Everything you need to know about the new Champions League format

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

The Champions League group phase will commence again in September. This year’s competition is set to be different to the ones we have been used to over the past 20 years, due to UEFA introducing a new format with an expansion to 36 teams that fans need to get used to.

In this article you will discover how the new UEFA Champions League format works, the seedings, which teams have qualified so far, and which other teams may be joining them when the action gets underway in September.

Overview of the new format

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In order to admit more clubs into the competition, UEFA have scrapped the traditional eight groups of four approach that football fans from across the globe love and have become accustomed to.

There will now be a 36-team league phase, where all teams will be competing against each other in a single table. Each team will play eight matches in the new league phase, against eight different teams, split evenly between home and away games.

To determine the eight different opponents, teams will be ranked in four seeding pots, as has been the case for many years. Each team will then be drawn to play two opponents from each of the pots, playing one match from each pot at home, and one away.

The knockout stages

The results of each match will decide the overall ranking in the new league, with the usual three points for a win with one point awarded for a draw.

The top eight sides in the league will qualify automatically for the round of 16, while those that finish 25th or lower will be eliminated. No teams from this season’s Champions League will drop into the Europa League at any point.

At the end of the league phase, teams who finish on the same number of points will be separated by goal difference and goals scored. If another tiebreaker is needed, then the total points gained by the tied clubs’ eight opponents are added up, effectively creating a difficulty level that will determine who had the toughest path.

The teams finishing in 9th to 24th place will compete in a two-legged play-off to secure their path to the last 16 of the Champions League. Those who finish between 9th and 16th will be seeded, and face one of the teams who finished 17th to 24th, with the second leg at the seeded team’s ground.

The eight play-off winners will then face one of the seeded top-eight finishers in the round of 16, when the competition returns to its traditional two-legged knockout method, albeit with a set bracket, meaning no more draws are needed and teams will be able to see their routes to the final.

Champions League 2024/25 fixture dates

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The competition will begin in September as currently is and will run throughout the autumn and winter months, but given there are two extra games to fit in, the league stage won’t be completed until the end of January 2025. From that point onwards, knockout games will be staged every month, right up until the end of May when the final will be held at Munich’s Allianz Arena.

Matchday 1: September 17–19, 2024
Matchday 2: October 1/2, 2024
Matchday 3: October 22/23, 2024
Matchday 4: November 5/6, 2024
Matchday 5: November 26/27, 2024
Matchday 6: December 10/11, 2024
Matchday 7: January 21/22, 2025
Matchday 8: January 29 2025

Knockout round play-offs: February 11/12 & 18/19, 2025
Round of 16: March 4/5 & 11/12, 2025
Quarter-finals: April 8/9 & 15/16, 2025
Semi-finals: April 29/30 & May 6/7, 2025
Final: May 31, 2025

What clubs have already qualified?

29 of the 36 teams who will be competing in the league stage are already known, with the following earning their spots through domestic league qualification:

England: Man City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa
Spain: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Girona, Atletico Madrid
Germany: Bayer Leverkusen, Stuttgart, Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig
Italy: Inter Milan, AC Milan, Juventus, Atalanta
France: Paris Saint-Germain, Monaco, Brest
Netherlands: PSV Eindhoven, Feyenoord
Portugal: Sporting Lisbon, Benfica
Belgium: Club Brugge
Scotland: Celtic
Austria: Sturm Graz
Ukraine: Shakhtar Donetsk

Meanwhile, Bologna and Borussia Dortmund have also qualified after Italy and Germany received an extra place after their club sides performed best in UEFA tournaments last season.

Currently, five teams will make their Champions League bow – Aston Villa, Bologna, Brest and Girona – while the latter two will taste European competition for the first time in their history.

Who else could qualify?

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The final seven teams will be determined via a play-off round, which Dinamo Zagreb, Red Star Belgrade, Young Boys and Galatasaray will all definitely feature in having won their domestic leagues.

The other 10 spots in the play-offs will be determined via three qualification rounds. Rangers, Slavia Prague, Red Bull Salzburg and Lille have all made it to that stage, where they await the victorious teams from the previous rounds.

When will the draw be made?

The draw for the new 36-team league phase, where we will discover the eight opponents we will face off against, will take place on August 29, 2024 – the day after the completion of the final play-off matches.