2024–25 UEFA Youth League

2024–25 UEFA Youth League
The Colovray Stadium in Nyon hosted the semi-finals and final
Tournament details
Dates17 September 2024 – 28 April 2025
Teams88 (from 52 associations)
Final positions
Champions Barcelona (3rd title)
Runners-up Trabzonspor
Tournament statistics
Matches played221
Goals scored761 (3.44 per match)
Top scorer(s)Matviy Ponomarenko (Dynamo Kyiv)
Mahamadou Sangaré (Paris Saint-Germain)
Phillip Verhounig (Red Bull Salzburg)
8 goals each

The 2024–25 UEFA Youth League was the eleventh season of the UEFA Youth League, a European youth club football competition organised by UEFA.

The title holders were Olympiacos, who defeated Milan 3–0 in the previous edition's final. They were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Red Bull Salzburg.

Barcelona claimed a record-breaking third title by defeating Trabzonspor 4–1 in the final.

Teams

A total of 88 teams from 52 of the 55 UEFA member associations entered the tournament. They were split into two sections.

  • UEFA Champions League Path: The youth teams of the 36 clubs which qualified for the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League league stage entered the UEFA Champions League Path. If there had been a vacancy (youth teams not entering), it would have been filled by a team defined by UEFA.
  • Domestic Champions Path: The youth domestic champions of all UEFA associations (with the exception of Liechtenstein and San Marino, who do not have a youth domestic competition, and Russia, who was suspended from UEFA competitions) entered the Domestic Champions Path. Clubs from the top 28 associations according to their 2024 UEFA country coefficients qualified for the second round, with the remaining 24 teams starting from the first round. If the youth domestic champions qualify for the UEFA Champions League path, their spot was filled by the youth domestic runners-ups; if the runners-ups also qualify for the UEFA Champions League path, the vacancy was not filled (a change from previous editions where only the winners were taken into consideration).[1]

Aberdeen, Academia Rebeja, Aston Villa, Auxerre, Bologna, Brera Strumica, Brest, Budućnost Podgorica, Bylis, Cliftonville, CSKA Sofia, FC 2 Korriku, FC Santa Coloma, Girona, HB, IFK Göteborg, IMT, Lincoln Red Imps, Progrès Niederkorn, Rapid Wien, Real Betis, Sabah, Sassuolo, Strømsgodset, Sturm Graz, Stuttgart, Tallinna Kalev, The New Saints, Valletta and Zbrojovka Brno made their tournament debuts.[2]

