could be drawn against each other. As the draws for the quarter-finals onwards were held together before the quarter-finals were played, the identity of the quarter-final winners was not known at the time of the semi-final draw. A draw was also held to determine which semi-final winner was designated as the “home” team for the final (for administrative purposes as it was played at a neutral venue).
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Round of 16 matches
The draw for the round of 16 was held on 13 December 2021, originally at 12:00 CET. The draw featured multiple irregularities: Manchester United were mistakenly included in the draw for Villarreal’s opponent (both were in Group F), and subsequently were selected; another ball was then drawn, with Manchester City chosen instead. In the following tie, Liverpool were mistakenly included in the draw for Atlético Madrid’s opponent (both were in Group B), while Manchester United were incorrectly excluded. Later that day, UEFA voided the original draw due to a “technical problem” with the draw computer, and it was entirely redone at 15:00 CET. The first legs were played on 15, 16, 22 and 23 February, and the second legs were played on 8, 9, 15 and 16 March 2022.
Team 1 Aggregate Team 2 1st Leg 2nd Leg
Red Bull Salzburg 
2–8 
Bayern Munich1–1 1–7
Sporting CP 0–5 Manchester City0–5 0–0
Benfica 3–2 Ajax2–2 1–0
Chelsea 4–1 Lille2–0 2–1
Atlético Madrid 2–1 Manchester United1–1 1–0
Villarreal 4–1 Juventus1–1 3–0
Inter Milan 1–2 Liverpool0–2 1–0
Paris Saint-Germain 2–3 Real Madrid1–0 1–3
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Quarter Final matches
The draw for the quarter-finals was held on 18 March 2022, 12:00 CET. The first legs were played on 5 and 6 April, and the second legs were played on 12 and 13 April 2022.
Team 1 Aggregate Team 2 1st Leg 2nd Leg
Chelsea 4–5 Real Madrid1–3 3–2 (a.e.t.)
Manchester City 1–0 Atlético Madrid1–0 0–0
Villarreal 2–1 Bayern Munich1–0 1–1
Benfica 4–6 Liverpool1–3 3–3
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Semi Finals
The draw for the semi-finals was held on 18 March 2022, 12:00 CET, after the quarter-final draw. The first legs were played on 26 and 27 April, and the second legs were played on 3 and 4 May 2022.
Team 1 Aggregate Team 2 1st Leg 2nd Leg
Manchester City 5–6 Real Madrid4–3 1–3 (a.e.t.)
Liverpool 5–2 Villarreal2–0 3–2
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Final Match
28 May 2022 21:36 CEST, Stade de France, Saint-Denis
| Liverpool |
0–1 | Real Madrid |
Vinícius Jr.  59′ |
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Top Goal Scorer List
Rank Player Team Goals
1 Karim Benzema Real Madrid15
2 
Robert Lewandowski Bayern Munich13
3 
Sébastien Haller Ajax11
4 
Mohamed Salah Liverpool8
5 Christopher Nkunku RB Leipzig7
6 
Riyad Mahrez Manchester City7
7
Cristiano Ronaldo Manchester United6
8 
Darwin Núñez Benfica6
9 Kylian Mbappé Paris Saint-Germain6
10 Leroy Sané Bayern Munich6
11 Arnaut Danjuma Villarreal6
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Most Assist Provider List
Rank Player Team Assist
1 Bruno Fernandes Manchester United7
2 Leroy Sané Bayern Munich6
3 Vinícius Júnior
Real Madrid6
4 Etienne Capoue Villarreal4
5 Luka Modrić Real Madrid4
6 Thomas Muller Bayern Munich4
7 Gerard Moreno Villarreal4
8 Kylian Mbappe
Paris Saint-Germain4
9 Antony Santos Ajax4
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Team of the Season
The UEFA technical study group selected the following players as the team of the tournament.
Position Player Team
Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois Real Madrid
Defender Trent Alexander-Arnold Liverpool
Defender Antonio Rüdiger Chelsea
Defender Virgil van Dijk Liverpool
Defender 
Andrew Robertson Liverpool
Midfielder 
Kevin De Bruyne Manchester City
Midfielder Fabinho Liverpool
Midfielder Luka Modrić Real Madrid
Forward Kylian Mbappé Paris Saint-Germain
Forward Karim Benzema Real Madrid
Forward Vinícius Júnior Real Madrid
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Association team allocation
A total of 80 teams from 54 of the 55 UEFA member associations participated in the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League (the exception being Liechtenstein, which did not organize a domestic league). The association ranking based on the UEFA association coefficients was used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:
- Associations 1–4 each had four teams qualify.
- Associations 5–6 each had three teams qualify.
- Associations 7–15 each had two teams qualify.
- Associations 16–55 (except Liechtenstein) each had one team qualify.
- The winners of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League and 2020–21 UEFA Europa League were each given an additional entry if they did not qualify for the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League through their own domestic league. (As Chelsea, the Champions League title holders, did qualify through their own domestic league this season, the additional entry for the Champions League title holders was re-allocated.)
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Teams
The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:
- TH: Champions League title holders
- EL: Europa League title holders
- 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc.: League positions of the previous season
- Abd-: League positions of abandoned season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe as determined by the national association; all teams were subject to approval by UEFA as per the guidelines for entry to European competitions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The second qualifying round, third qualifying round and play-off round were divided into Champions Path (CH) and League Path (LP).
UEFA Champions League 2021-22 Qualifying Rounds
Preliminary round
The draw for the preliminary round was held on 8 June 2021, 12:00 CEST. The preliminary round matches, which consisted of two semi-finals on 22 June 2021 and the final on 25 June 2021, were originally to be played at Gundadalur, Tórshavn in the Faroe Islands, but were moved due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Faroe Islands. The matches were instead played in Albania, with the semi-finals at Elbasan Arena, Elbasan and Niko Dovana Stadium, Durrës, and the final at Elbasan Arena.
The winner of the preliminary round final advanced to the first qualifying round. The losers of the semi-finals and final were transferred to the Europa Conference League Champions Path second qualifying round.
First qualifying round
The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 15 June 2021, 12:00 CEST. The first legs were played on 6 and 7 July, and the second legs were played on 13 and 14 July 2021.
The winners of the ties advanced to the Champions Path second qualifying round. The losers were transferred to the Europa Conference League Champions Path second qualifying round.
Second qualifying round
The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 16 June 2021, 12:00 CEST. The first legs were played on 20 and 21 July, and the second legs were played on 27 and 28 July 2021.
The winners of the ties advanced to the third qualifying round of their respective path. The Champions Path losers were transferred to the Europa League Champions Path third qualifying round, while the League Path losers were transferred to the Europa League Main Path third qualifying round.
Third qualifying round
The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 19 July 2021, 12:00 CEST. The first legs were played on 3 and 4 August, and the second legs were played on 10 August 2021.
The winners of the ties advanced to the play-off round of their respective path. The Champions Path losers were transferred to the Europa League play-off round, while the League Path losers were transferred to the Europa League group stage.
