The new Champions League starts this Tuesday, September 17. Qualifications, final stages, match days, final… Everything you need to know to follow the 2024-2025 season.
First phase: qualification
Thirty-six teams are participating in the 20224-2025 Champions League this season. The group stage that had marked the first part of the competition since 1993 has disappeared (in the 1991-1992 season, the groups (2) only appeared for the “quarter-finals”, with the top two from each group of four qualifying for the final, won by Barça against Sampdoria of Genoa).
This year, each of the 36 teams is participating in its own 9-a-side championship during 8 first leg matches, 4 at home and 4 away. So the round-trip matches against the same 3 opponents are over. At the end of this qualifying phase, The points won by each of the 36 teams will determine the final ranking, from 1st to 36th team.
Second phase: direct elimination
The top 8 teams in the general ranking are directly qualified for the round of 16. Teams ranked 9th to 24th will play a play-off round, a sort of round of 16, in two-legged matches. Those who finish between 9th and 16th place will be seeded for this play-off. Two teams from the same country will be able to face each other.
The winners of this play-off will play their 8th against one of the 8 teams already qualified.
Teams finishing the qualifying phase between 25th and 36th place will be eliminated.without a seat for the Europa League as was the case “before” with the 3rd in the group of 4 which moved to the C3.
Also read:
Champions League: Manchester City and Real Madrid favorites, Girona has a 1% chance of winning, PSG 4%… discover the club-by-club victory predictions
From the round of 16 onwards, the competition resumes its “traditional” direct elimination format until the final, scheduled in Munich on Saturday, May 31, 2025. The draw for the 8th quarter-finals and semi-finals will be announced on February 21.
The calendar
This doesn’t move: Champions League matches will be played in midweek (at 6:45 p.m. and 9 p.m.), Tuesday and Wednesday evenings. And even Thursday this week. The qualifying phase will last 8 days until Wednesday, January 29 2025. For this last day, all matches will be played on the same day, at the same time (9 p.m.).
Here is the schedule: 1st day, September 17-18 and 19; 2nd day, October 1 and 2; 3rd day, October 22-23; 4th day, November 5-6; 5th day, November 26-27; 6th day, December 10-11; 7th day, January 21-22; 8th day, January 29.
The play-off (round of 16) will be played on 11-12 and 18-19 February. Then the quarter-finals on 4-5 and 11-12 March, the semi-finals on 29-30 April and 6-7 May and finally the final on Saturday 31 May at the Football Arena in Munich, home of Bayern.
Former winners in competition
Many former winners are in the running to win this new-look Champions League. Real Madrid of course, the title holder and the number of final victories (15). Behind the Madrid behemoth, we find AC Milan (7 victories), Bayern Munich and Liverpool (6), Barça (5), Ajax (4), Inter Milan (3), Benfica and Juventus Turin (2), Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund, Red Star Belgrade, PSV Eindhoven, Aston Villa, Feyenoord Rotterdam and Celtic Glasgow (1).
Among the leading clubs, Porto (2 wins), Chelsea (2), Manchester United (3) are notably missing from the call.
Also read:
Champions League: Girona against Paris Saint-Germain, Barça against Monaco, find out when the Catalan clubs’ matches will take place
Please note that several teams participating this season have won a European Cup but never the C1 : Bratislava won the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1969; Sporting de Portugal won the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1964; Bayer Leverkusen won the UEFA Cup in 1988; Atlético de Madrid won 1 Cup Winners’ Cup in 1962 and 3 Europa Leagues in 2010, 2012 and 2018; PSG won the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1996 ; Shakhtar Donetsk won the Europa League in 2009 and Atalanta Bergamo won the Europa League in 2024.
The new kids
Two teams will discover continental jousts this week. On the French side, Brest will be the rookie (Thursday against Sturm Graz) but closer to us, Girona will also begin. And with a bang, at the Parc des Princes this Wednesday against PSG.
Also read:
Champions League: shock openings for French clubs, Barça and Girona
Bologna have never played in the Champions League but had (briefly) participated in the European Cup of Champions Clubs. The Belgians of Club Bruges also debut in the Champions League but played in a C1 final in 1978 (lost 1-0 against Liverpool).
Related News :