2014–15 UEFA Champions League

European football tournament UEFA Champions League 2014–15 Olympiastadion Berlin, 2023.jpg 275px The Olympiastadion in Berlin hosted the final Qualifying:1 July – 27 August 2014Competition proper:16 September 2014 – 6 June 2015 Competition proper: 32Total: 77 53 ESP Barcelona 5 ITA Juventus 125 361 Lionel Messi (Barcelona)Neymar (Barcelona)Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)10 goals each 2013–14 2015–16 The 2014–15 UEFA Champions League was the 60th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 23rd season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. The final was played at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany,http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/executive-committee/news/newsid=1954884.html Executive Committee decides hosts for 2015 finals UEFA.org 23 May 2013 22 March 2014 4 October 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20151004072345/http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/executive-committee/news/newsid=1954884.html live with Spanish side Barcelona defeating Italian side Juventus 3–1 to win their fifth title and complete an unprecedented second continental treble.https://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jun/06/barcelona-juventus-luis-suarez Luis Suárez's strike rewards Barcelona's dominance to break Juventus The Guardian 6 June 2015 10 December 2016 14 January 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20180114183843/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jun/06/barcelona-juventus-luis-suarez live Real Madrid were the title holders, but they were eliminated by Juventus in the semi-finals. This season was the first where clubs must comply with UEFA Financial Fair Play Regulations in order to participate.http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/organisation/congress/news/newsid=1955575.html EURO reflected key football values UEFA.org 24 May 2013 22 March 2014 4 October 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20151004050446/http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/organisation/congress/news/newsid=1955575.html live Moreover, this season was the first where a club from Gibraltar competed in the tournament, after the Gibraltar Football Association was accepted as the 54th UEFA member at the UEFA Congress in May 2013.http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/organisation/congress/news/newsid=1956133.html Congress decisions bring Gibraltar on board UEFA.org 24 May 2013 22 March 2014 19 September 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150919151354/http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/organisation/congress/news/newsid=1956133.html live They were granted one spot in the Champions League,http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/executive-committee/news/newsid=1999120.html Strategic talks in Dubrovnik UEFA.org 20 September 2013 22 March 2014 20 September 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150920032254/http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/executive-committee/news/newsid=1999120.html live which was taken by Lincoln Red Imps, the champions of the 2013–14 Gibraltar Premier Division.https://www.uefa.com/news/0253-0d7f2454b71c-3ccc7d2b491e-1000--lincoln-win-12th-straight-gibraltarian-title/ Lincoln win 12th straight Gibraltarian title UEFA 14 April 2014 30 April 2014 18 July 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170718165852/http://www.uefa.com/memberassociations/association=gib/news/newsid=2091442.html live On 17 July 2014, the UEFA emergency panel ruled that Ukrainian and Russian clubs would not be drawn against each other "until further notice" due to the political unrest between the countries.http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/story/ukrainian-russian-clubs-to-be-kept-apart-by-uefa-in-european-competitions-071714 Ukrainian, Russian clubs to be kept apart by UEFA in Euro competitions Fox Sports 2014-07-17 2021-03-09 https://web.archive.org/web/20210309233641/https://www.foxsports.com/ live Another ruling centred in regional instability was also made where Israeli teams were prohibited from hosting any UEFA competitions due to the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict.http://www.foxsports.com/soccer/story/uefa-bars-israeli-clubs-from-hosting-matches-while-conflict-continues-071714 UEFA bars Israeli clubs from hosting matches while conflict continues Fox Sports 2014-07-23 2016-09-15 