2024-08-30 02:07:32
On Thursday, the Champions League was drawn for the first time in the new format. These duels will take place for Bayern, Dortmund & Co. in the league phase.
The first draw for the Champions League in the new format is history. With the support of goalkeeping legend Gigi Buffon and top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo, the so-called league phase, comprising 36 teams, was drawn on Thursday. Each team will face eight opponents, four at home and four away.
UEFA will announce the order and exact match dates on Saturday. The first matchday will start on September 17th.
The opponents of the five German teams at a glance:
– Paris (H)
– Barcelona (A)
– Benfica (H)
– Donezk (A)
– Zagreb (H)
– Feyenoord (A)
– Bratislava (H)
– Aston Villa (A)
– Barcelona (H)
– Real Madrid (A)
– Donezk (H)
– Bruges (A)
– Celtic (H)
– Zagreb (A)
– Grace (H)
– Bologna (A)
– Liverpool (H)
– Inter (A)
– Juventus (H)
– Atletico (A)
– Sporting (H)
– Celtic (A)
– Aston Villa (H)
– Sturm Graz (A)
– Inter (H)
– Liverpool (A)
– AC Milan (H)
– Atletico (A)
– Salzburg (H)
– Feyenoord (A)
– Sparta Prague (H)
– Brest (A)
– PSG (H)
– Real Madrid (A)
– Atalanta (H)
– Juventus (A)
– Bern (H)
– Red Star Belgrade (A)
– Sparta Prague (H)
– Bratislava (A)
The top eight teams in the table at the end of the league phase are qualified for the round of 16. The clubs in positions 9 to 24 play in a new knockout round to advance. The remaining teams are eliminated and there is no longer any relegation to the Europa League.
The reform increases the number of games from 125 to 189. More games also mean more money: instead of around two billion euros, UEFA will now distribute 2.467 billion euros per season to the clubs. The final will take place on May 31, 2025 in the Allianz Arena in Munich.