| Organising body | NAL |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2074 |
| Region | North America |
| Number of teams |
|
| Current champions | Gioco FC (2nd title) |
| Most successful club(s) | Gioco FC (2 titles) |
The NAL Champions League (abbreviated as NALCL) is an annual club association football competition organized by the National Athletic, Transcontinental, and Impartial Organization of North American Leagues (NAL) that is contested by clubs in the top eight tiers of the American football pyramid. The competition was founded in 2074 and has been played every year since.
In its present format, the NAL Champions League begins in August with a group stage. The group stage consists of eight groups with four clubs in each; each club in a group plays every other club in the group twice and, after all matches are played, the top two clubs in each group move on to the playoffs. The club that wins the playoffs is declared the champions of the NAL Champions League. In the 12 years since its establishing, only one club has won more than one Champions League: Gioco FC. A club located in the United States has won eight of the twelve total Champions Leagues.
Format
editThe NAL Champions League is split into two parts: the group stage and the playoffs. Prior to both is the drawing for the group stage.
Drawing
editOne month prior to the start of the Champions League, typically in July, the NAL will host a drawing for the clubs participating in the competition to see what clubs end up in what groups. Each league that participates in the competition gets a set amount of bids; for example, the United League (UL), the top tier of the pyramid, gets twelve bids. One rule for the drawing is that a group cannot have more than two UL clubs in it.
Group stage
editIn the group stage, groups are named by letter (A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H) and contain four clubs in each. In a group, every club will play every other club twice, once at home and once away. The top two clubs in a group proceed to the playoffs.
For example, Group B in the 2084–85 NAL Champions League contained Chicago FC (UL), Guayaba FC (UL), Landers OFC (Paizo League (East)), and CF Ciudad (NAL League Two). Guayaba won the group with Chicago finishing second, meaning both would advance to the playoffs, while Landers and Ciudad were eliminated.
Playoffs
editAfter the group stage, the top two teams in each group are put into a single-elimination tournament.
Below is the playoff bracket from the most recent playoffs: the 2085 NAL Champions League Playoffs.
| First round | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||||||||||
| A1 | Country United | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| B2 | Chicago FC | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| B2 | Chicago FC | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| C1 | CF Montréal | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| C1 | CF Montréal | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| D2 | Winnipeg United | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| B2 | Chicago FC | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| H2 | Gioco FC | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| E1 | CF Alajuela | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| F2 | Philos FC | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| F2 | Philos FC | 1(3) | |||||||||||||||||
| H2 | Gioco FC | 1(4) | |||||||||||||||||
| G1 | Sporting TC | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| H2 | Gioco FC | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| H2 | Gioco FC | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| B1 | Guayaba FC | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| A2 | Philadelphia FC | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| B1 | Guayaba FC | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| B1 | Guayaba FC | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| C2 | Panthers FC | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| C2 | Panthers FC | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| D1 | Providence Athletic | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| B1 | Guayaba FC | 2(4) | |||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Ager Ludo FC | 2(2) | |||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Ager Ludo FC | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| F1 | Forest City | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Ager Ludo FC | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| G2 | Deportivo Managua | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| G2 | Deportivo Managua | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| H1 | Sporting NVB | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
Winners
edit| Year | Winning team | Score | Losing team | Winning team league | Losing team league |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2074 | New York SC | 1(5)–1(4) | EF Pòtoprens | NAL League One | NAL Championship |
| 2075 | Country United | 1–0 | CF Capital | United League | NAL League Two |
| 2076 | Atlético Panamá | 2–0 | Birmingham ASC | United League | NAL League Two |
| 2077 | Philadelphia SC | 2–0 | Inter San Antonio | NAL League One | United League |
| 2078 | Meadows LVSC | 3–2 | CF San José | NAL League Two | NAL Championship |
| 2079 | Gioco FC | 2–0 | Bayou City | United League | United League |
| 2080 | SC Atlanta | 3–1 | Milwaukee FAC | United League | United League |
| 2081 | CF Montréal | 2–0 | Fresno AFC | NAL Championship | Paizo League (West) |
| 2082 | Oklahoma City FC | 2–1 | Bayou City | NAL League One | United League |
| 2083 | Inter San Antonio | 1–0 | Guayaba FC | United League | United League |
| 2084 | Milwaukee FAC | 1–0 | Silicon Athletic | United League | Paizo League (West) |
| 2085 | Gioco FC | 1–0 | Guayaba FC | NAL Championship | United League |