The last game of the CONCACAF Champions League will be played between Pumas UNAM and Seattle Sounders in what will be a final with the representation of two countries, United States and Mexico, but with different rules regarding away goals.
The knockout stage of the tournament offered a lot of exciting games during the first weeks, and some of those games were defined thanks to the away goals rule and penalty shoot-out. New York City FC against Comunicaciones was one of the games where the away goal rule was decisive.
The CONCACAF Champions League is not different from other tournaments in America or Europe, but the organization makes some changes or adjustments depending on what they think is correct since in 2021 and 2020 the rules on away goals were different.
Do away goals matter in series between Pumas and Seattle Sounders?
No, the CONCACAF Champions League rule book states that away goals will not be used during the tournament final, the rule says: “…12.8.1 Away goals will not hold any value in the final round…”. This means that only the aggregate result overall will be counted.
Since away goals are not valid in the final of the tournament, teams must play extra time in case the aggregate goals are not enough to declare a winner of the CONCACAF Champions League title.
In the other stages of the tournament, the away goals do have a determining role in the final result of the games. But in case in the other stages, round of 16, quarterfinals and semifinals the games cannot be defined by away goals the teams must manage in the penalty kick shoot-outs since extra time is not allowed in those stages.
