This page provides the summaries of the matches of the qualifying rounds for the group stage of the 2011 CAF Champions League.
The schedule for the tournament was released in October 2010,[1] and the draw for all three rounds was held in Cairo on 20 December 2010.[2]
Qualification ties were decided over two legs, with aggregate goals used to determine the winner. If the sides were level on aggregate after the second leg, the away goals rule applied, and if still level, the tie proceeded directly to a penalty shootout (no extra time is played).[3]
Preliminary round
This was a knock-out stage of the 46 teams that did not receive byes to the first round.
First legs: 28–30 January 2011; Second legs: 11–13, 25–27 February and 4–6 March 2011.[4]
Al-Ittihad advanced to the second round after JC Abidjan withdrew. Tie was scheduled to be played over one leg at a neutral venue (at Bamako, Mali on 3 April 2011) due to the political situations in Côte d'Ivoire and Libya,[7] but match did not take place.
Second leg abandoned on 90+5 minutes with Zamalek leading 2–1 (Club Africain leading 5–4 on aggregate) when Zamalek fans invaded the pitch.[8]Club Africain advanced to the second round.
TP Mazembe won 6–3 on aggregate and advanced to the second round, but were later disqualified for fielding an ineligible player. As a result, Simba played against Moroccan side Wydad AC, which lost to TP Mazembe in the second round, in a play-off for a place in the group stage.
TP Mazembe won 2–1 on aggregate and advanced to the group stage, but were later disqualified for fielding an ineligible player in the first round. As a result, Wydad AC played against Tanzanian side Simba, which lost to TP Mazembe in the first round, in a play-off for a place in the group stage.
Note: First leg postponed following a request from Coton Sport who had four players in the Cameroon U-20 team playing in the 2011 African Youth Championship in South Africa.[9]
On 14 May 2011, the CAF announced that TP Mazembe from Congo DR were disqualified from the Champions League group stage following a complaint about the eligibility of TP Mazembe's player Janvier Besala Bokungu from Tanzanian side Simba, which lost to them in the first round. As a result, the Organising Committee decided that a replacement for the group stage would be determined by a play-off match at a neutral venue, between Simba and Moroccan side Wydad AC, which lost to TP Mazembe in the second round.[11][12]