https://web.archive.org/web/20160915231137/http://www.foxsports.com/soccer/story/uefa-bars-israeli-clubs-from-hosting-matches-while-conflict-continues-071714 live The rules regarding suspension due to yellow card accumulation were also changed such that all bookings expired on completion of the quarter-finals and were not carried forward to the semi-finals.http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/news/newsid=2124836.html Emergency Panel decisions UEFA.org 17 July 2014 18 July 2014 27 February 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170227082049/http://www.uefa.org/about-uefa/news/newsid=2124836.html live Moreover, this was the first season in which vanishing spray was used.Vanishing spray paint approved for UEFA games https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0253-0d7fdd76e9aa-30a128a937cd-1000--vanishing-spray-paint-approved-for-uefa-games/ UEFA Union of European Football Associations 8 August 2014 28 August 2014 25 January 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160125034752/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2130512.html live Association team allocation A total of 77 teams from 53 of the 54 UEFA member associations participated in the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League (the exception being Liechtenstein, which do not organise a domestic league). The association ranking based on the UEFA country coefficients was used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:http://www.uefa.org/MultimediaFiles/Download/Regulations/uefaorg/Regulations/02/09/88/17/2098817_DOWNLOAD.pdf Regulations of the UEFA Champions League 2014/15 Season UEFA 1 May 2014 5 May 2014 5 May 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140505002223/http://www.uefa.org/MultimediaFiles/Download/Regulations/uefaorg/Regulations/02/09/88/17/2098817_DOWNLOAD.pdf live Associations 1–3 each have four teams qualify. Associations 4–6 each have three teams qualify. Associations 7–15 each have two teams qualify. Associations 16–54 (except Liechtenstein) each have one team qualify. The winners of the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League were given an additional entry as title holders if they would not qualify for the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League through their domestic league (because of the restriction that no association can have more than four teams playing in the Champions League, if the title holders are from the top three associations and finish outside the top four in their domestic league, the title holders' entry comes at the expense of the fourth-placed team of their association). However, this additional entry was not necessary for this season since the title holders qualified for the tournament through their domestic league. Association ranking For the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League, the associations are allocated places according to their 2013 UEFA country coefficients, which takes into account their performance in European competitions from 2008–09 to 2012–13.http://www.uefa.com/memberassociations/uefarankings/country/season=2013/index.html Country coefficients 2012/13 UEFA 2013-06-17 2015-04-28 https://web.archive.org/web/20150428202535/http://www.uefa.com/memberassociations/uefarankings/country/season=2013/index.html deadhttps://kassiesa.net/uefa/data/method4/crank2013.html UEFA Country Ranking 2013 Bert Kassies 2013-05-03 2009-10-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20091027010932/http://www.xs4all.nl/~kassiesa/bert/uefa/data/method4/crank2013.html live RankAssociationCoeff.Teams1ESP88.02542ENG82.9633GER79.6144ITA64.14735POR59.1686FRA 197459.0007UKR49.75828RUS46.3329NED44.72910TUR34.50011BEL34.40012GRE34.00013SUI28.92514CYP26.83315DEN25.70016AUT25.375117CZE23.72518ROU23.024RankAssociationCoeff.Teams19ISR22.875120BLR20.87521POL20.75022CRO19.58323SWE15.62524SCO15.19125SRB14.62526SVK14.20827NOR14.17528BUL12.25029HUN11.75030SVN9.70831GEO9.16632AZE8.54133FIN8.50834BIH7.83335MDA7.66636IRL7.375RankAssociationCoeff.Teams37LTU6.500138KAZ5.95839LVA5.79140ISL5.41641MNE5.25042MKD Macedonia5.25043ALB4.16644MLT3.95845LIE3.500046LUX3.375147NIR3.08348WAL2.58349EST2.20850ARM1.75051FRO1.58352SMR0.66653AND0.50054GIB0.000 Distribution Since the title holders Real Madrid qualified for the Champions League group stage through their domestic league (as the third-placed team of the 2013–14 La Liga), the group stage spot reserved for the title holders is vacated, and the following changes to