The UEFA Champions League is Europe’s pinnacle club competition. Every season since its inception in 1955, when it was commonly known as the European Cup, the best outfits from respective nations across the continent vie for the prestigious trophy.
There has been much speculation ahead of the 2024/25 edition, as the competition is set to incorporate a drastic revamp. This guide may be a great place for you to gear up for the exhilarating soccer competition beginning a new era this season.
Uncovering a New Format Embracing the Competition
Instead of the traditional eight groups of four teams making up 32 competitors, there will now be 36 teams that compete in a single league table system. Each team will face eight different opponents, where four games will be played at home and four away.
The top eight placed sides in the league will advance directly to the round of 16, while teams who finish ninth to 24th will battle it out in the knockout round play-offs via a two-legged tie. Teams ranked 25th to 36th will be eliminated from all competitions.
How Will the Draw Work?
First, all 36 teams will be drawn manually on stage using physical balls from their four seeded pots based on their club coefficient score at the start of the season. For each team selected, an automated software will randomly assign eight opponents from the four pots. For more detail, each team will see fixtures against two opponents from each pot, with one home and one away fixture. This process will be displayed both on screen and on stage at the Grimaldi Forum in Monte Carlo for everyone to see on August 29th, 2024.
The software will also determine which matches will be played at home and which will be away. The draw will begin with Pot 1, which contains the strongest teams and the current Champions League holders, and then proceed through the remaining three pots.
During the league phase, teams cannot be drawn against opponents from their own country and may face a maximum of two teams from the same nation.
Which Teams Have Qualified?
Twenty-five teams earned automatic qualification based on their domestic league standings, with the Champions League and UEFA Europa League winners also securing guaranteed spots. Since both titleholders also qualified through their league positions, rebalancing was necessary. Two additional spots were allocated based on European performance rankings, totalling 29 already qualified teams, while the final seven slots will be filled through the qualifying rounds.
Here’s who have booked their place in the league phase so far:
- Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa – (England)
- Real Madrid, Barcelona, Girona, Atletico Madrid – (Spain)
- Bayer Leverkusen, Stuttgart, Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig – (Germany)
- Inter Milan, AC Milan, Juventus, Atalanta – (Italy)
- Paris Saint-Germain, Monaco, Brest – (France)
- PSV Eindhoven, Feyernoord – (Netherlands)
- Sporting CP – (Portugal)
- Club Brugge – (Belgium)
- Celtic – (Scotland)
- Sturm Graz – (Austria)
- Bologna (Italy) and Borussia Dortmund (Germany) have qualified via European performance spots.
- Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) has qualified due to the Champions League winner rebalancing, while Benfica (Portugal) has qualified as a result of the Europa League winner rebalancing.
Which Teams Can Still Qualify?
With seven spaces remaining to complete the 36-team league, here’s a rundown of the sides battling it out in Champions League qualifiers, where they are just a couple of steps away from reaching the proper competition.
- APOEL (Cyprus)
- Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia)
- FC Twente (Netherlands)
- RB Salzburg (Austria)
- Bodo/Glimt (Norway)
- Jagiellonia (Poland)
- PAOK (Greece)
- Malmo (Sweden)
- Ferencvaros (Hungary)
- Midtjylland (Denmark)
- Rangers (Scotland)
- Dynamo Kyiv (Ukraine)
- FCSB (Romania)
- Sparta Praha (Czech Republic)
- Fenerbahce (Turkey)
- Lille (France)
- Ludogorets (Bulgaria)
- Qarabag (Azerbaijan)
- Union SG (Belgium)
- Slavia Praha (Czech Republic)
- Young Boys (Switzerland)
- Galatasaray (Turkey)
- Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia)
- Crvena Zvezda (Serbia)
Key Dates
The following dates outline the schedule ahead for the competition:
League-stage matches will take place from mid-September 2024 until the end of January 2025.
- Matchday 1: September 17th-19th, 2024
- Matchday 2: October 1st/2nd, 2024
- Matchday 3: October 22nd/23rd, 2024
- Matchday 4: November 5th/6th, 2024
- Matchday 5: November 26th/27th, 2024
- Matchday 6: December 10th/11th, 2024
- Matchday 7: January 21st/22nd, 2025
- Matchday 8: January 29th, 2025
The knockout stages will commence in February 2025 and run until the final, which will take place in Munich at the Allianz Arena in late May 2025.
- Knockout round play-offs: February 11th/12th and February 18th/19th, 2025
- Round of 16: March 4th/5th and March 11th/12th, 2025
- Quarter-finals: April 8th/9th and April 15th/16th, 2025
- Semi-finals: April 29th/30th and May 6th/7th, 2025
- Final: May 31st, 2025
Who Will Prevail? Early Winners Predictions
Last season’s winners, Real Madrid, are undoubtedly favorites to triumph once again, especially with the addition of Kylian Mbappe. Coupled with young stars like Vinícius Júnior and Jude Bellingham alongside experienced veterans, they have a blend of youth and experience that could propel them to their 16th title.
In what could be Pep Guardiola’s final season with Premier League champions Manchester City, he will want to conclude his tenure with a special occasion, and they don’t come much more precious than being able to celebrate with the coveted Champions League trophy. They have world-class talent in every position and play a highly effective brand of football, which encompasses tactical flexibility, consistency, and a clinical nature, with Erling Haaland leading a formidable attacking line.
Bayern Munich may have extra motivation this year to be triumphant, with the final taking place in their home stadium. Former Manchester City stalwart and, most recently, Burnley manager Vincent Kompany is now at the helm of the German giants. He has brought in the likes of Michael Olise and Joao Palhinha, who will bolster the club’s quality in depth.
UEFA Champions League and Sports Betting (H2)
The UEFA Champions League is not only one of the most prestigious football tournaments globally but also a major event in the sports betting world. With matches featuring top clubs and star players, the competition draws immense interest from bettors. Traditional betting markets include match outcomes, goalscorers, and total goals, among many other factors, but the tournament’s unpredictability offers unique opportunities for more advanced betting strategies.
One such strategy is matched betting, where bettors can qualify for free bets and promotions offered by bookmakers. By placing opposing bets on all possible outcomes of a match, bettors could see a return of a value involving all of the different market odds included in the specific sections regardless of the result.
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