2018 CONCACAF League

The 2018 CONCACAF League (officially the 2018 Scotiabank CONCACAF League for sponsorship purposes) was the 2nd edition of the CONCACAF League, a football club competition organized by CONCACAF, the regional governing body of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.[1]

2018 CONCACAF League
2018 Scotiabank CONCACAF League
Tournament details
Dates31 July – 1 November 2018
Teams16 (from 8 associations)
Final positions
Champions Herediano (1st title)
Runners-up Motagua
Tournament statistics
Matches played30
Goals scored76 (2.53 per match)
Top scorer(s) Edwin Aguilar
Román Castillo
Yendrick Ruiz
(5 goals each)
Best player(s) Yendrick Ruiz
Best young player Jimmy Marín
Best goalkeeper Leonel Moreira
Fair play award Motagua

Herediano defeated Motagua in the final to win their first CONCACAF League, and qualified for the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League to join the 15 direct entrants.[2] Olimpia were the title holders, but did not qualify for this tournament and were unable to defend their title, and consequently their streak of participating in all ten editions of the CONCACAF Champions League since 2008 ended.

Qualification

A total of 16 teams participate in the CONCACAF League:

  • Central American Zone: 13 teams (from six associations; ordinarily from seven associations, but Guatemalan teams were excluded from this season's tournament)
  • Caribbean Zone: 3 teams (from two or three associations)

Therefore, teams from either 8 or 9 out of the 41 CONCACAF member associations may participate in the CONCACAF League.

Central America

The 13 berths for the Central American Football Union (UNCAF) are allocated to the seven UNCAF member associations as follows: two berths for each of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, and Nicaragua, and one berth for Belize.

All of the leagues of Central America employ a split season with two tournaments in one season, so the following teams qualify for the CONCACAF League:

  • In the league of Costa Rica, the champions with the worse aggregate record, and the non-champions with the best aggregate record, qualify. If there is any team which are champions of both tournaments, the non-champions with the second best aggregate record qualify.
  • In the leagues of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Panama, the champions with the worse aggregate record, and the runners-up with the better aggregate record (or any team which are runners-up of both tournaments), qualify. If there is any team which are finalists of both tournaments, the runners-up with the worse aggregate record qualify. If there are any two teams which are finalists of both tournaments, the semi-finalists with the best aggregate record qualify.
  • In the league of Nicaragua, both champions qualify. If there is any team which are champions of both tournaments, the runners-up with the better aggregate record (or any team which are runners-up of both tournaments) qualify.
  • In the league of Belize, the champions with the better aggregate record (or any team which are champions of both tournaments) qualify.

If teams from any Central American associations are excluded, they are replaced by teams from other Central American associations, with the associations chosen based on results from previous CONCACAF League and CONCACAF Champions League tournaments. For this season, the two teams from Guatemala were excluded due to the suspension of their federation by FIFA and were replaced by an additional team each from Costa Rica and Panama.[3]

Caribbean

The three berths for the Caribbean Football Union (CFU), which consists of 31 member associations, are allocated via the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship and CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield, the first-tier and second-tier subcontinental Caribbean club tournaments. Since 2018, the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship is open to teams from professional leagues, and the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield is open to teams from non-professional leagues. To qualify for the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship, teams have to finish as the champions or runners-up of their respective association's league in the previous season, while to qualify for the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield, teams have to finish as the champions of their respective association's league in the previous season.[4]

The runners-up and third-placed team of the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship, and the winners of a playoff between the fourth-placed team of the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship and the champions of the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield, qualify for the CONCACAF League. For the champions of the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield to be eligible for the playoff, they must comply with the minimum CONCACAF Club Licensing requirements for the CONCACAF League.[5]

Teams

The following 16 teams (from eight associations) qualified for the tournament.

