England’s chances of securing an extra Champions League slot for next season have been jeopardised by the pre-mature exits of Manchester United and Newcastle United.
The Red Devils amassed just four points from a possible 18 in Group A, marking their lowest-ever tally in the tournament. It also constitutes their worst-ever Champions League campaign.
Erik ten Hag’s troops were dumped out of Europe’s premier club tournament following a disheartening 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich and were also unable to secure the safety net of the Europa League.
Newcastle fought valiantly in the acclaimed ‘group of death,’ but a final 2-1 defeat to AC Milan at St. James’ Park put the final nail in their European ambitions.
While United and Newcastle’s eliminations dent England’s chances of an extra Champions League slot, the nation is still in with a shout thanks to the remaining six English clubs in European competition.
Arsenal and Manchester City will fly the Premier League flag in the Champions League knockouts, while Brighton & Hove Albion, Liverpool and West Ham United have also advanced to the Europa League last 16.
Aston Villa will represent the Premier League in the Europa Conference League knockout phase, bolstering England’s chances of securing an extra Champions League slot next term.
UEFA coefficient rankings
The coefficient formula factors each association’s performances in the Champions League, Europa League, and Europa Conference League over the past five seasons – including the current campaign.
The final season rankings always apply to competition allocations for the season after next, so the final coefficient rankings this term will determine allocations for the competitions to start in 2025/26.
After their blistering group phase campaign, City are England’s flag-bearers, accumulating the maximum coefficient point tally (21) as they sit at the pinnacle of UEFA’s latest ranking.
Liverpool rank fifth, collecting 13 coefficient points after winning four of their six Europa League games, with Chelsea sitting eighth despite their absence from Europe this season.
United’s awful continental adventure places them ninth in UEFA’s latest release, accumulating a meagre seven coefficient points – their lowest single-season tally since an eight-point haul in the 2005/06 campaign.
Arsenal were one of the best-performing English clubs in Europe this term, picking up 13 points from 18 games, but their six-year hiatus from the Champions League means they’re positioned at 21st in the ranking.
West Ham slot in at 24th place after beating German outfit SC Freiburg in their ultimate Group A fixture, advancing to the Europa League knockout round as group winners.
The Hammers have accumulated 15 coefficient points while Tottenham Hotspur round-up the Premier League contingent in the top 30 despite failing to secure a place in any of the continental tournaments this term.
Brighton, Villa, Newcastle, and Wolverhampton Wanderers are among the top 100, collecting a total of 14, 11, eight, and 16 coefficient points respectively.
The fight for the other ticket for an extra Champions League place looks most likely to be between Italy and Germany, with the former currently having more coefficient points this season than every other nation (14.0).
France are also in with a shout but will need English, Spanish and Italian clubs to have disastrous knockout stage campaigns while their six representatives progress deep into each tournament they are involved in.
