What the 2024/25 Champions League Will Be Like: Key Features of the New Format

Several significant changes will make the 2024/25 Champions League season unique. This article will discuss what’s new and what we’ll no longer see in Europe’s premier club competition.

More Teams and Matches

The main innovation is the removal of the traditional group stage. Teams will no longer be split into eight groups. Instead, there will be a single league table. Moreover, the number of participants has increased from 32 to 36.

Two additional spots were given to the countries with the highest points in last season’s European competitions — Italy and Germany. This means both will now have five teams in the Champions League instead of four. However, these additional spots will be redistributed yearly based on UEFA’s coefficient rankings.

Another spot goes to the third-placed team from the fifth-ranked league (this season, it's Brest from Ligue 1 in France). The final additional spot was awarded through qualification via the champion's path.

Previously, each team played two matches (home and away) against three other teams in their group. Now, every team will play a match against eight different teams chosen through a draw — four home games and four away.

Who Advances to the Knockout Stage

The top eight teams with the most points in the overall league table will automatically advance to the Round of 16. The remaining eight spots will be contested by teams ranked 9th to 24th, who will play in playoff matches. The winners will face the top eight in the Round of 16.

Teams ranked 25th and below will be eliminated without the chance to continue in European competitions that season.

The Round of 16, quarter-finals, and semi-finals will be played as before — two-legged ties (home and away), with the losing team eliminated and the winner advancing.

The final match will be held at a neutral venue this season, the Allianz Arena in Munich.

Exclusive Week

Another highlight of the new format is that the first round of matches will take place on Tuesdays and Wednesdays as well as Thursdays. Subsequent matches in the league stage will continue as before — on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Match start times remain the same, except for the final round, where all games will kick off simultaneously.

Due to the increase in matches, the league stage will extend beyond the New Year and end in late January.

UEFA believes the new format will result in fewer "meaningless" matches, as many teams won’t know their final positions until the last round. Additionally, teams will be more motivated to collect as many points as possible, as the first and second-placed teams in the overall standings will not face each other before the final. The third and fourth won’t meet until the semi-finals.

Published by Patrick Jane
16.09.2024