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Colorado Rapids to Learn CONCACAF Champions League Opponents in Draw on Wednesday

May 17, 2011 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Colorado Rapids News Release


COMMERCE CITY, Colo. (Tuesday, May 17, 2011) - The Colorado Rapids will learn their opponents in the 2011-12 CONCACAF Champions League during the competition's draw, to be held on Wednesday at the confederation's headquarters in New York City.

The CONCACAF Champions League is an annual 24-team tournament which identifies the best club team from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.

The draw on Wednesday will establish the eight Preliminary Round knockout matches and composition of the 16-team Group Stage. The first leg of the Preliminary Round will take place July 26-28 with the second leg to be played the following week. The eight winners will advance to join the eight automatic entries in the Group Stage, which will consist of four groups of four teams playing six matches for each club, beginning August 16-18.

The Rapids, by virtue of winning the 2010 MLS Cup, are one of eight teams that have qualified directly into the Group Stage of the tournament, along with the 2010 MLS regular season points-leaders, the LA Galaxy. FC Dallas, the 2010 MLS Cup runner up, and the Seattle Sounders, the 2010 U.S. Open Cup champions, round out the U.S. entries and will join the tournament in the preliminary stage.

Nineteen of the 24 teams in the tournament, representing 12 different countries, have already been decided. Defending Champions League champion Monterrey (Mexico) qualified for the upcoming edition by winning the 2010 Mexican Apertura season, assuring the club of a Group Stage spot.

The winner of the 2011-2012 CONCACAF Champions League earns a berth in the 2012 FIFA Club World Cup, a tournament featuring the winners of the other respective continental championships, including the European Champions League and South America's Copa Libertadores.

2011/2012 CONCACAF Champions League - Qualifiers

NORTH AMERICA (9) United States (4): Los Angeles Galaxy*, Seattle Sounders, Colorado Rapids*, FC Dallas Mexico (4): Monterrey*, Santos Laguna, Pumas UNAM, Morelia Canada (1): Toronto FC or Vancouver Whitecaps

CARIBBEAN (3) CFU Club Champions Cup (3): TO BE DETERMINED FROM - Alpha United (Guyana), Defence Force (Trinidad & Tobago), Puerto Rico Islanders (Puerto Rico Islanders), Tempete (Haiti)

CENTRAL AMERICA (12) Costa Rica (2): Alajuelense*, Herediano El Salvador (2): Isidro Metapan, Alianza FC Guatemala (2): Comunicaciones*, Municipal Honduras (2): Real Espana*, Motagua, Olimpia** Nicaragua (1): (tbd). Walter Ferreti or Real Espana Panama (2): Tauro FC*, San Francisco

* automatically qualified for Group Stage

** spot given to Honduras from Belize, which lacks a suitable playing facility

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