the default allocation system are made:https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0213-0e89424b2b66-d861a4d2ee53-1000--2014-15-uefa-champions-league-access-list/ 2014/15 access list 10 March 2014 UEFA 22 January 2015 20 May 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170520131001/http://www.uefa.com/news/newsid=2069708.html livehttps://kassiesa.net/uefa/access2014.html Access list 2014/2015 Bert Kassies 3 January 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140104090523/http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/access2014.html 4 January 2014 deadhttps://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/025a-0ea7aac533c7-70d38379bafe-1000--madrid-s-win-is-basel-s-gain/ Madrid's win is Basel's gain UEFA 27 May 2014 27 May 2014 25 January 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160125034708/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2111555.html live The champions of association 13 (Switzerland) are promoted from the third qualifying round to the group stage. The champions of association 16 (Austria) are promoted from the second qualifying round to the third qualifying round. The champions of associations 47 (Northern Ireland) and 48 (Wales) are promoted from the first qualifying round to the second qualifying round. Teams entering in this roundTeams advancing from previous roundFirst qualifying round(6 teams)6 champions from associations 49–54Second qualifying round(34 teams)31 champions from associations 17–48 (except Liechtenstein)3 winners from the first qualifying roundThird qualifying roundChampions(20 teams)3 champions from associations 14–1617 winners from the second qualifying roundNon-champions(10 teams)9 runners-up from associations 7–15 1 third-placed team from association 6Play-off roundChampions(10 teams)10 winners from the third qualifying round for championsNon-champions(10 teams)2 third-placed teams from associations 4–5 3 fourth-placed teams from associations 1–35 winners from the third qualifying round for non-championsGroup stage(32 teams)13 champions from associations 1–13 6 runners-up from associations 1–6 3 third-placed teams from associations 1–35 winners from the play-off round for champions 5 winners from the play-off round for non-championsKnockout phase(16 teams)8 group winners from the group stage 8 group runners-up from the group stage Teams League positions of the previous season shown in parentheses (TH: Title holders).https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0252-0cd30079812e-2b9a44906ae6-1000--madrid-and-lincoln-bookend-2014-15-entries/ Madrid and Lincoln bookend 2014/15 entries UEFA 18 June 2014 20 June 2014 4 June 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170604031858/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2117511.html livehttps://kassiesa.net/uefa/qual2014.html Qualification for European Cup Football 2014/2015 Bert Kassies 2014-01-03 2015-05-16 https://web.archive.org/web/20150516193913/http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/qual2014.html dead Group stageESP Real Madrid (3rd)THGER Bayern Munich (1st)POR Sporting CP (2nd)TUR Galatasaray (2nd)Note TURESP Atlético Madrid (1st)GER Borussia Dortmund (2nd)FRA 1974 Paris Saint-Germain (1st)BEL Anderlecht (1st)ESP Barcelona (2nd)GER Schalke 04 (3rd)FRA 1974 Monaco (2nd)GRE Olympiacos (1st)ENG Manchester City (1st)ITA Juventus (1st)UKR Shakhtar Donetsk (1st)SUI Basel (1st)ENG Liverpool (2nd)ITA Roma (2nd)RUS CSKA Moscow (1st)ENG Chelsea (3rd)POR Benfica (1st)NED Ajax (1st)Play-off roundChampionsNon-championsESP Athletic Bilbao (4th)GER Bayer Leverkusen (4th)POR Porto (3rd)ENG Arsenal (4th)ITA Napoli (3rd)Third qualifying roundChampionsNon-championsCYP APOEL (1st)FRA 1974 Lille (3rd)TUR Beşiktaş (3rd)Note TURCYP AEL Limassol (2nd)DEN AaB (1st)UKR Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk (2nd)BEL Standard Liège (2nd)DEN Copenhagen (2nd)AUT Red Bull Salzburg (1st)RUS Zenit Saint Petersburg (2nd)GRE Panathinaikos (2nd)NED Feyenoord (2nd)SUI Grasshopper (2nd)Second qualifying roundCZE Sparta Prague (1st)SRB Partizan (2nd)Note SRBFIN HJK (1st)MNE Sutjeska (1st)ROU Steaua București (1st)SVK Slovan Bratislava (1st)BIH Zrinjski Mostar (1st)MKD Rabotnicki (1st)ISR Maccabi Tel Aviv (1st)NOR Strømsgodset (1st)MDA Sheriff Tiraspol (1st)ALB Skënderbeu (1st)BLR BATE Borisov (1st)BUL Ludogorets Razgrad (1st)IRL St Patrick's Athletic (1st)MLT Valletta (1st)POL Legia Warsaw (1st)HUN Debrecen (1st)LTU Žalgiris (1st)LUX F91 Dudelange (1st)CRO Dinamo