Qualified teams for 2024–25 UEFA Youth League[2]
Rank Association Teams
UEFA Champions League Path Domestic Champions Path
1  England Manchester United
(2023–24 U18 Premier League)
2  Spain Real Betis[RU]
(2023–24 División de Honor Juvenil U-19)
3  Germany TSG Hoffenheim (2023–24 A-Junioren-Bundesliga)
4  Italy Sassuolo (2023–24 Campionato Primavera 1)
5  France Auxerre[RU] (2023–24 Championnat National U19)
6  Netherlands AZ (2023–24 Eredivisie U18)
7  Portugal Braga (2023–24 Campeonato Nacional Juniores S19)
8  Belgium Club Brugge Genk (2023–24 Belgian U18 League)
9  Scotland Celtic Aberdeen (2023–24 Scottish U18 League)
10  Austria Rapid Wien[RU] (2023–25 Jugendliga U18)
11  Serbia Red Star Belgrade[PO] IMT (2023–24 Serbian U19 League)
12  Turkey Trabzonspor (2023–24 U19 Elit)
13  Switzerland Young Boys[PO] Basel (2023–24 Swiss U18 League)
14  Ukraine Shakhtar Donetsk[PO] Dynamo Kyiv (2023–24 Ukrainian Premier League Under-19)
15  Czech Republic Sparta Prague[YC][PO] Zbrojovka Brno[RU] (2023–24 Czech U19 League)
16  Norway Strømsgodset (2023 Norwegian U19 Cup)
17  Denmark Midtjylland (2023–24 U19 Ligaen)
19  Croatia Dinamo Zagreb[YC][PO] Lokomotiva Zagreb[RU] (2023–24 1. HNL Juniori U19)
20  Greece Olympiacos[TH] (2023–24 Superleague K19)
21  Israel Maccabi Petah Tikva (2023–24 Israeli U19 Noar Premier League)
22  Cyprus Pafos (2023–24 Cypriot U19 League)
23  Sweden IFK Göteborg (2023 P17 Allsvenskan)
24  Poland Legia Warsaw (2023–24 Polish U19 Central Junior League)
25  Hungary Puskás Akadémia (2023–24 Hungarian U19 League)
26  Romania Farul Constanța (2023–24 Liga de Tineret)
27  Bulgaria CSKA Sofia (2023–24 U18 BFU Cup)
28  Slovakia Slovan Bratislava[PO] Trenčín (2023–24 Slovak U19 League)
29  Azerbaijan Sabah (2023–24 Azerbaijani U19 League)
30  Kazakhstan Kairat (2023 Kazakhstan U18 League)
31  Slovenia Maribor (2023–24 Slovenian U19 League)
32  Moldova Academia Rebeja (2023–24 Moldovan Youth League)
33  Kosovo 2 Korriku
35  Latvia Daugavpils
36  Republic of Ireland UCD
37  Finland Honka (2023 U17 B-Junior League)
38  Lithuania Žalgiris (2023 Lithuanian Elite Youth League U19 Division)
39  Armenia Pyunik
40  Belarus Dinamo Minsk (2023 Belarusian U18 League)
41  Bosnia and Herzegovina Sarajevo (2023–24 Bosnia and Herzegovina U19 Junior League)
42  Luxembourg Progrès Niederkorn
43  Faroe Islands HB
44  Northern Ireland Cliftonville
45  Malta Valletta
46  Georgia Dinamo Tbilisi
47  Estonia Tallinna Kalev
48  Iceland Stjarnan
49  Albania Bylis
50  Wales The New Saints
51  Gibraltar Lincoln Red Imps
52  North Macedonia AP Brera Strumica
53  Andorra FC Santa Coloma
54  Montenegro Budućnost Podgorica
Associations without any participating teams
(no teams qualified for UEFA Champions League group stage, and either with no youth domestic competition)
Rank Association
18  Russia[Note RUS]
34  Liechtenstein
55  San Marino
Notes
  1. RU Youth domestic runners-up playing in the Domestic Champions Path because the domestic champions qualified for the UEFA Champions League Path.
  2. YC Teams playing in the UEFA Champions League Path which were also youth domestic champions.
  3. PO Teams playing in the UEFA Champions League Path after their senior team qualified for the Champions League group stage via play-offs.
  4. ^
    Russia (RUS): On 28 February 2022, Russian football clubs and national teams were suspended from FIFA and UEFA competitions due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[3] The tables reflect Russia's ongoing suspension from UEFA competitions.[4]

Distribution

Path Round Teams entering in this round Teams advancing from the previous round
UEFA Champions League Path
(36 teams)
League phase
(36 teams)
Domestic Champions Path
(52 teams)
First round
(24 teams)
  • 24 youth champions from associations 30–55 (except Liechtenstein and San Marino)
Second round
(40 teams)
  • 28 youth champions from associations 1–29 (except Russia)
  • 12 winners from the first round
Third round
(20 teams)
  • 20 winners from the second round
Knockout phase
(32 teams)
  • 22 teams ranked 1–22 from the league phase (UEFA Champions League Path)
  • 10 winners from the third round (Domestic Champions Path)

The information here reflects the suspension of Russia in European football, and so the following changes to the default access list were made:[5]

  • The champions of associations 25 (Hungary) and 26 (Romania) entered the second round instead of the first round (Domestic Champions Path).

As the Youth League title holders (Olympiacos) qualified for the second round (Domestic Champions Path) via their domestic league, the following changes to the default access list were made:

  • The champions of associations 27 (Bulgaria) and 28 (Slovakia) entered the second round instead of the first round (Domestic Champions Path).

As San Marino did not enter a team, the following changes to the default access list were made:

  • The champions of associations 29 (Azerbaijan) entered the second round instead of the first round (Domestic Champions Path).

Round and draw dates

The schedule of the competition was as follows.[1]

Schedule for 2024–25 UEFA Youth League
Phase Round Draw date First leg Second leg
UEFA Champions League Path Matchday 1 29 August 2024 17–19 September 2024
Matchday 2 1–2 October 2024
Matchday 3 22–23 October 2024
Matchday 4 5–6 November 2024
Matchday 5 26–27 November 2024
Matchday 6 10–11 December 2024
Domestic
Champions Path
First round 3 September 2024 18 September 2024 2 October 2024
Second round 23 October 2024 6 November 2024
Third round 27 November 2024 17 December 2024
Knockout phase Round of 32 20 December 2024 11–12 February 2025
Round of 16 14 February 2025 4–5 March 2025
Quarter-finals 1–2 April 2025
Semi-finals 25 April 2025 Colovray Stadium, Nyon
Final 28 April 2025 Colovray Stadium, Nyon

