By Cheta Enyoghasi
As the culture, certain clubs will compete in the UEFA Champions League this season, as they have in previous years.
However, the tournament will take a different turn this time, as it will be played in a format that is completely different from previous ones.
The departure from the group stage structure is a key change in the modifications announced by the UEFA Executive Committee
In the new format, the group stage will be combined into a single 36-team league stage. Eight different teams will compete against each other—four at home and four away. The top eight seeds will advance directly to the round of 16, while teams finishing ninth through twenty-four advance to the knockout round play-offs, with the winners advancing to the round of sixteen. From then, it’ll be a straight knockout till the final.
UEFA released the competition schedule as follows:
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
The knockout matches will be as follows;
Knockout round 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.
