Sporting could reach Champions League with a helping hand from Porto | OneFootball

Sporting currently occupies second place in the Primeira Liga, four points behind the leader Porto, with nine rounds remaining in the championship. This position could mean losing direct access to the Champions League group stage, but there is still a scenario that could benefit the lions even without the title.

Everything depends on UEFA regulations and the winner of the Europa League. The champion of this competition gains direct access to the Champions League, but if that team is already qualified for the tournament via their domestic league, the spot goes to the club with the highest coefficient in the UEFA ranking among those in the Champions League qualifiers. This team automatically advances to the group stage.

This is where Sporting is well positioned. Among the clubs currently in qualifying spots for the Champions League, the lions have the highest coefficient, with 79,500 points. This places Rui Borges's team in a favorable position should this extra spot become available.

Benfica is also closely monitoring this situation. If the eagles surpass Sporting and finish as runners-up, they will lead this list, as they have an even higher coefficient than the green and whites: 90,000 points.

In this scenario, Porto itself could end up helping its rivals. If the dragons eliminate Stuttgart in the Europa League round of 16, they will earn important points in the UEFA ranking and surpass Club Brugge's coefficient, which is 75,250 points and can no longer increase its score since it is out of European competitions.

In practice, this means that if Porto continues in the competition and increases the Portuguese coefficient, the team picked for the Europa League winner's spot could be Portuguese - among Sporting, Benfica, or even Porto itself, depending on the final standings.

For this scenario to materialize, the Europa League winner must also qualify directly for the Champions League through their league. Among the teams still in the competition and well-positioned in their respective leagues are Aston Villa, Roma, Porto, Stuttgart, and Lyon.

There is even a more favorable scenario: if Porto becomes national champion and also wins the Europa League, the spot reserved for the competition winner would be freed up and would automatically go to the second-placed team in the Portuguese league, guaranteeing them direct entry into the Champions League group stage.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.