Zagreb (1st)SVN Maribor (1st)KAZ Aktobe (1st)NIR Cliftonville (1st)SWE Malmö FF (1st)GEO Dinamo Tbilisi (1st)LVA Ventspils (1st)WAL The New Saints (1st)SCO Celtic (1st)AZE Qarabağ (1st)ISL KR (1st)First qualifying roundEST Levadia Tallinn (1st)FRO HB (1st)AND FC Santa Coloma (1st)ARM Banants (1st)SMR La Fiorita (1st)GIB Lincoln Red Imps (1st) Notes disc Note SRB Serbia (SRB): Red Star Belgrade, the champions of the 2013–14 Serbian SuperLiga, would have qualified for the Champions League second qualifying round, but were banned by UEFA for breaching UEFA Club Licensing and Financial Fair Play Regulations.https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0216-0e8b0ded2b20-fec108c2bd1b-1000--crvena-zvezda-excluded-from-champions-league/ Crvena zvezda excluded from UEFA Champions League UEFA 6 June 2014 6 June 2014 28 September 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20180928203626/https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2114180.html live As a result, the berth was given to Partizan, the runners-up of the league. Note TUR Turkey (TUR): Fenerbahçe, the champions of the 2013–14 Süper Lig, would have qualified for the Champions League group stage, but were banned by UEFA because of the 2011 Turkish sports corruption scandal.https://www.uefa.com/news-media/news/020a-0e85256ea48e-68ad3bfb3d2f-1000--decisions-on-besiktas-fenerbahce-steaua/ Decisions on Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, Steaua UEFA 25 June 2013 27 April 2014 31 August 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20130831060816/http://www.uefa.com/uefa/disciplinary/news/newsid=1967131.html livehttps://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/23769348 Fenerbahce: Turkish side lose match-fixing ban appeal BBC Sport 28 August 2013 12 February 2018 5 November 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20151105215621/http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/23769348 live As a result, Galatasaray, the runners-up of the league, entered the group stage instead of the third qualifying round, and the third qualifying round berth was given to Beşiktaş, the third-placed team of the league. Round and draw dates The schedule of the competition was as follows (all draws were held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, unless stated otherwise).http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/season=2015/competitionformat/index.html 2014/15 UEFA Champions League draw and match calendar UEFA dead https://web.archive.org/web/20150423073606/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/season=2015/competitionformat/index.html 23 April 2015 https://kassiesa.net/uefa/calendar2014.html UEFA European Football Calendar 2014/2015 Bert Kassies 3 January 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140104090449/http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/calendar2014.html 4 January 2014 dead PhaseRoundDraw dateFirst legSecond legQualifyingFirst qualifying round23 June 20141–2 July 20148–9 July 2014Second qualifying round15–16 July 201422–23 July 2014Third qualifying round18 July 201429–30 July 20145–6 August 2014Play-offPlay-off round8 August 201419–20 August 201426–27 August 2014Group stageMatchday 128 August 2014(Monaco)16–17 September 2014Matchday 230 September–1 October 2014Matchday 321–22 October 2014Matchday 44–5 November 2014Matchday 525–26 November 2014Matchday 69–10 December 2014Knockout phaseRound of 1615 December 201417–18 & 24–25 February 201510–11 & 17–18 March 2015Quarter-finals20 March 201514–15 April 201521–22 April 2015Semi-finals24 April 20155–6 May 201512–13 May 2015Final6 June 2015 at Olympiastadion, Berlin The final date of 6 June could cause problems for South American international players called up to play in the 2015 Copa América, which begins on 11 June. FIFA international rules require clubs to release players 14 days prior to the start of an international tournament, which means the players would have to miss the Champions League final if the rules were enforced. If the players were allowed to play in the Champions League final, that would leave them as few as five days to travel and train prior to playing in the Copa América.Pérez Serrano Ángel La Copa América, pesadilla del Barça este año http://www.mundodeportivo.com/20140727/fc-barcelona/la-copa-america-pesadilla-del-barca-este-ano_54412260238.html mundodeportivo.com 28 July 2014 es 28 July 2014 13 August 