Qualified teams from Central America (13 teams)
Association Team Qualifying method App (Last) Previous Best (Last)
 Costa Rica (2 + 1 berths)[Note GUA] Pérez Zeledón Champions with worse aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2017 Apertura) 1st Debut
Herediano Non-champions with best aggregate record in 2017–18 season 1st Debut
Santos de Guápiles Non-champions with 2nd best aggregate record in 2017–18 season 2nd (2017) Runners-up (2017)
 Panama (2 + 1 berths)[Note GUA] Universitario Champions with worse aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2017 Apertura) 2nd (2017) Quarter-finals (2017)
Árabe Unido Runners-up with better aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2017 Apertura) 2nd (2017) Semi-finals (2017)
Tauro Runners-up with worse aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2018 Clausura) 1st Debut
 El Salvador (2 berths) Santa Tecla 2017 Apertura and 2018 Clausura runners-up 1st Debut
FAS Semi-finalists with best aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2017 Apertura) 1st Debut
 Honduras (2 berths) Real España Champions with worse aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2017 Apertura) 1st Debut
Motagua 2017 Apertura and 2018 Clausura runners-up 1st Debut
 Nicaragua (2 berths) Walter Ferretti Champions with better aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2017 Apertura) 2nd (2017) Quarter-finals (2017)
Diriangén Champions with worse aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2018 Clausura) 1st Debut
 Belize (1 berth) Belmopan Bandits Champions with better aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2018 Closing) 2nd (2017) Round of 16 (2017)
Qualified teams from Caribbean (3 teams)
Association Team Qualifying method App (Last) Previous Best (Last)
 Jamaica Arnett Gardens 2018 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship runners-up 1st Debut
Portmore United 2018 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship third place 2nd (2017) Round of 16 (2017)
 Martinique Club Franciscain 2018 Caribbean CONCACAF League playoff winners 1st Debut
Notes
  1. ^
    Guatemala (GUA): On 28 October 2016, FIFA suspended the National Football Federation of Guatemala for political interference by the Government of Guatemala. Until the suspension is lifted, Guatemalan teams are not permitted to participate in international competitions.[6] CONCACAF set the deadline of 31 March 2018 for the suspension to be lifted in order for Guatemalan teams to participate in the 2018 CONCACAF League,[7] and confirmed on 18 May 2018 that Guatemalan teams were expelled after the federation failed to be reinstated by FIFA.[3] The two Guatemalan teams which would have qualified for the CONCACAF League were: Antigua GFC, champions with better aggregate record in 2017–18 season (2017 Apertura champions), would have qualified directly to the Champions League. As a result, the two vacated berths were replaced by teams from Costa Rica (Santos de Guápiles) and Panama (Tauro), all entering the CONCACAF League as "wild card" teams, based on the performance of the Central American associations in the last five years, giving Costa Rica and Panama three berths each. Guatemala were ultimately reinstated by FIFA on 1 June 2018, and it was decided that the representative of Guatemala in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League would be decided by a two-legged playoff between Antigua GFC and Guastatoya.[8]

Draw

Location of teams of the 2018 CONCACAF League
Central American Zone Caribbean Zone

The draw for the 2018 CONCACAF League was held on 23 May 2018, 19:00 EDT (UTC−4), at the Pullman Hotel in Miami.[9][10]

The draw determined each tie in the round of 16 (numbered 1 through 8) between a team from Pot 1 and a team from Pot 2, each containing eight teams. The "Bracket Position Pots" (Pot A and Pot B) contained the bracket positions numbered 1 through 8 corresponding to each tie. The teams from Pot 1 were assigned a bracket position from Pot A and the teams from Pot 2 were assigned a bracket position from Pot B. Teams from the same association could not be drawn against each other in the round of 16 except for "wildcard" teams which replaced a team from another association.

