The 2024/25 UEFA Champions League features some crucial changes to Europe's top premier soccer competition.
For the first time in the tournament's history, there will be a move away from the traditional group stages into a ' league phase ', as the number of teams competing increases from 32 to 36.
Extra matches and more teams involved has caused controversy with the game schedule expanded as part of a new format for players and fans to adjust to.
UEFA is confident the alterations will make for a more exciting competition, in which "bigger" clubs will face one another more often, but the changes mean a delay to fixtures being confirmed.
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When are 2024/25 Champions League fixtures announced?
The draw for the UEFA Champions League's new 'league phase' took place on August 29 . However, the final fixture list will not be released until August 31, as part of another change.
Previously, fixtures were revealed shortly after the group-stage draw, but the list for 2024/25 takes longer to formalise with the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League draws taking place on August 30.
UEFA will liaise with individual domestic leagues to organise fixtures and the extra planning covers the delay.
New UEFA Champions League format explained: What's different for 2024/25?
The main difference for this season's Champions League is that the group stage has been replaced with a new ' league phase ', and the number of teams competing has increased from 32 to 36.
Previously, 32 teams qualified for the initial phase of the tournament. They were then drawn into eight groups of four, with seedings used to help determine which teams were placed where. This was the 'group stage'.
From 2024/25 onwards, the first phase of the competition will see all 36 teams placed into a league format. Each team will face eight others (four at home, four away).
A total of 16 teams will then qualify from this league phase to the knockout stage, which begins with the Round of 16 and follows the usual format (i.e. two-legged ties between two teams, with the winner advancing to the next round) all the way to the final.
UEFA Champions League schedule 2024-25
League Phase:
- Matchday One: Sept. 17-19, 2024
- Matchday Two: Oct. 1-2, 2024
- Matchday Three: Oct. 22-23, 2024
- Matchday Four: Nov. 5-6, 2024
- Matchday Five: Nov. 26-27, 2024
- Matchday Six: Dec. 10-11, 2024
- Matchday Seven: Jan. 21-22, 2025
- Matchday Eight: Jan. 29, 2025
Knockout phase:
- Knockout-round playoffs: Feb. 11-12 & Feb. 18-19, 2025
- Round of 16: TBC
- Quarterfinals: TBC
- Semifinals: TBC
- Final: May 31, 2025
The new format to the Champions League means the first phase, now known as the "league phase", will last a little longer than the previous group stage. Matchday One begins on September 17, and the final Matchday Eight will not take place until January 29, 2025.
The playoff round for the knockout phase is in mid-February, with the remainder of the elimination stages taking place across March, April, and May.
The 2024/25 Champions League final will be held on May 31, 2025, at Munich's Allianz Arena.
How to buy Champions League tickets 2024/25
Once dates and times for Champions League fixtures are confirmed, the ticket process will begin. Other than the final itself, tickets cannot be purchased from UEFA directly for European matches.
Instead, the primary ticket sales are conducted by the participating clubs themselves so that fans can access them seamlessly just as they would other matches.
Once the tickets are distributed, fans can still get tickets on secondary market, with StubHub International as the best place to find tickets to Champions League games.
How to watch Champions League around the world
Here's how to watch UEFA Champions League matches across selected areas of the world's major regions:
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