Champions League new format explained: How does it work?
It's all change for the Champions League – and we're here to help you make sense of it all.
The Champions League has a new look for 2024/25 – and we get the feeling it may take some time to get used to the new world.
Champions League group stages are gone, consigned to the dustbin of football heritage, while football's perfect number – 32 – has been bumped up to accommodate more teams, more games, and more of just about everything.
It could be argued that the beauty of UEFA's club football magnum opus was bound up in its simplicity. Thirty-two divides neatly into eight fours, and is halved easily to 16. Sixteen is halved into eight, into four, into two, down to one glorious victor.
- Watch every moment with our live football on TV guide
The new format will prove divisive with its exclusive matchweeks, one batch of Champions League games on a Thursday night, some games live on Amazon Prime Video, others on TNT Sports and discovery+, highlights on the BBC and more – but will it enhance the competition? You decide.
RadioTimes.com brings you a complete guide to the new Champions League format.
Read more: Best players in the world | Best players of all time
Champions League new format explained
The new Champions League format consists of 36 teams with one single League Phase table, rather than dividing 32 teams into groups of four.
Each of the teams has been drawn to face eight opponents; two from each of four seeding pots, four home, four away. A total of eight matches per team prior to the knockouts, up from six.
The League Phase ends in a single-day, 18-game bonanza matchweek on 29th January.
No. 1-8 teams in the table qualify automatically for the round of 16.
No. 9-24 teams in the table qualify for a knockout play-off round, where the eight victors will qualify for the round of 16.
No. 25-32 teams in the table will be eliminated from all competitions. There is no drop into the Europa League.
The knockout rounds will play out as normal, with a round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals played out over two legs each, plus the grand final.
Champions League TV rights 2024/25
TNT Sports and Amazon Prime Video share the live broadcasting rights for the Champions League in 2024/25.
If you already have BT Broadband, you can add TNT Sports to your existing contract from just £18 per month. You can add the ‘Big Sport’ package for £40 per month which includes all TNT Sports and 11 Sky Sports channels via a NOW pass.
You can also access TNT Sports via discovery+ and stream directly to your smart TV.
You can watch the match on TNT Sports via discovery+ Premium monthly pass without signing up to a contract.
Regular subscribers can also stream matches on a variety of devices including laptops, smartphones and tablets via the discovery+ app.
Amazon Prime Video will broadcast one highlight match per round of Champions League fixtures this season.
Amazon's football coverage is available to stream on the Amazon Prime Video website and app – all you need is an account.
New customers can sign up for a free Amazon Prime 30-day free trial – which usually costs £8.99 per month – and you can watch all of the football shown on the platform.
You can also catch Champions League highlights on BBC TV and BBC iPlayer.
By entering your details, you are agreeing to our terms and conditions and privacy policy. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out more of our Sport coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Authors
Michael Potts is the Sport Editor for Radio Times, covering all of the biggest sporting events across the globe with previews, features, interviews and more. He has worked for Radio Times since 2019 and previously worked on the sport desk at Express.co.uk after starting his career writing features for What Culture. He achieved a first-class degree in Sports Journalism in 2014.
