Italy’s extra Champions League spot fades away after Juventus and Atalanta losses | OneFootball

Italy’s chances of receiving an extra spot in next season’s Champions League were dealt another blow after defeats for both Juventus and Inter in the play-off round first legs on Tuesday night.

The Bianconeri were defeated 5-2 away against Galatasaray in Istanbul, while La Dea fell to a 2-0 loss in front of Borussia Dortmund’s Yellow Wall at the Westfalenstadion.

These losses mean that Italy remains in fifth place in UEFA’s season association coefficient, which is used to determine which nations receive an additional spot in the following season’s tournament. Only the nations that finish the season in the top two will be afforded an extra Champions League spot.

MUNICH, GERMANY – MAY 31: Francesco Acerbi of FC Internazionale looks dejected as he walks past the UEFA Champions League trophy after defeat to Paris Saint-Germain during the UEFA Champions League Final 2025 between Paris Saint-Germain and FC Internazionale Milano at Munich Football Arena on May 31, 2025 in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

As things stand after the conclusion of Tuesday night’s fixtures, England remain top of the rankings with a score of 20.958. Portugal are in second on 16.600, Germany in third with 16.500, Spain in fourth with 15.781 and Italy in fifth with 15.500.

Unfortunately for Italy, the gap between themselves and Spain has opened up slightly following the conclusion of Tuesday night’s games.

How are the extra Champions League spots decided?

MILAN, ITALY – MARCH 11: The UEFA Champions League trophy is cleaned as it is displayed on a plinth at the side of the pitch prior to the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Round of 16 Second Leg match between FC Internazionale Milano and Feyenoord at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on March 11, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

The nations that finish the season in the top two on UEFA’s season association coefficient are awarded one additional spot each in the following season’s Champions League.

So, how does the coefficient ranking work?

Teams competing in the three UEFA competitions (the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League) are awarded points based on their results in the European competitions. Nations are awarded two points for each of its teams’ wins, one for a draw and zero for a defeat. Those points are halved for qualifying matches.

Bonus points are also awarded depending on each team’s finish in the league phase table. The team that finishes top of the Champions League pile gets an additional 12 points, the team in second gets 11.750, the team in third gets 11.500 and so on all the way down to the team in 36th. The winner of the Europa League league phase is awarded 6 points and 4 for the team at the top of the Conference League table. Points are awarded for places 1-24 in both the Europa League and Conference League.

Additional bonus points are also awarded for each knockout stage that a team passes through.

LONDON, ENGLAND – JUNE 01: Carlo Ancelotti, Head Coach of Real Madrid, lifts the UEFA Champions League Trophy after his team’s victory during the UEFA Champions League 2023/24 Final match between Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid CF at Wembley Stadium on June 01, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

All of those points are added up and are then divided by the number of teams that the nation in question has competing in UEFA competitions.

Italy’s collective points tally stands at 108.500, which comes to a coefficient score of 15.500 when divided by the number of Italian sides involved in European competition this season (seven).

That score of 15.500 keeps Italy in fifth place in the season’s association coefficient ranking.