UEFA Champions League Path

For the UEFA Champions League Path, the 36 teams played six matches (three home and three away) following the same schedule as the first six matchdays of the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League league phase. The top 22 teams advanced to knockout phase.[1]

Table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Inter Milan 6 6 0 0 19 7 +12 18 Advance to
knockout phase
2 Sporting CP 6 5 1 0 13 3 +10 16
3 Red Bull Salzburg 6 5 1 0 17 9 +8 16
4 Barcelona 6 5 0 1 17 10 +7 15
5 VfB Stuttgart 6 4 1 1 13 6 +7 13
6 Real Madrid 6 4 0 2 10 5 +5 12
7 Atalanta 6 4 0 2 14 12 +2 12
8 Atlético Madrid 6 3 2 1 16 8 +8 11
9 Benfica 6 3 2 1 12 7 +5 11
10 Juventus 6 3 2 1 9 4 +5 11
11 Manchester City 6 3 1 2 16 8 +8 10
12 Girona 6 2 4 0 9 5 +4 10
13 Bayern Munich 6 3 1 2 11 12 −1 10
14 Shakhtar Donetsk 6 3 1 2 9 11 −2 10
15 Aston Villa 6 3 0 3 14 11 +3 9
16 Sturm Graz 6 2 3 1 10 8 +2 9
17 Celtic 6 3 0 3 10 10 0 9
18 Borussia Dortmund 6 2 2 2 11 8 +3 8
19 Liverpool 6 2 2 2 9 8 +1 8
20 Lille 6 1 5 0 8 7 +1 8
21 Dinamo Zagreb 6 2 2 2 8 8 0 8
22 Monaco 6 2 2 2 6 7 −1 8
23 Paris Saint-Germain 6 2 1 3 14 13 +1 7
24 Bayer Leverkusen 6 2 1 3 7 9 −2 7
25 PSV Eindhoven 6 1 3 2 8 9 −1 6
26 Arsenal 6 2 0 4 5 12 −7 6
27 Milan 6 1 2 3 7 11 −4 5[a]
28 Red Star Belgrade 6 1 2 3 7 11 −4 5[a]
29 Feyenoord 6 1 1 4 7 14 −7 4
30 Young Boys 6 1 0 5 11 17 −6 3
31 Club Brugge 6 0 3 3 5 11 −6 3
32 RB Leipzig 6 1 0 5 10 18 −8 3
33 Bologna 6 0 2 4 7 14 −7 2
34 Brest 6 0 2 4 5 16 −11 2
35 Slovan Bratislava 6 0 2 4 6 20 −14 2
36 Sparta Prague 6 0 1 5 4 15 −11 1
Source: UEFA[6]
Rules for classification: League phase tiebreakers
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Away goals scored: Milan 5; Red Star Belgrade 4.

Results

Matchday 1
Home teamScoreAway team
Young Boys 2–1 Aston Villa
Juventus 1–0 PSV Eindhoven
Milan 0–0 Liverpool
Bayern Munich 2–1 Dinamo Zagreb
Real Madrid 1–0 VfB Stuttgart
Sporting CP 2–2 Lille
Sparta Prague 2–3 Red Bull Salzburg
Bologna 3–4 Shakhtar Donetsk
Celtic 4–0 Slovan Bratislava
Club Brugge 1–1 Borussia Dortmund
Manchester City 2–4 Inter Milan
Paris Saint-Germain 0–2 Girona
Feyenoord 1–2 Bayer Leverkusen
Red Star Belgrade 1–2 Benfica
Monaco 4–3 Barcelona
Atalanta 4–1 Arsenal
Atlético Madrid 4–0 RB Leipzig
Brest 1–4 Sturm Graz

Domestic Champions Path

For the Domestic Champions Path, the 52 teams were drawn into three rounds of two-legged home-and-away ties, with the 28 clubs from the top ranked associations starting directly from the second round. The draw for all three rounds were held on 3 September 2024.

The ten third round winners advanced to the round of 32.

First round

The first legs were played on 17 and 18 September, and the second legs on 22 September, 1 and 2 October 2024.

The winners of the ties advanced to the second round.