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170813142832/http://www.mundodeportivo.com/20140727/fc-barcelona/la-copa-america-pesadilla-del-barca-este-ano_54412260238.html live Qualifying rounds 2014–15 UEFA Champions League qualifying phase and play-off round 2014–15 UEFA Champions League qualifying phase In the qualifying rounds and the play-off round, teams were divided into seeded and unseeded teams based on their 2014 UEFA club coefficients,http://www.uefa.com/memberassociations/uefarankings/club/season=2014/index.html Club coefficients 2013/14 UEFA 2013-09-29 2015-04-23 https://web.archive.org/web/20150423071238/http://www.uefa.com/memberassociations/uefarankings/club/season=2014/index.html deadhttps://kassiesa.net/uefa/data/method4/trank2014.html UEFA Team Ranking 2014 Bert Kassies 2013-05-16 2019-12-31 https://web.archive.org/web/20191231193643/https://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert/uefa/data/method4/trank2014.html livehttps://kassiesa.net/uefa/seedcl2014.html Seeding in the Champions League 2014/2015 Bert Kassies and then drawn into two-legged home-and-away ties. Teams from the same association could not be drawn against each other. First qualifying round The draw for the first and second qualifying rounds was held on 23 June 2014.https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0216-0e8b19b60966-f73529fa7283-1000--first-2014-15-missions-for-celtic-and-steaua/ First 2014/15 missions for Celtic and Steaua UEFA 23 June 2014 23 June 2014 12 November 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20151112123841/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2117771.html live The first legs were played on 1 and 2 July, and the second legs were played on 8 July 2014. Q1 Second qualifying round The first legs were played on 15 and 16 July, and the second legs were played on 22 and 23 July 2014. Q2 Third qualifying round The third qualifying round was split into two separate sections: one for champions (Champions Route) and one for non-champions (League Route). The losing teams in both sections entered the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League play-off round. The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 18 July 2014.https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/025a-0ea7a296f545-051696ffdbd6-1000--draw-takes-zenit-fck-to-new-destinations/ Draw takes Zenit, København to new destinations UEFA 18 July 2014 19 July 2014 16 August 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20180816124814/https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2125213.html live The first legs were played on 29 and 30 July, and the second legs were played on 5 and 6 August 2014. Q3 Play-off round 2014–15 UEFA Champions League qualifying phase and play-off round#Play-off round 2014–15 UEFA Champions League play-off round The play-off round was split into two separate sections: one for champions (Champions Route) and one for non-champions (League Route). The losing teams in both sections entered the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League group stage. The draw for the play-off round was held on 8 August 2014.https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0253-0d7fde04013d-9f2519d8ce9f-1000--tough-tests-for-napoli-and-porto-in-play-offs/ Tough play-off tests for Napoli, Porto in Champions League UEFA 8 August 2014 8 August 2014 3 June 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20180603130447/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2130485.html live The first legs were played on 19 and 20 August, and the second legs were played on 26 and 27 August 2014. play-off Group stage 2014–15 UEFA Champions League group stage Europe 600 right Location of teams of the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League group stage.8px Brown: Group A; 8px Red: Group B; 8px Orange: Group C; 8px Yellow: Group D; 8px Green: Group E; 8px Blue: Group F; 8px Purple: Group G; 8px Pink: Group H. Europe 40.383333 -3.716667 Madrid Black pog.svg top Europe 41.38087 2.122802 Barcelona Blue pog.svg Europe 43.264284 -2.950366 Athletic Pink pog.svg left Europe 40.383333 -3.716667 Black pog.svg bottom Europe 51.481667 -0.191111 London Black pog.svg top Europe 51.481667 -0.191111 Black pog.svg bottom Europe 53.430819 -2.960828 Liverpool Red pog.svg left Europe 53.483056 -2.200278 Man. City Green pog.svg Europe 48.218775 11.624753 Bayern Green pog.svg Europe 51.038256 7.002206 Leverkusen Orange pog.svg right Europe 51.492569 7.451842 Dortmund Yellow pog.svg Europe 51.554503 7.067589 Schalke Purple pog.svg left Europe 