Champions League 2024-2025: a ‘simple’ guide to the new format

Starting from the 2024-2025 season, the Champions League will be revamped into a ‘simplified’ format. The straightforward group stages are being tossed away in favour of an ‘excitingly new competition. Gone are the predictable days of straightforward group stages; say hello to the brave new world of the League phase. 

Introducing the major changes

If you’re scratching your head wondering what’s going on, don’t worry. We’ll break down the changes, explain why the head honchos thought this was a good idea, and why we think it’s, well, let’s just say ‘complicated’.

And because we don’t want you to get lost in the football forest, we will split everything in manageable pieces.

What has changed exactly?

So, what’s all the fuss about? Here are the major changes in a nutshell:

1. League phase instead of group stages: Instead of eight groups of four teams, we now have one big happy family – or rather, one big pile of 36 teams.
  
2. More matches: Each team will play eight matches against different opponents, rather than the previous six matches in the group stage. That's right, more football! Because who doesn’t want more midweek fixtures?

3. Qualification to knockouts: The top 8 teams in this mega league will cruise straight into the Round of 16. Teams finishing 9th to 24th will battle it out in play-offs for the remaining 8 spots. The rest will pack their bags and head home. No Europa or Conference League safety nets anymore.

4. More teams: Instead of 32 teams, we now have 36. Four more spots for the underdogs to dream big or for the giants to extend their reign.

Why was this decided?

These changes are meant to increase the excitement and unpredictability of the competition. They aim to provide more high-stake matches and give fans more of the thrilling football they crave. But let’s be honest, more matches also mean more TV rights, sponsorship deals, and revenue... and more betting on matches, of course 😉

What do we think?

The association’s intentions might be noble (and lucrative), and having teams give their all to end up high at the ranking as possible will probably add to the excitement. But we also understand that this new format might leave you feeling like you need a degree in advanced mathematics to follow along.

Don’t worry, we’re here to break it down for you in bite-sized, easy-to-digest articles. Because explaining this entire new format in one go might result in an information overload. And we don’t want you to need a footballing GPS to find your way through the Champions League jungle.

Who’s competing?

So far, 29 teams are confirmed for the League phase:

England: Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa
Spain: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Girona, Atletico Madrid
Germany: Leverkusen, Stuttgart, Bayern, Leipzig, Dortmund
Italy: Inter Milan, AC Milan, Bologna, Juventus
France: Paris Saint-Germain, Monaco, Brest
Netherlands: PSV Eindhoven, Feyenoord
Portugal: Sporting CP, Benfica (because Atalanta qualified for the CL via the domestic league)
Belgium: Club Brugge
Scotland: Celtic
Austria: Sturm Graz
Ukrain: Shakhtar Donetsk (because Real Madrid qualified for the CL in the domestic league)
UEFA Europa League winners: Atalanta

This leaves us with a couple of open spots, which will be filled by new qualifiers:

- The third-placed team from the country ranked fifth in UEFA’s coefficients.
- A domestic champion from the "Champions Path" in qualifying.
- Two spots for the associations with the best collective performance by their clubs in the previous season.

Stay tuned!

We’ll be diving deeper into the specifics of the new League Phase, how teams are seeded, how the matches are determined, and what this means for your favourite clubs in our upcoming articles.

Stick with us, and we’ll guide you through this (a-hem) simple’ new format. So, grab your favourite snack, sit back, and get ready to unravel the mysteries of the new Champions League competition with us.