First round
Team 1Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
HB 1–5 Progrès Niederkorn1–20–3
UCD 5–3 Stjarnan3–02–3
Bylis 2–4 2 Korriku1–21–2
Lincoln Red Imps 0–8 Maribor0–60–2
Žalgiris 7–2 The New Saints3–24–0
Honka 3–3 (0–3 p) Valletta1–02–3
Daugavpils 2–2 (4–2 p) Cliftonville1–01–2
Tallinna Kalev 11–0 FC Santa Coloma7–04–0
AP Brera Strumica 2–4 Sarajevo2–20–2
Dinamo Minsk 6–3 Pyunik4–22–1
Kairat 6–2 Academia Rebeja2–14–1
Dinamo Tbilisi 4–6 Budućnost Podgorica3–21–4

Second round

The first legs were played on 22, 23 October and 5 November, and the second legs on 27 October, 5, 6 and 9 November 2024.

The winners of the ties advanced to the third round.

Second round
Team 1Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
IFK Göteborg 1–7 TSG Hoffenheim0–31–4
Aberdeen 1–8 Puskás Akadémia1–50–3
Strømsgodset 2–8 AZ1–41–4
2 Korriku 5–2 UCD2–13–1
Progrès Niederkorn 0–9 Midtjylland0–40–5
Žalgiris 2–11 Manchester United2–50–6
Dynamo Kyiv 4–2 Maribor1–13–1
Genk 6–2 CSKA Sofia3–13–1
Legia Warsaw 6–0 Pafos3–03–0
Auxerre 7–0 Valletta5–02–0
Daugavpils 0–9 Sassuolo0–50–4
Farul Constanța 2–1 IMT2–00–1
Olympiacos 7–1 Tallinna Kalev5–02–1
Basel 8–1 Sabah6–02–1
Maccabi Petah Tikva 0–6 Sarajevo0–3[a]0–3[a]
Trabzonspor 8–3 Budućnost Podgorica3–15–2
Braga 2–3 Rapid Wien0–02–3
Real Betis 11–1 Kairat6–15–0
Trenčín 6–3 Zbrojovka Brno3–23–1
Lokomotiva Zagreb 2–1 Dinamo Minsk2–10–0
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Both legs were cancelled and awarded 3–0 to Sarajevo after Maccabi Petah Tikva withdrew due to security concerns stemming from the Gaza war.

Third round

The first legs will be played on 26 and 27 November, and the second legs on 10, 11 and 17 December 2024.

The winners of the ties will advance to the knockout phase.

Third round
Team 1Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
Dynamo Kyiv 9–1 2 Korriku5–04–1
AZ 2–1 Manchester United2–10–0
Puskás Akadémia 2–2 (6–5 p) Genk1–01–2
Auxerre 1–3 TSG Hoffenheim1–20–1
Legia Warsaw 0–9 Midtjylland0–20–7
Real Betis 4–2 Sassuolo3–11–1
Farul Constanța 1–6 Lokomotiva Zagreb0–21–4
Trenčín 2–5 Olympiacos1–11–4
Basel 1–5 Rapid Wien1–20–3
Sarajevo 3–8 Trabzonspor2–21–6

Knockout phase

The top 22 teams from the UEFA Champions League Path as well as 10 winners of the Domestic Champions Path qualified for the knockout phase, which were played in a single-leg knockout format. For the round of 32, the top six teams from the UEFA Champions League Path were paired against the teams finished in 17th to 22nd place, and the Domestic Champions Path winners were paired against teams ranked 7th to 16th.[1]

Bracket

Round of 32Round of 16Quarter-finalsSemi-finalsFinal
Red Bull Salzburg (p)1 (4)
Celtic1 (2) Red Bull Salzburg2
Rapid Wien1 Atlético Madrid1
Atlético Madrid2 Red Bull Salzburg1
Lokomotiva Zagreb1 (3) Olympiacos0
Sturm Graz (p)1 (5) Sturm Graz1 (4)
Olympiacos1 Olympiacos1 (5) 25 April – Nyon
Girona0 Red Bull Salzburg1
Trabzonspor1 Trabzonspor2
Juventus0 Trabzonspor0 (5)
Dynamo Kyiv3 (6) Atalanta0 (3)
Atalanta (p)3 (7) Trabzonspor1
Real Betis0 Inter Milan0
Bayern Munich1 Bayern Munich1 (4)
Inter Milan3 Inter Milan1 (5) 28 April – Nyon
Lille1 Trabzonspor1
Real Madrid2 Barcelona4
Borussia Dortmund0 Real Madrid0
AZ (p)2 (4) AZ2
Benfica2 (3) AZ1
TSG Hoffenheim5 Manchester City0
Shakhtar Donetsk1 TSG Hoffenheim1
Midtjylland2 (4) Manchester City2 25 April – Nyon
Manchester City (p)2 (5) AZ0
Sporting CP4 Barcelona1
Monaco0 Sporting CP2
VfB Stuttgart (p)2 (5) VfB Stuttgart3
Liverpool2 (3) VfB Stuttgart1
Puskás Akadémia1 Barcelona2
Aston Villa2 Aston Villa1
Barcelona (p)2 (5) Barcelona3
Dinamo Zagreb2 (3)

Round of 32

The matches were played on 11 and 12 February 2025.

