Concacaf announced the launch of a new ranking system for clubs and leagues in the region, which will be used for future competitions and tournaments.
The new rankings will be a key factor in determining draw seedings for official Concacaf club competitions beginning with the new 2023 Central American and Caribbean Cups, and next year’s eagerly anticipated expanded Concacaf Champions League.
As a starting point for the new ranking, the region’s men’s clubs have been ranked based on their results since 2017 in the following official international and domestic club competitions: Concacaf Champions League, Concacaf Regional Cups (Leagues Cup, Central American Cup, and Caribbean Cup), Domestic first division professional leagues, Member Association Cups (which qualify for Concacaf competitions), and the FIFA Club World Cup
Performances in these competitions this season (2023), and going forward in the coming years, will continue to be used to determine the new club ranking. Clubs will gain more ranking points for defeating a higher-ranked opponent and lose more ranking points should they be defeated by a lower-ranked opponent. Home-field advantage is also a factored in these rankings.
In addition to an individual club ranking, Concacaf is launching a league ranking index to determine the strength of domestic professional leagues based on the performances of their clubs in international competitions.
For the League ranking, only international matches are considered and matches from the Concacaf Champions League will award twice the points in comparison to Concacaf Regional Cups. The new club ranking is based on the performances of individual clubs in official international and domestic competitions, while the league ranking only considers international matches.
Seven of the top ten teams in the first rankings come from Liga MX with CF Monterrey and Club America currently occupying the top-two places. Defending MLS Cup champions Los Angeles FC sit third in the rankings, while Chivas de Guadalajara and Tigres round out the top five.
The Philadelphia Union and Seattle Sounders rank No. 9 and No. 10 respectively. Honduran club CD Olimpia is the highest-ranked team (No. 39 overall) that is not from either Liga MX or MLS.
Costa Rican side Deportivo Saprissa (No. 46) and Guatemalan club Comunicaciones FC (No. 47) have also been named in the Top 50 Concacaf clubs.
Liga MX, Major League Soccer, and Honduras’ Liga Nacional are currently ranked the top three leagues within Concacaf.