Champions League: Draw on Thursday, pots virtually fixed

MiscellaneousEverything is new in the UEFA Champions League! Not only are there changes to the format and schedule, but also to the draw. The preliminary round will not only be drawn on Thursday from 6 p.m., but will also be compiled by computer, including top duels from Real Madrid’s pot one.

Champions League draw: Thursday, 6 p.m.

36 instead of 32 teams, a league instead of a group phase, eight instead of six preliminary round matches, a total of 225 instead of 100 games in the competition, preliminary round matches in January and sometimes on Thursdays… Things will be different in the UEFA Champions League in 2024/25!

This also affects the draw. Although it will take place on Thursday from 6 p.m. in Monaco, not only will a few things be different due to the reformed league phase or the “Swiss model” – the drawing of the tickets will also be affected. This is because the computer does the main work – if a club is drawn, an algorithm then determines the eight suitable opponents.

Things will be a bit different on Thursday, and that’s also because top games are guaranteed in the preliminary round. There will still be four pots, but each participant will be drawn against two opponents from each pot – not from the same association, of course. This means that crackers like Real Madrid against PSG or Barcelona against ManCity are possible in the preliminary round!

Qualification is underway: seven preliminary round places still open

The four pots, which now offer no advantage, or it doesn’t matter which pot you are in, are also as good as fixed. Only seven places are still open, but they will be filled on Tuesday and Wednesday when the last seven qualifying matches take place. In the first leg last week, Bern, Prague, Salzburg, Zagreb, Bodø/Glimt and Lille won, with only Bratislava and Midtjylland drawing.

Preliminary round starts on 17.9. and ends on 29.1.

By Wednesday evening, all 36 Champions League clubs will be confirmed – four more than in the old format – and then the reformed format can begin on September 17th. The preliminary round will run until January 29th, 2025, after which there will even be playoffs before the knockout phase. Only the first eight teams are automatically in the round of 16, while the teams in ninth to 24th place will have to play two more games. All of this also means that while the title holders last needed “only” 13 games to reach the Henkel Cup, they now need at least 15, and with the extra round through the playoffs it would be 17. The final on May 31st, 2025 in Munich is still a long way off, however, and Real Madrid and Co. want to prove themselves in the new preliminary round first. And let’s see what kind of crackers the new draw for the new Champions League really produces – the balls start rolling on Thursday evening!