The 2024-2025 Champions League is being shaken up this year and we explain everything to you.
The new edition of the Champions League is a revolution. The competition now welcomes 36 teams, compared to 32 previously with the disappearance of the group stage, but the appearance of a “regular season” with a single ranking that brings together the 36 qualified clubs. Each team has 8 matches to play (compared to 6 currently), for as many different opponents. This is where the pot system comes into play, allowing total fairness to be preserved. At the end of this mini championship, the lowest ranked teams, i.e. between places 25 and 36, will be eliminated from the competition and will not be drafted into the Europa League. The teams having finished in the first 8 places will qualify directly for the round of 16 of the competition. They will have the advantage of being seeded, and therefore not playing each other in the next round.
On the other hand, the teams ranked between 9th and 24th will have to go through play-offs in a two-legged format. The draw for the final phase will also be changed and will take place with a seeding system. Thus, the championship leader will not be able to be in the same part of the table as its runner-up. The third will be in the opposite part of the table to the fourth…
Here is the draw for French clubs:
- The opponents of the PSG for this new formula of the Champions League
- Home: Manchester City / Atletico Madrid / PSV Eindhoven / Girona
- Away: Bayern Munich / Arsenal / Salzburg / Stuttgart
- The opponents of Lille for this new formula of the Champions League
- Residence : real Madrid / Juventus / Feyenoord / Sturm Graz
- Away: Atletico Madrid / Liverpool / Bologna / Sporting Portugal
- The opponents of Monaco for this new formula of the Champions League
- Home: Barcelona / Benfica / Red Star / Aston Villa
- Away: Arsenal / Inter / Dinamo Zagreb / Bologna
- The opponents of Brest for this new formula of the Champions League
- Home: Real Madrid / Bayer Leverkusen / PSV / Sturm Graz
- Away: Barcelona / Shakhtar / Salzburg / Sparta Prague
The complete calendar
The regular season consists of eight days spread over five months. The first day is played over three days (Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday) while the following days resume the usual Tuesday-Wednesday. On the other hand, the final day, full of promise as the slightest action could shake up the ranking, is played simultaneously on a single Wednesday evening.
- Day 1: September 17-18-19, 2024
- Day 2: October 1-2, 2024
- Day 3: October 22-23, 2024
- Day 4: November 5-6, 2024
- Day 5: November 26-27, 2024
- Day 6: December 10-11, 2024
- Day 7: January 21-22, 2025
- Day 8: January 29, 2025
The final draw of the knockout phase begins with the play-offs in mid-February. In the current model, all rounds are held on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The grand final is held in Munich on Saturday, May 31, 2025.
- Play-off draw: January 31, 2025
- Play-offs for the knockout phase: 11-12 and 18-19 February 2025
- Full table draw: February 21, 2025
- Round of 16: 4-5 and 11-12 March 2025
- Quarter-finals: 8-9 and 15-16 April 2025
- Semi-finals: April 29-30 and May 6-7, 2025
- Final: May 31, 2025
On which TV channel can you watch the Champions League in France?
The battle for TV rights continued to rage ahead of this Champions League season. UEFA awarded the French TV rights for the “Cup with the Big Ears” to beIN Sports and Canal+, which will thus ensure the broadcasting of the Champions League.