Round of 32
Home teamScoreAway team
Inter Milan 3–1 Lille
Sporting CP 4–0 Monaco
Red Bull Salzburg 1–1 (4–2 p) Celtic
Barcelona 2–2 (5–3 p) Dinamo Zagreb
VfB Stuttgart 2–2 (5–3 p) Liverpool
Real Madrid 2–0 Borussia Dortmund
Dynamo Kyiv 3–3 (6–7 p) Atalanta
Rapid Wien 1–2 Atlético Madrid
AZ 2–2 (4–3 p) Benfica
Trabzonspor 1–0 Juventus
Midtjylland 2–2 (4–5 p) Manchester City
Olympiacos 1–0 Girona
Real Betis 0–1 Bayern Munich
TSG Hoffenheim 5–1 Shakhtar Donetsk
Puskás Akadémia 1–2 Aston Villa
Lokomotiva Zagreb 1–1 (3–5 p) Sturm Graz

Round of 16

The draw was conducted on 14 February 2025 at 13:00 CET in the UEFA headquarters in Nyon. The round of 16 was played over one leg on 4 and 5 March 2025.

Round of 16
Home teamScoreAway team
Trabzonspor 0–0 (5–3 p) Atalanta
Sturm Graz 1–1 (4–5 p) Olympiacos
Bayern Munich 1–1 (4–5 p) Inter Milan
Red Bull Salzburg 2–1 Atlético Madrid
Real Madrid 0–2 AZ
Sporting CP 2–3 VfB Stuttgart
TSG Hoffenheim 1–2 Manchester City
Aston Villa 1–3 Barcelona

Quarter-finals

The draw was conducted on 14 February 2025 at 13:00 CET in the UEFA headquarters in Nyon. The quarter-finals were played over one leg on 1 and 2 April 2025.

Quarter-finals
Home teamScoreAway team
AZ 1–0 Manchester City
VfB Stuttgart 1–2 Barcelona
Red Bull Salzburg 1–0 Olympiacos
Trabzonspor 1–0 Inter Milan

Semi-finals

The draw was conducted on 14 February 2025 at 13:00 CET in the UEFA headquarters in Nyon. The semi-finals will be played over one leg on 25 April 2025.

Semi-finals
Team 1ScoreTeam 2
AZ 0–1 Barcelona
Red Bull Salzburg 1–2 Trabzonspor

Final

The final was played on 28 April 2025 at Colovray Stadium, Nyon.

Trabzonspor 1–4 Barcelona
Tibukoğlu 88' Report
Attendance: 3,081
Referee: Andrea Colombo (Italy)

Top goalscorers

Rank[7] Player Team Goals Matches played
1 Phillip Verhounig Red Bull Salzburg 8 7
Mahamadou Sangaré Paris Saint-Germain 6
Matviy Ponomarenko Dynamo Kyiv 5
4 Omar Janneh Atlético Madrid 6 8
Gustavo Varela Benfica 7
Daniel Cummings Celtic
Romualdas Jansonas Žalgiris 4
Poyraz Efe Yıldırım Trabzonspor 3
9 Arnau Pradas Barcelona 5 11
Hugo Alba Barcelona 10
Gabriel Silva Sporting CP 8
Stavros Pnevmonidis Olympiacos 7
Candas Fiogbe Atalanta 6
Eliot Bujupi VfB Stuttgart
Leon Grgic Sturm Graz
Kevin Mondovics Puskás Akadémia 5
Nicolaj Tornvig Midtjylland

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d "2024/25 UEFA Youth League dates, format". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 24 April 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Which teams are in the 2024/25 Youth League?". Union of European Football Associations. 28 August 2024. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  3. ^ "Ukraine crisis: Fifa and Uefa suspend all Russian clubs and national teams". British Broadcasting Corporation. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  4. ^ "UEFA decisions for upcoming competitions relating to the ongoing suspension of Russian national teams and clubs". UEFA.com (Press release). Nyon: Union of European Football Associations. 2 May 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  5. ^ "Regulations of the UEFA Youth League 2024/25". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 1 May 2024. Archived from the original on 14 February 2025. Retrieved 14 February 2025.
  6. ^ "Table & Standings". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  7. ^ "UEFA Youth League – Top Scorers". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 28 April 2025.