The final phase of the 2002–03 UEFA Cup began on 26 November 2002 with the first matches of the third round and concluded on 21 May 2003 with the final at the Estadio Olímpico in Seville, Spain. A total of 32 teams competed in this phase of the competition.

Times up to 30 March 2003 (quarter-finals) were CET (UTC+1), and thereafter (semi-finals and final) CEST (UTC+2).

Round and draw dates The draw for the third round was held in Geneva, while the remaining draws were held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.

RoundDraw dateFirst legSecond legThird round15 November 200228 November 200212 December 2002Fourth round13 December 200220 February 200327 February 2003Quarter-finals13 March 200320 March 2003Semi-finals21 March 200310 April 200324 April 2003Final21 May 2003 at Estadio Olímpico, Seville

Format Apart from the final, each tie was played over two legs, with each team playing one leg at home. The team that scored more goals on aggregate over the two legs advanced to the next round. If the aggregate score was level, the away goals rule was applied, i.e., the team that scored more goals away from home over the two legs advanced. If away goals were also equal, then thirty minutes of extra time (two fifteen-minute periods) was played. For the first time in an international football tournament, the silver goal system was applied, whereby the team who leads the game at the half-time break during the extra time period would be declared the winner. If the scores were still level after the initial 15 minutes of extra time play would continue for a further 15 minutes. The away goals rule was again applied after extra time, i.e., if there were goals scored during extra time and the aggregate score was still level, the visiting team advanced by virtue of more away goals scored. If no goals were scored during extra time, the tie was decided by penalty shoot-out.

In the final, which was played as a single match, if scores were level at the end of normal time, extra time was played. If, on completion of the first period of extra time, one of the teams had scored more goals than the other, the silver goal rule was applied, i.e., the match ended and that team was declared the winner. If no decisive goal was scored, the second period of the extra time was played, followed by a penalty shoot-out if scores remained tied.

The mechanism of the draws for each round was as follows: In the draws the third and fourth rounds, teams were seeded and divided into groups containing an equal number of seeded and unseeded teams. In each group, the seeded teams were drawn against the unseeded teams, with the first team drawn hosting the first leg. Teams from the same association could not be drawn against each other. In the draws for the quarter-finals onwards, there were no seedings and teams from the same association could be drawn against each other.

Qualified teams The final phase involved 32 teams: the 24 teams which qualified from the second round, and the eight third-placed teams from the Champions League first group stage.

+ Qualified teamsTeamNotes Lazio 106.334 Liverpool 79.729 Leeds United 76.729 Celta Vigo 76.233 Lyon 74.176 Porto 66.124 Bordeaux 63.176 Dynamo Kyiv 59.979TeamNotes Panathinaikos 57.058 VfB Stuttgart 53.495 Hertha BSC 52.495 AEK Athens 52.058 Paris Saint-Germain 51.176 Real Betis 49.233 Slavia Prague 47.312 Schalke 04 46.495TeamNotes Lens 44.176 Club Brugge 41.762 PAOK 41.058 Anderlecht 38.762 Sturm Graz 37.625 Boavista 36.124 Celtic 36.062 Málaga 34.233TeamNotes Auxerre 32.176 Vitesse 30.082 Slovan Liberec 29.312 Fulham 27.729 Beşiktaş 26.362 Wisła Kraków 21.750 Maccabi Haifa 18.666 Denizlispor 14.362

Notes

Bracket

Third round

Seeding The 32 teams were distributed into two groups of eight teams, each containing four seeded and four unseeded teams. The draw was held on 15 November 2002 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Group 1Group 2Group 3Group 4SeededUnseededSeededUnseededSeededUnseededSeededUnseeded

Summary

The first legs were played on 26 and 28 November, and the second legs were played on 10 and 12 December 2002.

Matches

Hertha BSC won 2–1 on aggregate.

2–2 on aggregate; Boavista won on away goals.

Wisła Kraków won 5–2 on aggregate.

Denizlispor won 1–0 on aggregate.

Panathinaikos won 3–2 on aggregate.

Beşiktaş won 3–1 on aggregate.

Anderlecht won 4–2 on aggregate.

Slavia Prague won 4–1 on aggregate.

AEK Athens won 8–1 on aggregate.

Lazio won 3–2 on aggregate.

VfB Stuttgart won 3–1 on aggregate.

Liverpool won 2–0 on aggregate.

2–2 on aggregate; Celtic won on away goals.

Auxerre won 2–1 on aggregate.

Málaga won 2–1 on aggregate.

Porto won 3–1 on aggregate.

Fourth round

Seeding The 16 teams were distributed into two groups of eight teams, each containing four seeded and four unseeded teams. The draw was held on 13 December 2002 in Nyon, Switzerland.

Group 1Group 2SeededUnseededSeededUnseeded

Summary

The first legs were played on 20 February, and the second legs were played on 27 February 2003.

Matches

3–3 on aggregate; Boavista won on away goals.

Panathinaikos won 3–2 on aggregate.

Beşiktaş won 4–3 on aggregate.

Liverpool won 3–0 on aggregate.

Lazio won 5–4 on aggregate.

Málaga won 1–0 on aggregate.

Celtic won 5–4 on aggregate.

Porto won 8–3 on aggregate.

Quarter-finals

Summary

The quarter-final draw was held on 13 December 2002, immediately after the fourth round draw. The first legs were played on 13 March, and the second legs were played on 20 March 2003.

Matches

Porto won 2–1 on aggregate.

Lazio won 3–1 on aggregate.

Celtic won 3–1 on aggregate.

1–1 on aggregate; Boavista won 4–1 on penalties.

Semi-finals

Summary

The semi-final draw was held on 21 March 2003. The first legs were played on 10 April, and the second legs were played on 24 April 2003.

Matches

Porto won 4–1 on aggregate.

Celtic won 2–1 on aggregate.

Final

The final was played on 21 May 2003 at the Estadio Olímpico de Sevilla in Seville, Spain. A draw was held on 21 March 2003, after the semi-final draw, to determine the "home" team for administrative purposes.

Notes

References