Knockout football guide
How Aggregate Scores Work.
A two-legged tie combines the score from both matches. The team with more total goals advances after the second leg.
One tie, two matches
In a two-legged knockout tie, the clubs play once at each home ground. The score from the first leg remains active when the second begins. Add every goal scored across both matches: that total is the aggregate score.
Simple example
Club A wins the first leg 2–1. Club B wins the second leg 1–0. Across the tie, each club has scored two goals, so the aggregate score is 2–2.
How to read a live aggregate score
A match page may show the current second-leg score and the aggregate beside it. The match score describes only tonight’s game. The aggregate describes the whole tie. A team can be winning the second leg while still trailing overall.
Suppose Club A lost the first leg 3–0 and leads the second leg 2–0. Club A is ahead in the match but still trails 3–2 on aggregate. One more goal would level the tie; two more would move Club A ahead overall.
What happens when aggregate is level?
The competition regulations decide the next step. In current UEFA men’s club competitions, a level aggregate score after normal time in the second leg leads to two 15-minute periods of extra time. If the teams remain level after extra time, kicks from the penalty mark decide who advances.
Not every competition has to use the same sequence. Some rounds are single matches, and another organiser may specify a different permitted procedure. The fixture regulations are always the final reference.
Away goals no longer break UEFA ties
UEFA removed the away-goals rule from its club competitions starting with the 2021/22 season. An away goal now has the same value as a home goal when calculating who advances. If the aggregate totals are equal, the number of goals scored away does not settle the tie.
Older reports and historic matches may refer to a club advancing on away goals. That was the rule at the time; it should not be applied when interpreting a current UEFA tie.
Do extra-time goals count in aggregate?
Yes. Goals scored during extra time are added to the tie’s aggregate total. A penalty shoot-out is different: successful kicks decide the winner but are reported separately rather than added as ordinary goals to the aggregate score.
A result might therefore read: 3–3 on aggregate after extra time, with Club A winning 5–4 on penalties.
The order of the calculation
- Add the goals from the first leg.
- Add the goals scored in normal time of the second leg.
- If required, add any goals scored in extra time.
- If still level and the regulations require it, use a shoot-out to decide the qualifier.
The short version
- Aggregate means the combined goals from both legs.
- The match score and aggregate score can tell different stories.
- Current UEFA ties do not use away goals as a tie-breaker.
- Extra-time goals count; shoot-out kicks are recorded separately.
Sources and further reading
The UEFA examples reflect current club competition rules. Other competitions may use a different approved knockout procedure.
Related: Extra time vs penalty shoot-outs