In the new format, clashes between clubs from the same country will be eliminated after the group stage, meaning Barcelona and Real Madrid or Liverpool and Manchester City could face each other in the first knockout rounds.
Knockout rounds Champions League Sources said it is ready for earthquake changes to boost competition ESPN.
The changes will reflect the design of the Grand Slam tennis tournament and will be introduced from the 2024-25 season. Matches between clubs belonging to the same country will be eliminated after the group stage, viz Barcelona Y The real MadridOne Liverpool Y City of ManchesterThey may face each other in the first knockout rounds.
proof’s ESPN It has been revealed that the 24 clubs advancing to the knockout stage of the tournament, like the tennis stars, will go straight to the final and advance to the draw, mostly based on their team status. Roger Federer Y Novak Djokovic In matches like Wimbledon.
The teams that finish in the top two from the group stage will not meet in the knockout round until the final because they will be on opposite sides of the draw.
All of this is part of a reorganization that begins in the 2024-25 season, expanding the four-team squad from 32 to 36 teams as a “Swiss-style” league table. Sources told ESPN UEFA They have not yet approved this new design for the knockout rounds, but they are leaning towards implementing the tennis-style format.
In a major deviation from the existing system, the sources revealed ESPN Project Features:
– Final 36-Team Group Level Schedule, ranking teams 1 to 24 based on their performance
– Teams ranked 1-8 in this group stage table enter the 16th round as team level winners in their current form.
– The 9th to 24th ranked teams play in the playoff elimination round to advance to the 16th round, and the 25th to 36th ranked teams are eliminated altogether.
– Knock out will be split in two. The clubs that perform best in the group stage in the 1st and 2nd rankings will be drawn to the seats at the opposite end of the group, thus not meeting until the final.
– The 3rd & 4th, 5th & 6th and 7th & 8th ranked teams will also be paired and set positions on the opposite half of the bracket determined by the draw.
Clubs ranked 9th and 10th, 11th and 12th, 13th and 14th and 15th and 16th will be paired and drawn in the opposite half. The key. The eight teams that lose in the knockout round of the playoffs will be eliminated entirely from Europe without qualifying for the 16th round of the playoffs. Europa League.
Not sure how those in the 17-24 rankings will be drawn. Combining these clubs is also an option, meaning the 9th and 10th ranked 23rd or 24th will play, but UEFA can still choose the draw at this level.
The UEFA A backup solution needs to be found in a stalemate situation such as a political stalemate, for example, if Russian clubs are re-established and go down the path of facing a team Ukraine. Russian clubs are currently banned from competing Europe After the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The calendar will also be updated with group status Champions Played in eight of the 10 weeks allotted for European football. The Europa League (September) and Europa Conference League (December) will have separate games in each of the two interim weeks.
Sources said ESPN That the two group level Champions League Such as Europa League They will end a month later, at the end of January, while the Europa Conference League, which is two games short of the group stage, will end in December.
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