2018 OFC Champions League group stage explained

The 2018 OFC Champions League group stage was played from 10 February to 3 March 2018.^[1] A total of 16 teams competed in the group stage to decide the eight places in the knockout stage of the 2018 OFC Champions League.

Draw

The draw for the group stage was held on 15 September 2017 at the OFC Headquarters in Auckland, New Zealand.^[2] The 16 teams (14 teams entering the group stage and two teams advancing from the qualifying stage) were drawn into four groups of four, with each group containing two teams from Pot B (which were drawn into positions 1–2 to determine the fixtures) and two teams from Pot C (which were drawn into positions 3–4 to determine the fixtures). Teams from the same association, as well as the two teams advancing from the qualifying stage, could not be drawn into the same group. The teams were seeded based on the following:^[3]

• Pot B contained the champions of the seven developed associations, and the runners-up of New Zealand, by virtue of having the best second team in the 2017 OFC Champions League.
• Pot C contained the runners-up of the six developed associations apart from New Zealand, and the two teams advancing from the qualifying stage, whose identity was not known at the time of the draw.

The following were the winners and runners-up of the qualifying stage which join the 14 direct entrants in the group stage.

width=210	Qualifying stage winners	width=210	Qualifying stage runners-up
Tupapa Maraerenga	Lupe o le Soaga

Format

The four teams in each group played each other on a round-robin basis at a centralised venue. The winners and runners-up of each group advanced to the quarter-finals of the knockout stage.

Schedule

The hosts of each group were announced by OFC on 31 October 2017.^[4]

• Group A matches were played between 10 and 16 February 2018 in Port Vila, Vanuatu.
• Group B matches were played between 11 and 17 February 2018 in Pirae, Tahiti.
• Group C matches were played between 25 February – 3 March 2018 in Auckland, New Zealand.
• Group D matches were played between 24 February – 2 March 2018 in Honiara, Solomon Islands.

The schedule of each matchday was as follows.^{[1] [5] [6]}

Matchday	Dates				Matches
	Group A	Group B	Group C	Group D
Matchday 1	10 February 2018	11 February 2018	25 February 2018	24 February 2018	Team 4 vs. Team 1, Team 2 vs. Team 3
Matchday 2	13 February 2018	14 February 2018	28 February 2018	27 February 2018	Team 1 vs. Team 3, Team 4 vs. Team 2
Matchday 3	16 February 2018	17 February 2018	3 March 2018	2 March 2018	Team 1 vs. Team 2, Team 3 vs. Team 4

Groups

Group A

All times were local, VUT (UTC+11).^[6]

--------

Group B

All times were local, TAHT (UTC−10).^[6]

--------

Group C

All times were local, NZDT (UTC+13).^[6]

--------

Group D

All times were local, SBT (UTC+11).^[6]

--------

External links

• OFC Champions League 2018, oceaniafootball.com

Notes and References

1. Web site: Match Schedule 2018. Oceania Football Confederation.
2. Web site: Groups confirmed for Champions League. Oceania Football Confederation. 15 September 2017.
3. Web site: 2018 OFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE DRAW. YouTube. 15 September 2017.
4. Web site: Hosts announced for OFC Champions League 2018. Oceania Football Confederation. 31 October 2017.
5. Web site: OFC Champions League schedule revealed. Oceania Football Confederation. 11 January 2018.
6. Web site: OFC Champions League 2018 Match Schedule. Oceania Football Confederation.