UEFA have officially presented the shift to the ‘Swiss format’ of a league system in the Champions League, replacing the group stages that have been present for several decades, and adding four more teams to the competition. For sides that do not make it through the league stage, there will be no qualification into the Europa League or Conference League via position.
36 teams will compete in the league phase from next season, with teams playing eight matches against teams drawn on from each of the four seeded pots. They will not play each side twice, but instead face eight different opponents home or away.
Sides that qualify in the top eight will be seeded into the Round of 16, while teams finishing from 9th to 24th will play each other in a play-off round to fill those eight spots against the top seeds. The remaining 12 sides that finish at the bottom of the table will be eliminated entirely from all competitions.
UEFA have confirmed a shift to the 'Swiss format' next season in the #UCL.pic.twitter.com/TgHMiaWaVh
— Football España (@footballespana_) March 4, 2024
It means two extra games from the group phase. If a side that does not finish in the top eight of the league phase is to win the competition, then they will need to play 17 games, which is four more than the current total. Those who are seeded to the Round of 16 will play 15 matches, both of which was less than the 19 games that winners would have played in the Superleague.
This change had been agreed years in advance, but shows the increasing grip and influence that the big clubs have on UEFA, bringing in more games between the big clubs, while making it harder for them to be eliminated and harder for lower ranked sides to progress.