45.109444 7.641111 Juventus Brown pog.svg Europe 41.933886 12.454786 Roma Green pog.svg Europe 38.713889 -9.139444 Lisbon Black pog.svg top Europe 41.161758 -8.583933 Porto Pink pog.svg top Europe 38.713889 -9.139444 Black pog.svg bottom Europe 43.727606 7.415614 Monaco Orange pog.svg Europe 48.841389 2.253056 PSG Blue pog.svg Europe 48.020833 37.809722 Shakhtar Pink pog.svg Europe 55.791389 37.516111 CSKA Green pog.svg right Europe 59.951921 30.28627 Zenit Orange pog.svg right Europe 52.314167 4.941944 Ajax Blue pog.svg Europe 41.102869 28.990419 Galatasaray Yellow pog.svg Europe 50.834194 4.298361 Anderlecht Yellow pog.svg bottom Europe 37.946447 23.664317 Olympiacos Brown pog.svg Europe 47.541575 7.620181 Basel Red pog.svg Europe 35.114542 33.362864 APOEL Blue pog.svg right Europe 54.1135 28.2831 BATE Pink pog.svg right Europe 55.583611 12.987778 Malmö Brown pog.svg right Europe 43.5347 26.5276 Ludogorets Red pog.svg right Europe 46.6500 15.6500 Maribor Purple pog.svg right Europe TransparentPlaceholder.png 1 65 55 80 Madrid teams8px Atlético Madrid8px Real Madrid London teams8px Arsenal8px Chelsea Lisbon teams8px Benfica8px Sporting CP right The draw for the group stage was held in Monaco on 28 August 2014.https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0253-0d041e79aad5-90d79a991439-1000--holders-real-madrid-draw-liverpool-in-group-stage/ Holders Real Madrid draw Liverpool in group stage UEFA 28 August 2014 29 August 2014 24 November 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20151124043332/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2137672.html live The 32 teams were allocated into four pots based on their 2014 UEFA club coefficients, with the title holders being placed in Pot 1 automatically. They were drawn into eight groups of four, with the restriction that teams from the same association could not be drawn against each other. In each group, teams played against each other home-and-away in a round-robin format. The matchdays were 16–17 September, 30 September–1 October, 21–22 October, 4–5 November, 25–26 November, and 9–10 December 2014. A total of 18 national associations were represented in the group stage. Ludogorets Razgrad and Malmö FF made their debut appearances in the group stage.https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0253-0d041aef081e-d3876167ce19-1000--uefa-champions-league-group-stage-draw-pots/ UEFA Champions League group stage draw pots UEFA 28 August 2014 27 August 2014 19 July 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150719011202/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2134665.html live For the first time since the 1995–96 season, England's Manchester United did not qualify for the group stage. Teams that qualified for the group stage also participated in the 2014–15 UEFA Youth League, a competition available to players aged 19 or under. The group winners and runners-up advanced to the round of 16, while the third-placed teams entered the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League round of 32. See 2014–15 UEFA Champions League group stage for tiebreakers if two or more teams are equal on points. Group A Group A yes no_hide_class_rules Group B Group B yes no_hide_class_rules Group C Group C yes no_hide_class_rules Group D Group D yes no_hide_class_rules Group E Group E yes no_hide_class_rules Group F Group F yes no_hide_class_rules Group G Group G yes no_hide_class_rules Group H Group H yes no_hide_class_rules Knockout phase 2014–15 UEFA Champions League 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. Bracket Bracket Round of 16 The draw for the round of 16 was held on 15 December 2014.https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/021c-0e8ebd6d8aac-f577702c118f-1000--champions-league-round-of-16-draw/ Champions League round of 16 draw UEFA 15 December 2014 15 December 2014 27 December 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20141227203314/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2197251.html live The first legs were played on 17, 18, 24 and 25 February, and the second legs were played on 10, 11, 17 and 18 March 2015. Rof16 Quarter-finals The draw for the quarter-finals was held on 20 March 2015.https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/021f-0e8fed15a871-a1e7fc0dbf2a-1000--madrid-meet-atletico-again-in-quarter-finals/ Madrid meet Atlético again in quarter-finals UEFA 20 March 2015 20 March 2015 21 March 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150321024045/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2225313.html