The most interesting games during the Champions League's new 'league phase'

Did you like the old Champions League format? It was easy enough to follow. There were 32 teams. Those teams would be drawn into eight four-team groups. If you finished in the top two in your group, you qualified for the round of 16. From there, two-legged knockout rounds occurred until the final. Simple, elegant, and now part of the past.

UEFA added four more teams to the Champions League. With 36 teams, we also get a whole new format. Now, we begin with a “League Phase.” All 36 teams play eight games, four home and four away. You can’t play against a team from your domestic league. After eight “league” games, the top eight teams move to the round of 16. Teams nine through 24 engage in a playoff. Teams 25 through 36 are eliminated. Got all that?

While this new phase is a smidge convoluted — all for a few extra (million) bucks — there are some exciting matchups in the League Phase. To try and get you excited to accept this new reality, here are the best League Phase games. We’ve chosen two from each matchday to try and extend that enthusiasm through the whole thing.

Manchester City-Inter Milan (1 of 16)

Manchester City has been a formidable force in the Premier League for years, though it has only won the Champions League once. The team is largely intact, and even brought Ilkay Gundogan back from Barcelona. When City won the Champions League, though, it did it against Inter Milan, a club coming off a season where it utterly rolled in Serie A.

Atletico Madrid-RB Leipzig (2 of 16)

If styles make fights, this one should be a ton of fun. Diego Simeone has helped Atletico overperform time and time again in the Champions League with defensive stoutness and responsibility. RB Leipzig, meanwhile, likes to press…and press…and press. It’s chaos versus order. Oh, and both teams are super talented.

Arsenal-PSG (3 of 16)

Is this the year Arsenal breaks through and wins the Premier League? The Gunners almost did it last season, and Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, and the rest are back for this season. Of course, PSG has other aspirations. The club, with all its money, effectively walks into the Ligue 1 title each season. What it has failed to do, though, is win the Champions League. Until that happens, the whole grand experiment is a failure.

Aston Villa-Bayern Munich (4 of 16)

Aston Villa is playing Champions League football for the first time in ages. It’s also not expected to be a real challenger for the title, though making the playoff round is definitely in the mix. As such, the league phase is really about the iconic clubs from around Europe it gets to play, especially at home. Aston Villa hosting Bayern Munich in the Champions League? Now that’s about as cool as football in Birmingham has been in forever.

Real Madrid-Borussia Dortmund (5 of 16)

Yes, it’s a repeat of last year’s final, but also…it’s a repeat of last year’s final! This time around Kylian Mbappe is playing with Real Madrid as well as he hopes to finally win the Champions League title he couldn’t at PSG. Maybe this time we will get the Dortmund upset many of us wanted in the 2024 final.

Barcelona-Bayern Munich (6 of 16)

Madrid-Dortmund is the appetizer to another Spain-Germany matchup. Munich’s title streak in the Bundesliga ended last year, and the club is looking to reset the pecking order of German football. Barcelona is off to a torrid start to the 2024-25 season under its new manager. Oh, and that manager is Hansi Flick, former manager of Bayern.

Liverpool-Bayer Leverkusen (7 of 16)

The team that ended Bayern’s decade atop the Bundesliga? That would be Leverkusen, who did the whole Invincibles thing in the process. While it has already dropped a game this season, the club was able to keep most of its talent, as well as its manager. That manager happens to be Xabi Alonso, a former Liverpool player who will be returning to Anfield.

Inter Milan-Arsenal (8 of 16)

You know, sometimes excitement just comes from two great teams playing one another in a storied stadium for football. Arsenal, as previously noted, is laden with talent. The club has yet to win the Champions League, though. Inter has the key players from the team that won Serie A with gusto, and we just want to see these two teams go at it.

Bayern Munich-PSG (9 of 16)

These two met in the most forgettable Champions League final in history. Nothing personal, guys! It just happened during the COVID-19 pandemic, and frankly that Champions League could have been canceled and it would have had the same impact. Well, other than for Bayern fans, who got another trophy in the case. There’s also this question: What if PSG finally takes this tournament thanks to teamwork and not superstars?

Liverpool-Real Madrid (10 of 16)

Jurgen Klopp is gone, but Liverpool’s still primed to be one of the best teams in Europe. In the Klopp era, these two clubs met twice in the Champions League final. Both times, Madrid won. Can Liverpool flip the script at Anfield?

Borussia Dortmund-Barcelona (11 of 16)

36-year-old Robert Lewandowski and 17-year-old Lamine Yamal are powering the Barcelona attack. As it should be. Dortmund is a team that has managed to stay competitive in Germany and Europe by developing young talent, and it has plenty of that, but the club also added veterans such as Waldemar Anton, Sehou Guirassy, and Pascal Gross this offseason. Will that pay off with a trophy?

Juventus-Manchester City (12 of 16)

It took us all the way to matchday six to get Juventus into the mix. Hey, maybe fans of the stalwart Italian giants should take that as a sign it has a fairly easy path out of the league phase. Even this matchup with Manchester City is at home. It won’t be easy, of course, but that’s why this one makes the cut.

Atletico Madrid-Bayer Leverkusen (13 of 16)

Jan Oblak has been considered the best goalkeeper in the world at times, though he was a bit off last season. However, he was stellar at Euro 2024, and maybe he will carry that into this season. That will be good for Atletico, but also good are the additions of Julian Alvarez and Conor Gallagher. Leverkusen won’t make it easy on it, though.

AC Milan-Girona (14 of 16)

In a somewhat unremarkable week, we wanted to slot a couple new clubs into the mix. AC Milan is one of the most successful clubs in European football history, and has won the second-most Champions League titles to Real Madrid. After some down years, it finished second in Serie A last season. We also want to show some love to a club we may not see in the Champions League again for some time. Girona came out of nowhere to finish third in La Liga last season, but was playing in the second division just three seasons ago and is in its fifth season total in La Liga. Also, last year’s top scorer Artem Dovbyk now plays for Roma.

Barcelona-Atalanta (15 of 16)

Some question Gian Piero Gasperini’s football philosophy as a manager and if it limits Atlanta’s ceiling. Well, it won the Europa League last season and was fun as hell doing it, so you can feel free to wring your hands. Atalanta will just keep on racking up top-five finishes in Serie A. Of course, Barcelona is laden with talent and has been pushing play under Flick. This game could be 5-4 and pure joy.

PSV Eindhoven-Liverpool (16 of 16)

Liverpool brings its star power to the Netherlands on the final matchday. Arne Slot is Dutch, but he managed Feyenoord before this, not Eindhoven. However, Eindhoven is the defending champ, having racked up a plus-90 goal differential last season. Then it added Malik Tillman and Sergino Dest, not to mention Dutch defender Ryan Flamingo. This game could have real stakes. Liverpool could be fighting for a top-eight seed. Eindhoven could be fighting to be seeded in the playoff round if things go well…or fighting to make the playoff round if things don’t. It’s hard to project intrigue this far out, but that didn’t stop us, now did it?