The seeding of teams were based on the CONCACAF Club Index. Each team qualified for the CONCACAF League based on criteria set by the respective associations (e.g., tournament champions, runners-up, cup champions), resulting in an assigned slot (e.g., CRC2, CRC3) for each team. The CONCACAF Club Index, instead of ranking each team, was based on the on-field performance of the teams that have occupied the respective qualifying slots in the previous five editions of the CONCACAF League and CONCACAF Champions League. To determine the total points awarded to a slot in any single edition of the CONCACAF League or CONCACAF Champions League, CONCACAF used the following formula:

Points per Participation Win Draw Stage advanced Champions
CONCACAF Champions League (2013–14 – 2018) 4 3 1 1 2
CONCACAF League (2017) 2 3 1 0.5 1

The 16 teams were distributed in the pots as follows:[11]

Pot Rank Slot 2013–14 CCL 2014–15 CCL 2015–16 CCL 2016–17 CCL 2017 CL or
2018 CCL		 Total Team
Pot 1 1 CRC2 10 18 9 14 5 56 Pérez Zeledón
2 PAN2 7 8 10 8 13 46 Universitario
3 SLV2 11 5 6 5 11.5 38.5 Santa Tecla
4 HON2 4 8 11 11 2 36 Real España
5 CCC2 4 10 7 5 2 28 Arnett Gardens
6 NCA1 5 6 4 6 5 26 Walter Ferretti[NCA]
7 CCC3 4 4 5 4 5 22 Portmore United
8 BLZ1 0 0 8 4 2 14 Belmopan Bandits
Pot 2 9 PAN3 0 0 0 0 11 11 Árabe Unido
10 NCA2 0 0 0 0 9.5 9.5 Diriangén[NCA]
11 SLV3 0 0 0 0 8.5 8.5 FAS
12 HON3 0 0 0 0 2 2 Motagua
13 CRC3 0 0 0 0 2 2 Herediano
14 CCC4 0 0 0 0 2 2 Club Franciscain
15 CRC4 Wildcard team, automatically placed in Pot 2 Santos de Guápiles
16 PAN4 Wildcard team, automatically placed in Pot 2 Tauro
Notes
  1. ^ a b
    NCA The identity of the teams qualifying for the two slots for Nicaragua (NCA1 and NCA2) was not known at the time of the draw.

Format

In the CONCACAF League, the 16 teams played a single-elimination tournament. Each tie was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis.

  • In the round of 16, quarter-finals, and semi-finals, the away goals rule would be applied if the aggregate score was tied after the second leg. If still tied, the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner (Regulations II, Article F).[2]
  • In the finals, the away goals rule would not be applied, and extra time would be played if the aggregate score was tied after the second leg. If the aggregate score was still tied after extra time, the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner (Regulations II, Article G).[2]

Schedule

The schedule of the competition was as follows.

First leg Second leg
Round of 16 31 July – 2 August 2018 7–9 August 2018
Quarter-finals 21–23 August 2018 28–30 August 2018
Semi-finals 18–20 September 2018 25–27 September 2018
Finals 23–25 October 2018 30 October – 1 November 2018

All times are Eastern Daylight Time, i.e., UTC−4, as listed by CONCACAF (local times are in parentheses).

Bracket

  Round of 16 Quarter-finals Semi-finals Finals
                                             
Herediano (a) 1 1 2  
Santa Tecla 0 2 2  
  Herediano 3 2 5  
  Universitario 0 1 1  
Diriangén 0 1 1
Universitario 4 3 7  
  Herediano 2 0 2  
  Árabe Unido 0 1 1  
FAS 2 1 3  
Pérez Zeledón 1 1 2  
  FAS 0 1 1
  Árabe Unido 1 3 4  
Árabe Unido 3 1 4
Arnett Gardens 0 2 2  
  Herediano 2 1 3
  Motagua 0 2 2
Tauro 1 1 2  
Real España 0 1 1  
  Tauro 3 4 7
  Walter Ferretti 1 0 1  
Club Franciscain 1 0 1 (1)
Walter Ferretti (p) 0 1 1 (4)  
  Tauro 2 0 2
  Motagua 1 2 3  
Motagua 2 1 3  
Belmopan Bandits 0 0 0  
  Motagua 3 2 5
  Portmore United 2 0 2  
Santos de Guápiles 1 2 3 (6)
Portmore United (p) 2 1 3 (7)  

Round of 16

In the round of 16, the matchups were decided by draw: R16-1 through R16-8. The teams from Pot 1 in the draw hosted the second leg.

