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Football is constantly evolving and Europe’s most prestigious competition, the Champions League, is no different.
Starting next season, a new format will be in play after UEFA approved the changes in May 2022.
This is the first time since 1992 that Europe’s elite competition has undergone such an overhaul.
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said qualification would be “based on sporting merit”.
What is the new Champions League format and how does it work?
The Champions League group stage is currently organized with 32 teams divided into eight groups of four, with the top two teams from these groups qualifying for the round of 16.
However, this format will be replaced by a single ranking where 36 clubs will participate in the new championship phase, giving four additional teams the chance to compete.
Clubs will no longer play three teams twice, but will face eight different teams with four home and four away matches.
To determine the matches, teams will be placed into four ranking pots and each team will then be drawn to face two opponents from each of these pots.
They will play one match against one team from each pot at home and one away.
How will the round of 16 take place?
The teams finishing in the top eight will automatically qualify for the knockout stages, while those placing ninth through 24th will enter knockout play-offs for the chance to join them.
Whoever finishes 25th or lower will be eliminated and will not participate in the Europa League.
From the round of 16 onwards, the Champions League will continue to follow its existing format, with the final taking place on neutral ground.
How many additional games will be played and when will they be played?
The number of matches in the new format will increase from 125 to 189.
Each team will play a minimum of eight – instead of six – and a maximum of 17.
In standard weeks, Champions League matches will always be played on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
During exclusive Champions League weeks – when no other European competitions are being played – matches will be played on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
The championship phase will now end at the end of January instead of December.
Will there be a fifth place in the Champions League in England? When will we know?
For Premier League clubs, the situation is now clear. The top four will advance to the Champions League and the fifth-placed team to the Europa League.
If Manchester United win the FA Cup, they will advance to the Europa League. If Manchester City wins the FA Cup, the sixth-placed team in the Premier League will advance to the Europa League.
The next team that has not qualified for Europe will participate in the Europa Conference League play-offs – so it will be sixth or seventh place.
How does the places coefficient work?
Germany and Italy are the nations to have secured an automatic fifth place for next season’s tournament.
The coefficient places, also known as European Performance Spots, go to the associations which achieved the best collective performance of their clubs during the previous season.
Germany and Italy could even have six representatives in the premier European competition.
This will happen if Dortmund win the Champions League and finish outside the top four in the Bundesliga, or if Atalanta or Roma win the Europa League.
The winners of both tournaments automatically qualify for the Champions League the following season.
How has the format of the Champions League evolved over the years?
Europe’s most notable football competition began in the 1955–56 season as a six-team invitational tournament, initially known as the European Champion Clubs’ Cup.
From 1967 the competition expanded to 32 teams, was called the European Cup and featured four home-and-away rounds before a single-match final – this model would last for over 20 years.
The Champions League as we know it began in 1992.
A group stage was added, with the round of 16 entering a knockout stage.
There was a brief period with two group stages, but the format returned to the single group stage format for the 2003–04 tournament.
Will the Europa League and the Europa Conference League also change?
Yes. Both competitions will see changes similar to those of the Champions League.
The Europa League will follow the same format as the Champions League from next season.
Europe’s third-tier competition, the Europa Conference League, will be renamed the Uefa Conference League and teams will play six matches against six different opponents in the league stage.
The Europa League and Uefa Conference League will also feature 36 teams.
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