
UEFA has officially presented the new format of the Champions League starting from the 2024-2025 season, a new format, with many matches, more spectacle and with a lot of rivalry, at least this is what the leaders of this institution hope.
The participating teams will be 36, with the most important championships that currently have 4 teams each, but with one innovation, as the UEFA seasonal classification will give one more team to the two best championships, currently led by Italy.
In the group, where all 36 teams will be, each team will play 8 games, unlike the 6 it plays now. There will be no round robin challenges, but 8 direct opponents to be determined by the draw to be held in August in Montecarlo.
In the draw, the 36 teams will be divided into 4 pots of 9 teams, based on the classification for clubs, where the champion teams will be in the first pot. Each team will draw two opponents from each pot, one of which they will face at home and the other away.
After the group matches are over, the 8 teams that will be the first in the ranking qualify directly for the 1/8. Teams from 9th to 16th place will face those from 17th to 24th place in the playoffs. The eight play-off winners will join the top eight teams, while the eight losers are eliminated, as well as those ranked from 25th to 36th in the group.
Another innovation is that there will not be a passage to the Europa League as before for the third places in the groups, as the teams that are eliminated are directly outside the European Cups. The remaining 16 teams will then be challenged in the 1/8, quarter-finals, and semi-finals with round-robin matches, until the unique final, always according to a table with cross-overs determined from the beginning like in tennis. There will be only one draw in the new Championship, the one in August. For the team that goes to the final, there will be a total of 15 games, 17 for those that go through the playoffs.