Summary

The first legs were played on 31 July – 2 August, and the second legs were played on 7–9 August 2018.[12]

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Santos de Guápiles 3–3 (6–7 p) Portmore United 1–2 2–1
Motagua 3–0 Belmopan Bandits 2–0 1–0
Club Franciscain 1–1 (1–4 p) Walter Ferretti 1–0 0–1
Tauro 2–1 Real España 1–0 1–1
Árabe Unido 4–2 Arnett Gardens 3–0 1–2
FAS 3–2 Pérez Zeledón 2–1 1–1
Diriangén 1–7 Universitario 0–4 1–3
Herediano 2–2 (a) Santa Tecla 1–0 1–2

Matches
Santos de Guápiles 1–2 Portmore United
 Report
Referee: Trevester Richards (Saint Kitts and Nevis)
Portmore United 1–2 Santos de Guápiles
 Report
Penalties
 7–6
Referee: Fernando Hernández (Mexico)

3–3 on aggregate. Portmore United won 7–6 on penalties.

Motagua 2–0 Belmopan Bandits
  • López  47'
  • Galvaliz  78'
 Report
Referee: Iván Barton (El Salvador)
Belmopan Bandits 0–1 Motagua
Report
Referee: Juan Gabriel Calderón (Costa Rica)

Motagua won 3–0 on aggregate.

Club Franciscain 1–0 Walter Ferretti
 Report
Referee: Reon Radix (Grenada)
Walter Ferretti 1–0 Club Franciscain
  • Chávez  79'
 Report
Penalties
 4–1
Referee: Oshane Nation (Jamaica)

1–1 on aggregate. Walter Ferretti won 4–1 on penalties.

Tauro 1–0 Real España
 Report
Referee: Ismael Cornejo (El Salvador)
Real España 1–1 Tauro
 Report
Referee: Bryan López (Guatemala)

Tauro won 2–1 on aggregate.

Árabe Unido 3–0 Arnett Gardens
 Report
Referee: Rubiel Vazquez (United States)
Arnett Gardens 2–1 Árabe Unido
 Report
Referee: Gladwyn Johnson (Guyana)

Árabe Unido won 4–2 on aggregate.

FAS 2–1 Pérez Zeledón
 Report
  • Cazal  2'
Referee: Armando Villarreal (United States)
Pérez Zeledón 1–1 FAS
  • López  62'
 Report
  • Soto  90+5' (o.g.)
Referee: Oliver Vergara (Panama)

FAS won 3–2 on aggregate.

Diriangén 0–4 Universitario
Report
Referee: Keylor Herrera (Costa Rica)
Universitario 3–1 Diriangén
  • Villarreal  5', 30'
  • Moreno  77'
 Report
  • Ruiz  86'
Referee: Daneon Parchment (Jamaica)

Universitario won 7–1 on aggregate.

Herediano 1–0 Santa Tecla
 Report
Referee: Yadel Martínez (Cuba)
Santa Tecla 2–1 Herediano
 Report
Referee: Saíd Martínez (Honduras)

2–2 on aggregate. Herediano won on away goals.

Quarter-finals

In the quarter-finals, the matchups were determined as follows:

  • QF1: Winner R16-1 vs. Winner R16-2
  • QF2: Winner R16-3 vs. Winner R16-4
  • QF3: Winner R16-5 vs. Winner R16-6
  • QF4: Winner R16-7 vs. Winner R16-8

The winners of round of 16 matchups 1, 3, 5, 7 hosted the second leg.

