The CONCACAF Champions League is back after an electrifying end to the last edition in Orlando, where Mexican side Tigres UANL were crowned champions after beating LAFC in the 2020 final.
Now that’s part of the past, Tigres are unable to defend their title and 16 other teams will try to win the coveted trophy in a tournament that promises a lot of good things. But, first thing first, we have to know the first round of the competition will be played and today’s draw will clear all the doubts.
CONCACAF already announced everything you need to know about this upcoming event and now it’s time to go through all the details regarding the draw, the teams involved, how to watch it, and more.
2021 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage Draw: Event Information
Date: Wednesday, February 10, 2021
Time: 7:00 pm ET
2021 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage Draw: Time By State In The U.S.
ET: 7:00 PM
CT: 6:00 PM
MT: 5:00 PM
PT: 4:00 PM
2021 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage Draw: Teams
Canada: Forge FC or Toronto FC (winner of the 2020 Canadian Championship will compete, date TBC)
Costa Rica: Deportivo Saprissa and LD Alajuelense
Dominican Republic: Club Atlético Pantoja
Haiti: Arcahaie FC
Honduras: CD Marathon and CD Olimpia
Mexico: Club América, Club León, Cruz Azul and CF Monterrey
Nicaragua: Real Estelí FC
USA: Atlanta United FC, Columbus Crew SC, Philadelphia Union and Portland Timbers
2021 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage Draw: Pots
Pot 1 (clubs ranked 1-8): Forge FC or Toronto FC (CAN), CF Monterrey (MEX), Club America (MEX), Cruz Azul (MEX), Atlanta United FC (USA), Columbus Crew SC (USA), Philadelphia Union (USA) and Portland Timbers (USA).
Pot 2 (clubs ranked 9-16): Deportivo Saprissa (CRC), LD Alajuelense (CRC), Club Atlético Pantoja (DOM), Arcahaie FC (HAI), CD Marathon (HON), CD Olimpia (HON), Club Leon (MEX) and Real Esteli FC (NCA).
The Round of 16 bracket positions will be divided in Pots A and B as follows:
Pot A: A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, A6, A7 and A8.
Pot B: B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, B6, B7 and B8.
2021 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage Draw: Procedure
The official draw will be carried out using a double-blind system and four pots. Pots 1 and 2 will have the spheres containing the names of the 16 participating clubs, while Pots A and B will contain the spheres with the bracket positions for the round.
CONCACAF explains:
The draw will begin by randomly selecting a sphere from Pot 1, followed by a sphere from Pot A to confirm the club’s bracket position. The same process will apply for the remaining clubs in Pot 1, always drawing a club, followed by a bracket position from Pot A.
Once the eight clubs in Pot 1 have been assigned to a matchup, the process will be exactly the same for the teams in Pot 2.
**Clubs from the same country cannot face each other in the Round of 16**
How to watch or live stream online 2021 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage Draw in the U.S.
FOX Sports, TUDN will broadcast this event in the United States.
2021 CONCACAF Champions League Schedule
April 6-8 will see the start of the new competition, with the Round 16 first leg. The second legs of the round will be played on April 13-15. After this, the quarter-finals will take place in late-April and early-May. The semifinals will be played in August and September, and a single-leg final will define the winner of the tournament in October.
