UEFA 2024/25 New Champions League Format: All You Need To Know

The Union of European Football Association – the apex body governing football administration in Europe – have finally unveiled the new Champions League format that will take effect from next season.

In a report on the UEFA website detailing the new Champions League format, the European football governing body confirmed the new format will take centerstage from next year and will replace the current format of the competition with some modifications.

What are the major changes to the new 2024 /25 Champions League format?

The first major change to the old format is the number of teams that will qualify for the competition. The current format of the competition was made up of 32 teams. The new format has been extended to 36 teams with four new slots to promote increased participation and competitiveness.

Another major alteration is the demise of the group stage format. There will no longer be a group stage in the competition again. The competition will be played in a ‘Swiss style’ league format with each team playing four home and away matches.

How will teams qualify for the knockout?

Previously, the defunct old format saw the top two teams in each group of the competition book qualification for the knockout of the competition. With the group stage format gone, the top 8 teams on the table will automatically qualify for the Knockout of the competition. Teams ranked 9th to 24th will be paired for a two-legged playoff to join the top 8 teams in the next round of the competition. And teams ranked below 24th crash out of the competition.

How the additional four slots will be shared to teams

According to UEFA.com;

– Slot One is allocated to the club that is ranked third on their domestic league whose national association is fifth on UEFA league rankings.

– Slot two will go to domestic champion who will make the fifth club to join the battle to qualify for the league phase of the competition through the Champions Path.

– Slot three and four are allocated to the best two high-ranking leagues with the highest UEFA coefficients on the UEFA ranking. The two best leagues will have one automatic slot each, extending their slot number to five.

This means high-ranking leagues on the UEFA rankings like the Premier League and Serie A are more likely to have five clubs play Champions League football next season against the traditional four teams in the old format.