Summary

The first legs were played on 21–23 August, and the second legs were played on 28–30 August 2018.[15]

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Motagua 5–2 Portmore United 3–2 2–0
Tauro 7–1 Walter Ferretti 3–1 4–0
FAS 1–4 Árabe Unido 0–1 1–3
Herediano 5–1 Universitario 3–0 2–1

Matches
Motagua 3–2 Portmore United
  • Montes  6', 90+5'
  • Castillo  25'
 Report
Referee: José Kellys (Panama)
Portmore United 0–2 Motagua
Report
  • Castillo  31', 90+2'
Referee: David Gantar (Canada)

Motagua won 5–2 on aggregate.

Tauro 3–1 Walter Ferretti
 Report
  • Morais  22' (pen.)
Referee: Melvin Matamoros (Honduras)
Walter Ferretti 0–4 Tauro
Report

Tauro won 7–1 on aggregate.

FAS 0–1 Árabe Unido
Report
  • Gil  88'
Referee: Kimbell Ward (Saint Kitts and Nevis)
Árabe Unido 3–1 FAS
 Report

Árabe Unido won 4–1 on aggregate.

Herediano 3–0 Universitario
 Report
Referee: Erick Miranda (Mexico)
Universitario 1–2 Herediano
 Report
Referee: Mario Escobar (Guatemala)

Herediano won 5–1 on aggregate.

Semi-finals

In the semi-finals, the matchups were determined as follows:

  • SF1: Winner QF1 vs. Winner QF2
  • SF2: Winner QF3 vs. Winner QF4

The semi-finalists in each tie which had the better performance in previous rounds hosted the second leg.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Host
1 (SF1) Motagua 4 4 0 0 8 2 +6 12 2nd leg
2 (SF1) Tauro 4 3 1 0 9 2 +7 10 1st leg
1 (SF2) Árabe Unido 4 3 0 1 8 3 +5 9 2nd leg
2 (SF2) Herediano 4 3 0 1 7 3 +4 9 1st leg
Source: CONCACAF
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Away goals scored; 5) Wins; 6) Away wins; 7) Disciplinary points; 8) Drawing of lots (Regulations II, Article H).[2]

Summary

The first legs were played on 20 September, and the second legs were played on 27 September 2018.[16]

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Tauro 2–3 Motagua 2–1 0–2
Herediano 2–1 Árabe Unido 2–0 0–1

Matches
Tauro 2–1 Motagua
 Report
Referee: Iván Barton (El Salvador)
Motagua 2–0 Tauro
 Report

Motagua won 3–2 on aggregate.

Herediano 2–0 Árabe Unido
 Report
Referee: Saíd Martínez (Honduras)
Árabe Unido 1–0 Herediano
  • Palacios  20'
 Report
Referee: Oshane Nation (Jamaica)

Herediano won 2–1 on aggregate.

Finals
Main article: 2018 CONCACAF League Finals

In the finals (Winner SF1 vs. Winner SF2), the finalists which had the better performance in previous rounds hosted the second leg.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Host
1 Motagua 6 5 0 1 11 4 +7 15 2nd leg
2 Herediano 6 4 0 2 9 4 +5 12 1st leg
Source: CONCACAF
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Away goals scored; 5) Wins; 6) Away wins; 7) Disciplinary points; 8) Drawing of lots (Regulations II, Article H).[2]

Summary

The first leg was played on 25 October, and the second leg was played on 1 November 2018.[17]

Team 1 Agg. Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Herediano 3–2 Motagua 2–0 1–2

Matches
Herediano 2–0 Motagua
 Report
Referee: Marco Antonio Ortiz (Mexico)
Motagua 2–1 Herediano
  • Castillo  45+1', 58'
 Report
Referee: Mario Escobar (Guatemala)

Herediano won 3–2 on aggregate.