live The first legs were played on 14 and 15 April, and the second legs were played on 21 and 22 April 2015. QF Semi-finals The draw for the semi-finals and final (to determine the "home" team for administrative purposes) was held on 24 April 2015.https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0220-0e9066b57ea2-607cb7808487-1000--guardiola-takes-bayern-to-barca-madrid-get-juve/ Guardiola takes Bayern to Barça, Madrid get Juve UEFA 24 April 2015 24 April 2015 25 April 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150425090944/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid=2238561.html live The first legs were played on 5 and 6 May, and the second legs were played on 12 and 13 May 2015. SF Final F Statistics Statistics exclude qualifying rounds and play-off round. Top goalscorers thumb|175px|Shakhtar's Luiz Adriano became the first player to score hat-tricks in consecutive Champions League group stage games, both against BATE Borisov.Doyle Paul Miller Nick Champions League review: Dortmund's riddle and Luiz Adriano's record trick https://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/nov/06/champions-league-review-talking-points-stats-images 11 March 2015 The Guardian 6 November 2014 10 June 2023 https://web.archive.org/web/20230610195113/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/nov/06/champions-league-review-talking-points-stats-images live RankPlayerTeamGoalsMinutes played1BRA NeymarESP Barcelona101,026POR Cristiano RonaldoESP Real Madrid1,065ARG Lionel MessiESP Barcelona1,1474BRA Luiz AdrianoUKR Shakhtar Donetsk96285COL Jackson MartínezPOR Porto7629GER Thomas MüllerGER Bayern Munich777URU Luis SuárezESP Barcelona827ARG Carlos TevezITA Juventus1,1569ARG Sergio AgüeroENG Manchester City6550FRA 1974 Karim BenzemaESP Real Madrid664URU Edinson CavaniFRA 1974 Paris Saint-Germain920POL Robert LewandowskiGER Bayern Munich932 Source:http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/season=2015/statistics/round=2000548/players/type=topscorers/index.html Statistics — Tournament phase — Player statistics — Goals UEFA 6 June 2015 16 July 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150716053232/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/season=2015/statistics/round=2000548/players/type=topscorers/index.html dead Top assists RankPlayerTeamAssistsMinutes played1ARG Lionel MessiESP Barcelona61,1472ESP Andrés IniestaESP Barcelona57863GER Bastian SchweinsteigerGER Bayern Munich4456ESP Cesc FàbregasENG Chelsea4696ESP KokeESP Atlético Madrid4833BRA Dani AlvesESP Barcelona4961POR Cristiano RonaldoESP Real Madrid41,065 Source:http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/season=2015/statistics/round=2000548/players/type=assists/index.html Statistics — Tournament phase — Player statistics — Goals UEFA 6 June 2015 16 September 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150916212347/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/season=2015/statistics/round=2000548/players/type=assists/index.html dead Squad of the season The UEFA technical study group selected the following 18 players as the squad of the tournament:UEFA Champions League squad of the season https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0253-0d802a501f23-68765bf409b3-1000--uefa-champions-league-squad-of-the-season/ UEFA Union of European Football Associations 9 June 2015 9 June 2015 11 June 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150611133541/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/newsid%3D2255077.html live Pos. PositionPlayerTeamGK GoalkeeperITA Gianluigi BuffonITA JuventusGER Marc-André ter StegenESP BarcelonaDF DefenderESP Gerard PiquéESP BarcelonaARG Javier MascheranoESP BarcelonaESP Jordi AlbaESP BarcelonaSRB Branislav IvanovićENG ChelseaITA Giorgio ChielliniITA JuventusMF MidfielderESP Sergio BusquetsESP BarcelonaESP Andrés IniestaESP BarcelonaGER Toni KroosESP Real MadridCRO Ivan RakitićESP BarcelonaITA Andrea PirloITA JuventusITA Claudio MarchisioITA JuventusFW ForwardARG Lionel MessiESP BarcelonaBRA NeymarESP BarcelonaURU Luis SuárezESP BarcelonaESP Álvaro MorataITA JuventusPOR Cristiano RonaldoESP Real Madrid See also 2014–15 UEFA Europa League 2015 UEFA Super Cup 2015 FIFA Club World Cup 2014–15 UEFA Women's Champions League 2014–15 UEFA Youth League References External links 2014–15 UEFA Champions League 2014/15 UEFA Champions League season review autocollapse Category:UEFA Champions League seasons 1