The UEFA Champions League 2024-25 will be staged in a new format with 36 teams competing in the league phase.
What is the new Champions League format?
The biggest change is to the group stage, which will become a single 36-team league phase. Each side faces eight different teams (four at home, four away). The top eight overall advance directly to the round of 16; sides finishing from ninth to 24th will contest the knockout phase play-offs, with the victors going through to the last 16. From then on it is a straight knockout.
Teams qualified for the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League ahead of Thursday’s draw:
Pot One:
Real Madrid (ESP)
Manchester City (ENG)
Bayern Munich (GER)
Paris Saint-Germain (FRA)
Liverpool (ENG)
Inter Milan (ITA)
Borussia Dortmund (GER)
RB Leipzig (GER)
Barcelona (ESP)
Pot Two:
Bayer Leverkusen (GER)
Atletico Madrid (ESP)
Atalanta (ITA)
Juventus (ITA)
Benfica (POR)
Arsenal (ENG)
Club Brugge (BEL)
Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR)
AC Milan (ITA)
Pot Three:
Feyenoord (NED)
Sporting (POR)
PSV Eindhoven (NED)
Celtic (SCO)
Young Boys (SUI)
Red Bull Salzburg (AUT)
Dinamo Zagreb (CRO) or Qarabag (AZE)
Slavia Prague (CZE) or Lille (FRA)
Pot Three or Four (depending on results of play-off ties):
Midtjylland (DEN) or Slovan Bratislava (SVK)
Bodo/Glimt (NOR) or Red Star Belgrade (SRB)
Pot Four:
Monaco (FRA)
Sparta Prague (CZE)
Aston Villa (ENG)
Sturm Graz (AUT)
Bologna (ITA)
Brest (FRA)
Girona (ESP)
VfB Stuttgart (GER)
When are the 2024/25 Champions League league phase matches?
Matchday 1: 17–19 September 2024
Matchday 2: 1/2 October 2024
Matchday 3: 22/23 October 2024
Matchday 4: 5/6 November 2024
Matchday 5: 26/27 November 2024
Matchday 6: 10/11 December 2024
Matchday 7: 21/22 January 2025
Matchday 8: 29 January 2025
Champions League top ten goals of 2023/24
When is the 2024/25 Champions League knockout phase?
Knockout phase play-offs: 11/12 & 18/19 February 2025
Round of 16: 4/5 & 11/12 March 2025
Quarter-finals: 8/9 & 15/16 April 2025
Semi-finals: 29/30 April & 6/7 May 2025
Final: 31 May 2025
When are the 2024/25 Champions League draws?
First qualifying round: 18 June 2024
Second qualifying round: 19 June 2024
Third qualifying round: 22 July 2024
Play-offs: 5 August 2024
League phase: 29 August 2024
Knockout phase play-offs: 31 January 2025
Round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final: 21 February 2025
Where is the Champions League final in 2025?
The 2024/25 Champions League season concludes at Fußball Arena München, the highlight of European football’s club calendar returning to the home of German powerhouses Bayern for the first time since 2012.
The 2024/25 winners also gain a place in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League, if they have not qualified via their domestic competition.
When is the 2024/25 Champions League knockout phase?
Knockout phase play-offs: 11/12 & 18/19 February 2025
Round of 16: 4/5 & 11/12 March 2025
Quarter-finals: 8/9 & 15/16 April 2025
Semi-finals: 29/30 April & 6/7 May 2025
Final: 31 May 2025
When are the 2024/25 Champions League draws?
First qualifying round: 18 June 2024
Second qualifying round: 19 June 2024
Third qualifying round: 22 July 2024
Play-offs: 5 August 2024
League phase: 29 August 2024
Knockout phase play-offs: 31 January 2025
Round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final: 21 February 2025
Where is the Champions League final in 2025?
The 2024/25 Champions League season concludes at Fußball Arena München, the highlight of European football’s club calendar returning to the home of German powerhouses Bayern for the first time since 2012.
The 2024/25 winners also gain a place in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League, if they have not qualified via their domestic competition.
