What is the Concacaf Champions Cup?
The Concacaf Champions Cup is the top club competition of the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football. Since the 2024 reformat it has been a 27-club knockout for the leading clubs of Liga MX, Major League Soccer and the Central American, Caribbean and Canadian competitions, and its winner represents the region at the FIFA Club World Cup and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup.[1] [2]
How do clubs qualify and how does it work?
For 2027 the places are: six for Liga MX — seven that year, Pachuca taking the slot freed when Toluca also qualified as Leagues Cup champion; five for MLS (the MLS Cup and Supporters’ Shield winners, the two conference winners and the Shield runner-up); three from the Leagues Cup, whose champion enters with a bye to the round of 16; six from the Concacaf Central American Cup; three from the Caribbean Cup; one each from the Canadian Championship and the U.S. Open Cup; and two from the Canadian Premier League. The 2026 edition ran from 3 February to 30 May: 22 clubs in a two-leg round one, five seeded clubs joining at the round of 16, then quarter-finals, two-leg semi-finals and a single final.[1] [3] [6]
Since when does it exist?
Concacaf has crowned a club champion since 1962, when the competition began as the CONCACAF Champions’ Cup; it became the Champions League in 2008 and the Champions Cup in 2024, when a 16-club league-and-knockout format gave way to the 27-club knockout. Mexican clubs have won 17 of the 18 finals since 2008, Seattle Sounders’ 2022 title the exception, and the 2026 final in Toluca was an all-Mexican decider.[2] [4] [5]
| Season | Pool / Format | Host cities |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Toluca | Final: 1–1 aet, 6–5 pens vs Tigres UANL — Estadio Nemesio Díez, Toluca, 30 May 2026; third title |
| 2025 | Cruz Azul | Final: 5–0 vs Vancouver Whitecaps — Estadio Olímpico Universitario, Mexico City, 1 June 2025 |
| 2024 | Pachuca | Final: 3–0 vs Columbus Crew — Estadio Hidalgo, 1 June 2024; first Champions Cup under the new name |
| 2023 | León | Final: 3–1 on aggregate (2–1, 1–0) vs LAFC — last Champions League edition |
| 2022 | Seattle Sounders | Final: 5–2 on aggregate (2–2, 3–0) vs Pumas UNAM — first MLS winner of the Champions League era |
| 2021 | Monterrey | Final: 1–0 vs América — Estadio BBVA |
| 2020 | Tigres UANL | Final: 2–1 vs LAFC — Orlando, single-site pandemic finish |
| 2019 | Monterrey | Final: 2–1 on aggregate (1–0, 1–1) vs Tigres UANL |
| 2018 | Guadalajara | Final: 3–3 on aggregate, 4–2 pens vs Toronto FC |
| 2017 | Pachuca | Final: 2–1 on aggregate (1–1, 1–0) vs Tigres UANL |
Winners of the last ten editions.
Why does it matter?
The Champions Cup is the region’s only route to the FIFA Club World Cup, and its winner heads Concacaf’s club rankings. CBS Sports holds the US English-language rights. For a player at a Liga MX or MLS club, a Champions Cup campaign is the continental competition on the record, and the tournament’s qualified clubs for 2027 — including Toluca, Tigres, Cruz Azul, Pumas, América, Guadalajara and Pachuca from Liga MX and Toluca, Monterrey and León via the Leagues Cup — show which clubs the region regards as its elite.[1] [3]
References
- Concacaf — Concacaf Champions Cup. Accessed September 2026.
- Concacaf — Toluca defeats Tigres on penalties to claim third Champions Cup title. Accessed September 2026.
- Concacaf — 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup qualified clubs. Accessed September 2026.
- Wikipedia — CONCACAF Champions Cup (background). Accessed September 2026.
- Wikipedia — List of CONCACAF Champions Cup and Champions League finals (background). Accessed September 2026.
- Wikipedia — 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup (background). Accessed September 2026.