Top goalscorers
  Team eliminated for this round.
Rank Player Team Goals By round
1R1 1R2 QF1 QF2 SF1 SF2  F1   F2 
1 Edwin Aguilar Tauro 5 1112
Román Castillo Motagua 122
Yendrick Ruiz Herediano 122
4 Jimmy Marín Herediano 3 111
Juan Pablo Montes Motagua 21
Sergio Moreno Universitario 21
Armando Polo Tauro 111
Óscar Villarreal Universitario 12
9 Jovan East Portmore United 2 11
Maalique Foster Portmore United 11
Faber Gil Árabe Unido 11
Chin Hormechea Árabe Unido 2
Kevin López Motagua 11
Roberto Moreira Motagua 11
Blas Pérez Árabe Unido 2

Source:CONCACAF[18]

Awards

The following awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament:[19]

Award Player Team
Golden Ball Yendrick Ruiz Herediano
Golden Boot Román Castillo Motagua
Golden Glove Leonel Moreira Herediano
Best Young Player Jimmy Marín Herediano
Fair Play Award — Motagua
gollark: You don't have hidden microphones in all choirs?
gollark: All are to purchase FTL *immediately*, if they enjoy roguelikes and stuff I guess.
gollark: The FTL soundtrack is in fact also good.
gollark: Definitely between those.
gollark: Maybe 815π.

See also

Notes
  1. All home matches of Nicaraguan teams Walter Ferretti and Diriangén are required to be played outside of their country due to security concerns caused by civil unrest in Nicaragua.[13][14]

References
  1. "Details revealed for newly launched Scotiabank CONCACAF League". CONCACAF League. 8 May 2017.
  2. "Scotiabank CONCACAF League 2018 Regulations" (PDF). CONCACAF.
  3. "Stage Set for Miami Draw for Second Edition of the Scotiabank Concacaf League". Scotiabank CONCACAF League. 18 May 2018.
  4. "CONCACAF Announces Expanded CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship for 2018". CONCACAF. 15 December 2017.
  5. "Dominican Republic Selected to Host Inaugural CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield". CONCACAF.com. 16 February 2018.
  6. "Suspension of the Guatemala Football Association". FIFA. 28 October 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  7. "Deadlines Set for FEDEFUT". CONCACAF League. 9 November 2016.
  8. "Antigua y Guastatoya jugarán la "serie definitiva" para ir a la Liga de Concacaf 2019". publinews.gt. 27 June 2018.
  9. "Official Draw: Scotiabank Concacaf League 2018". Scotiabank CONCACAF League. 23 May 2018.
  10. "Draw Delivers Matchups for the Scotiabank CONCACAF League Round of 16 Matches". Scotiabank CONCACAF League. 23 May 2018.
  11. "Concacaf Club Index 2018" (PDF). CONCACAF.
  12. "Schedule Confirmed for Round of 16 Matches of the 2018 Scotiabank Concacaf League". CONCACAF League. 4 June 2018. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
  13. "2018 Scotiabank Concacaf League Matches and 2018 Central America Women's Qualifier to be Played Outside of Nicaragua". CONCACAF League. 6 June 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  14. "Alternate Venues Confirmed for 2018 Scotiabank Concacaf League Round of 16 Matches of CD Walter Ferretti and Diriangen FC". CONCACAF League. 22 June 2018.
  15. "2018 Scotiabank Concacaf League Quarterfinal Matchups and Kick Off Times Confirmed". CONCACAF League. 10 August 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  16. "2018 Scotiabank Concacaf League Semifinal Matchups and Kick Off Times Confirmed". CONCACAF League. 30 August 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
  17. "2018 Scotiabank Concacaf League Final Set". CONCACAF League. 28 September 2018. Retrieved 28 September 2018.
  18. "Statistics". CONCACAF League.
  19. "TSG announces the 2018 Scotiabank Concacaf League individual awards". www.concacafleague.com. 1 November 2018.
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