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Ryan Kelly

New Champions League format explained: How UCL will work from 2024-25 season

Still not sure how the new Champions League format will work? We've got it covered for you.

UEFA has shaken up its elite club competitions with the introduction of new formats across the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League.

Change can be difficult and indeed bewildering for some, but the brains behind European football's transformed approach are confident that it will be for the better.

So, what is the new Champions League format? GOAL takes a look at how it will work.

  • What is the new Champions League format?

    Old formatNew format
    32-team group stage36-team league phase
    Eight groups of four teamsSingle league format
    Six games vs three teams (three home, three away)Eight games vs eight teams (four home, four away)
    Top two in each group qualifiesTop eight qualify + winners of play-off

    The new Champions League format will no longer feature a 32-team group stage and there will be a 36-team league phase instead.

    Each of the 36 teams will play eight different teams, with four of those games played at home and four games played away. A seeding system was used in the draw to determine which teams played each other.

    Normal rules apply in terms of points - three points for a win, one point for a draw and zero points for a loss.

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    Who goes through to the knockout stage?

    • Top eight advance to last 16 round.
    • Teams who finish 9th to 24th contest play-off.
    • Winners of play-off play top eight in last 16 round.
    • Format remains the same as old format from last 16 round on.

    The top eight teams in the league phase progress directly to the last 16 stage of the knockout round.

    The 16 teams that finish ninth to 24th in the league phase will compete in a knockout phase play-off. Those who finish ninth to 16th will be seeded for the draw, while the teams who finish 17th to 24th will be unseeded.

    The eight winners of the knockout phase play-off round advance to the last 16, where they will play against the the top eight teams from the league phase.

    From the last 16 stage onwards, the Champions League format remains the same as before, with quarter-finals and semi-finals followed by a final in a neutral venue.

    To help you digest it a bit more, UEFA has put together a really simple explainer video here.

  • Do eliminated teams go into the Europa League?

    No. Teams that finish 25th to 36th (the bottom 12) will be eliminated entirely from UEFA club competition for that season. There is no drop down into the Europa League, as happened in the previous format for third-place teams in the groups.

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