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Liga MX Clausura champions Tigres Canadian champions Vancouver Whitecaps will square off in the opening round of the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup.
The draw for the rebranded tournament formerly known as the Concacaf Champions was held on Wednesday, with a pair of top MLS teams in Houston Dynamo FC and St. Louis City SC also picked to play a first-round game.
A total of 27 teams in all will take part in the tournament. Lionel Messi and Inter Miami CF earned and automatic berth to the round of 16 after winning the inaugural Leagues Cup in the summer and will face the winner of a first-round match between Nashville SC and Moca FC, the third-place finisher in the 2023 Caribbean Cup.
The draw is sealed! 🤩
These are the results from the Concacaf Champions Cup draw, setting the stage for a tournament filled with action ⚽ pic.twitter.com/xwZuva7wHN
— Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) December 14, 2023
Other teams with an automatic bid to the round of 16 include Liga MX’s Pachuca, SVB Eerste Divisie’s Robinhood, Primera Division of Costa Rica’s Alajuelense (2023 Central American Cup title-holder) and 2023 MLS Cup champions Columbus Crew.
The first-round matches kick off in February with a home-and-away format, with the seeds and pot selection for Wednesday’s draw determined by Concacaf’s newly established club rankings. The round of 16 begins with first legs on March 5-7 and second legs between March 12-14.
In remaining Round One match-ups for MLS sides: 2023 Leagues Cup third place finisher Philadelphia Union will face 2023 Central American Cup play-in winner Saprissa, 2023 MLS Supporters’ Shield sixth place finisher New England Revolution will go up against 2023 Central American Cup semi-finalist Independiente, 2023 MLS Supporters’ Shield runner-up Orlando City will face 2023 Canadian Premier League Shield winner Cavalry FC, and 2023 MLS Supporters’ Shield winner FC Cincinnati will go up against 2023 Caribbean Cup runner-up Cavalier.
In the Round of 16, Pachuca will face the winner of Philadelphia Union vs. Saprissa, Robinhood will face the winner of Toluca vs. Herediano, Alajuelense will face the winner of New England Revolution vs. Independiente, and the Columbus Crew will face the winner of Houston Dynamo vs. St Louis City SC.
Dates and times for all the games, including the quarterfinals (April 2-4 first legs, April 9-11 seconds legs), semifinals (April 23-25 first legs, April 30-May 2 second legs) and the single-leg final on Sunday, June 2, will be announced in the coming days.
The winner of the 2024 Champions Cup will earn a spot at an expanded 2025 Club World Cup, which will include the three previous winners of the Concacaf Champions League: Liga MX’s Leon (2023), MLS’ Seattle Sounders FC (2022) and Liga MX’s Monterrey (2021).
Despite being unable to qualify for the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup, Leon’s status as title-holders earned it an invitation to the ongoing 2023 Club World Cup. On Friday, Leon will face Asian Football Confederations champion Urawa Red Diamonds in the tournament’s second round. The winner will then face 2023 UEFA Champions League winners Manchester City in the semifinals.