Borussia Dortmund are once again the second-best Bundesliga club in the European ranking.
The draw against Manchester City not only prematurely wrapped up Borussia Dortmund’s place in the UEFA Champions League last 16, but also bumped them up six places in the five-year ranking for the time being.
Borussia Dortmund (83 points) have leapfrogged Rasenballsport Leipzig (76) in the five-year ranking and are once again the second-best Bundesliga club in the European ranking behind Bayern Munich (126), who occupy second spot just behind Manchester City (129). Following the final whistle in the European club competition matches on Tuesday, BVB sit in 12th place.
BVB have picked up six coefficient points this season thanks to their two victories over Copenhagen and Sevilla (two each) and their two draws with Sevilla and Manchester City (one point each). Added to that is a four-point bonus for their participation in the group stages as well as an additional five-point bonus for qualifying for the round of 16. With 15 points now on the board, Borussia already have five points more than they amassed in the entirety of last season – and in the 2017/18 campaign, which has no longer factored into the ranking since the beginning of this year. This was also the cause of the gap to Leipzig, who lost 17 points from the 2017/18 season while Borussia only lost 10.
Every win earns two points for the five-year ranking, while a draw brings one point. On top of that, there are bonus points for reaching the group phase (four) and last 16 (five), and one more point for each additional round. Borussia Dortmund went into the season in 18th place and were placed down in pot three for the draw for the group stages for the first time since 2013/14.
The five-year ranking is irrelevant as far as the draw for the round of 16 is concerned. When the pairings for the round of the 16 best European teams are drawn on 7 November, it is the placements in the group stages that will count. The group winners will face the group runners-up and will play the first leg away.
Boris Rupert