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The new Champions League format this season will see more teams playing more games for more prize money.
On Thursday, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) will make the draw in Monaco for the match schedule of the new single-standings league phase that replaces the traditional group stage.
This latest format is the first change in the Champions League since 2003 promises to be more exciting for fans and teams across the continent.
The revamped Champions League will feature a tennis-style seeding system for the last-16 knockout phase, UEFA said.
Under the new format, in the 36-team league phase, teams will play eight games.
The 36 clubs will be split into four pots of nine with each club facing two from each pot. The final round of group matches will have 16 matches kick off simultaneously.
After facing eight different teams, half at home and half away, the top eight sides will qualify automatically for the last 16, with the sides ranked ninth to 24th going into a playoff.
For the first time, Champions League games scheduled in January.
In the eighth and final round, all 36 teams play on the same January 29 evening to finalise the standings which will decide which eight teams advance directly to the pre-quarterfinals as well as which 16 go into a new knockout playoff round in February, and which 12 are eliminated.
In the playoffs, teams ranked Nos. 9-16 are seeded in the draw to play second legs at home against unseeded teams Nos. 17-24.
A semi-automated draw will also replace the manual draw which has become a feature of the competition.
In March, during the announcement in format change, Giorgio Marchetti, UEFA's Deputy General Secretary and Director of Football, said the new format would make the competition more unpredictable, ensure more matches between the big clubs and less dead rubbers.
The new league phase in European club soccer's marquee event will have 144 total games compared to 96 in the group stage last season.
Which clubs filled in the four extra berths?
There was a criteria that clubs had to fulfill to make the cut to the 36 teams in the UCL.
Two spots were given for countries whose clubs collectively had the best record in UEFA club competitions in the previous season. That was Italy and Germany so the fifth-placed teams in Serie A and the Bundesliga qualified: Bologna and Borussia Dortmund.
The third direct entrry was given to a club from the fifth-ranked national league (based on five years of results in UEFA club competitions) that was France and Brest was third in Ligue 1 behind champions Paris Saint-Germain and runners-up Monaco. However, Brest’s Stade Francis-Le Blé home is not modern enough for Champions League games, with as few as 5,000 seats of the 15,200 capacity able to meet UEFA standards and their home games may be played elsewhere. UEFA is in the process of approving the 19,000-seat Roudourou home of second-tier Guingamp, about 110 kilometers (70 miles) east of the port city Brest.
An extra place goes to the qualifying rounds path for national champions from lower-ranked countries. They now play for five total qualifying places instead of four last season.
Why was the UCL format changed?
According to AP, other than money, nfluential officials at the European Club Association (ECA) got bored of the group stage, saying it was too repetitive and lacked drama. They wanted more games against stronger opponents that would be more valued by broadcasters, viewers and new fans worldwide. Their leverage over UEFA was potentially launching their breakaway competition.
The road to agreeing on the format was rocky. A controversial first proposal in 2019, favoring storied clubs, was stopped by a backlash from mid-ranked clubs and domestic leagues.
There was intense turmoil sparked by the failed Super League launch in April 2021 by most of the same club officials who negotiated Champions League reform with UEFA.
Final format approval came in May 2022 -- when Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus were exiled from the talks and still pursued UEFA in court -- and it was broadly what the rebel Super League clubs had negotiated.
Billion-dollar prize money fund
Winning the Champions League title in 2023 earned Manchester City 135 million euros (USD 151 million) from UEFA. This season's winner can reach 150 million euros (USD 168 million), with total competition revenue boosted by selling 189 total games instead of 125.
Commercial strategy is managed by a UEFA-ECA joint venture, and new sponsors for the Champions League include a cryptocurrency trading platform and a betting site.
Each of the 36 teams gets a basic 18.6 million euros (USD 20.8 million), then 2.1 million euros (USD 2.35 million) for each game won and 700,000 euros (USD 782,000) per draw. (AP)
What are the dates of the Champions League group stage?
Matchday 1: 17, 18, 19 September 2024
Matchday 2: 1, 2 October 2024
Matchday 3: 22, 23 October 2024
Matchday 4: 5, 6 November 2024
Matchday 5: 26, 27 November 2024
Matchday 6: 10, 11 December 2024
Matchday 7: 21, 22 January 2025
Matchday 8: 29 January 2025