The draw for this season’s Champions League takes place on Thursday with some pretty significant changes to the format.
Where as some alterations are simple, others are far more complicated, with the knockout rounds not starting until February.
Here is an explainer on the new format, how the draw could play out and when we should expect the fixtures to be released.
The new Champions League format
This is the first time in 21 years where we have had a format change to Europe’s premier club competition. Previously, 32 teams qualified and were drawn into eight groups of four.
The top two teams from each group would progress to the round of 16, with third dropping into the Europa League and fourth eliminated from Europe.
Now, there are 36 teams, but instead of drawing into groups, there will now be the Champions League league phase.
Teams in positions 25 to 36 are eliminated in January, before the 16 teams in positions nine through to 24 play in the knockout phase play-offs in February to earn a place in the round of 16. The top eight sides go straight through to the round of 16 which will be played in March.
Also new for this year, no side will be able to drop into the Europa League from the Champions League, likewise with teams who dropped out of the Europa League into the Conference League. Once you get knocked out, you are out.
The knockout stages remain the same, with two-legged affairs until the showpiece final.
Pot draws
Like the previous format, there are still four pots of teams, but each pot now has nine instead of eight teams. Pot 1 used to place the holders of the Champions League and Europa League alongside the Champions of the top six domestic leagues. Pots 2 to 4 were then decided by UEFA’s club coefficient, which ranks clubs’ European performances over the past five seasons.
Now, only the Champions League holder will be automatically in Pot 1, with all other positions decided by the coefficient. Another change is that you be drawn to face two other teams in from your own pot, unlike previously where you could not face a team in the group stage from the same pot.
How does the draw work?
Instead of being drawn into groups, the draw will now create fixtures. Each club will play eight matches, with two opponents drawn from each pot. One match from each pot will be at home, the other will be away.
No club can play another team from their own league and a club can play no more than two teams from one country.
Previously, all 32 teams would be drawn manually with balls and pots for teams and groups by former Champions League players. Now, due to the complex nature of the draw, that is impossible to do as it would take over three hours and require 1,296 balls.
Instead, a team will be drawn by an ex-player on stage, starting from Pot 1 and concluding at Pot 4, before a computer randomly selects that club’s eight opponents and determines which matches are played home and away.
Pot position is not as crucial but does still hold relevance due to the range of quality, and distribution of home and away games will also be important.
Tiebreakers and importance of league position
There are ten tiebreakers, all of which could determine where you finish in the league table:
- Goal difference
- Goals scored
- Away goals scored
- Wins
- Away wins
- Points obtained by league phase opponents
- Goal difference of league phase opponents
- Goals scored by league phase opponents
- Lower disciplinary points
- Club coefficient
UEFA has also linked a club’s final league position to the knockout bracket, meaning a club’s finishing position will affect their path. The higher you are placed, the easier the path. First and second in the league will not be able to meet until the final; whilst third and fourth would avoid the top two until the semi-finals.
When will the games be played?
Not one team will be able to play consecutive games against teams from the same pot. Kick off times will remain the same, with two matches at 5:45pm and the rest at 8pm, with the exception being the final day where all 18 matches will be played at 8pm.
UEFA have expanded the footprint of the European calendar to ten game weeks instead of six, with the Champions League taking eight of them and the Europa League and Conference League getting their own standalone game weeks with the remaining two.
Only the Champions League will play on September 17-19, with the Europa League taking September 25-26 and the Conference League on December 19th. Six matches will be played before Christmas with the remaining two at the end of January.
Champions League match days
| Matchday 1 | Sept. 17-19 |
| Matchday 2 | Oct. 1-2 |
| Matchday 3 | Oct. 22-23 |
| Matchday 4 | Nov. 5-6 |
| Matchday 5 | Nov. 26-27 |
| Matchday 6 | Dec. 10-11 |
| Matchday 7 | Jan. 21-22 |
| Matchday 8 | Jan. 29 |
How the knockout rounds and bracket work
Due to the new tennis-style method being used, there will only be two draws required during the knockout stages. One for the knockout play-offs and the round of 16. There is no longer country protection, so two teams from the same country can meet in the final 16.
The first draw creates the knockout phase play-off fixtures, with each team having two possible opponents. Clubs ranked 9-16 will play the second leg at home, so from this the position in the bracket is set for these teams.
At the end of the league phase the top eight sides will have four possible opponents for the round of 16 and they will play the second leg at home.
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