UEFA Champions League 2002-03
Milan raising the trophy
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|
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 17 July 2002 – 28 May 2003 |
| Teams | 32 (group stage) 72 (total) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |
 Milan (6th title)
|
| Runners-up |
Juventus
|
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 157 |
| Goals scored | 428 (2.73 per match) |
| Attendance | 7,535,491 (47,997 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |
 Ruud van Nistelrooy(Manchester United; 12 goals) |
The 2002–03 UEFA Champions League was the 11th season of UEFA's premier European club football tournament, the UEFA Champions League, since its rebranding in 1992, and the 48th European Cup tournament overall. The competition was won by Milan, who beat Juventus on penalties in the European Cup's first ever all-Italian final, to win their sixth European title, and its first in nine years. Manchester United's Ruud van Nistelrooy was again the top scorer, scoring 12 goals over the two group stages and knockout stage, in addition to two goals he had scored in the qualifying phase, although his side bowed out in the quarter-finals and missed out on the chance of playing in a final at their own stadium.
Real Madrid were the defending champions, but were eliminated by Juventus in the semi-finals.
A total of 72 teams participated in the 2002–03 Champions League, from 51 UEFA associations (Liechtenstein organizes no domestic league competition). Countries are allocated places according to their 2002 UEFA league coefficient, which takes into account their performance in European competitions from 1996–97 to 2000–01.
Below is the qualification scheme for the 2002–03 UEFA Champions League:
All draws held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland unless stated otherwise.
1Match played at GSP Stadium in Nicosia, Cyprus after UEFA banned international matches from being played in Israel.
1Match played in Sofia, Bulgaria after UEFA banned international matches from being played in Israel.
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