It was announced that the system would change: How will the new Champions League format work?

Starting from the new season, the number of teams competing in the Champions League will be increased from 32 to 36.

In the current Champions League format, 32 teams compete, divided into eight groups of four.

Starting from the 2024/25 season, these group stages will be referred to as the Champions League league phase.

All 36 of these clubs will compete in a single league.

Previously, teams played 6 matches in a group format, with three at home and three away.

Under the new format, teams will play eight matches in the new league phase.

Teams will now face eight different opponents.

They will play half of these matches at home and half away.

To determine the eight different opponents, teams will initially be ranked in four pots.

Subsequently, each team will be drawn to play against two opponents from each of these pots.

They will play one match at home and one match away against a team from each pot.

A segment of the football community criticizes the increase in the number of matches played by footballers, arguing that it will negatively affect player health.

UEFA, however, argues that this format will provide clubs with the opportunity to play against teams of different levels, including those of similar strength.

In the old system, clubs were matched with opponents in four pots, ranked from the most successful to the least successful in European rankings. However, they did not play against any team from their own pot during the group stage.

For example, Real Madrid, one of the most successful teams in the Spanish league, and Paris Saint-Germain, one of the most successful teams in France, could not play against each other in the group stages because they were both in the first pot.

However, the new system will allow these two strong teams to face each other from the very first stage.

With the new league format, four more teams will be added to the Champions League.

Clubs continue to be subject to the standings in which they finished their domestic leagues the previous season and the club coefficient ranking of the association to which that league belongs.

Starting with the 2024/25 season, the additional four teams will be determined as follows:

First spot: This team will be the third-place finisher from the league ranked fifth in the UEFA country rankings.

Second spot: The number of teams coming from the Play-Off system, known as the "Champions Path," will be increased from 4 to 5. This spot will go to a domestic league champion coming from this round.

Third and fourth spots: These two spots will be awarded to one team each from the two countries that collected the most points in UEFA competitions the previous season. For example, if England or France collected the most country points that season, the teams ranked immediately after the number of teams those countries would normally send to the Champions League will qualify for the Champions League.

The final standings will be determined after each team plays eight matches.

The teams in the top eight positions will guarantee their spot in the round of 16.

Teams ranked between 9th and 24th will play a two-legged play-off for the round of 16.

Teams finishing the tournament in 25th place or lower will be eliminated without qualifying for the UEFA Europa League.

Teams finishing the league between 9th and 16th will be seeded in the knockout phase play-off draw. These teams will face a team ranked between 17th and 24th.

The winners of the play-off round will be paired with the teams that qualified directly for the round of 16.

From the round of 16 onwards, matches will be played as in the current system. The final will be played at a neutral venue selected by UEFA.

Europe's second-tier tournament, the Europa League, and its third-tier tournament, the Conference League, are also switching to a similar league format.

In the Europa League's league format, each team will play 8 matches against 8 different teams, with 4 at home and 4 away.

In the Conference League, teams will play a total of 6 matches against 6 different teams, with 3 at home and 3 away.

Champions League and Europa League matches will be played between September and January.

Conference League matches will be spread between September and December.

In standard weeks, Champions League matches will be played on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, while Europa League and Europa Conference League matches will be played on Thursdays.

During the exclusive Champions League week, Champions League matches will be played on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

During the exclusive Europa League week, matches will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, and during the exclusive Europa Conference League week, matches will be held on Thursday.

On the final matchday of each of the tournaments' league phases, all matches will be played simultaneously.