Champions League draw: New format explained as robot decides schedule

Today marks the start of a new era for European football with the draw for the revamped Champions League. Football fans will be familiar with the 32-team format, split into eight groups of four.

The top two will qualify for the round of 16 while the third will be eliminated in the Europa League. However, starting this season, UEFA has introduced a completely new format.

The first phase of the championship will consist of 36 teams, with each team facing eight different opponents before the knockout phase. Officially, UEFA wants to reduce the number of draws, pit the big teams against each other earlier in the competition and give particular importance to the final position in the championship when drawing the knockout matches.

Naturally, more games also means extra revenue. It is hoped that this overhaul will help to stave off any lingering threat of a breakaway European Super League, controversially mooted in 2021.

Drawing explained

The draw process will also undergo a significant change. Traditionally, the names of the teams, based on their ranking, were drawn by hand. However, UEFA has deemed the traditional method of drawing teams unsustainable due to the new structure. It claims that a manual draw would take up to four hours.

Teams will still be ranked according to their coefficient, but matches will now be randomly drawn by dedicated software instead of being selected by hand. UEFA says the automated draw will be subject to regular independent audits to prevent any allegations of fraud.

As for the draw, the teams will be divided into four pots. For example, when a team from Pot 1 is drawn manually, the software will randomly select eight opponents, two from each pot. The system will also randomly decide which team will play at home and which team will play away.

Knockout stage

Each club will play two teams from each pot at home and one away. Teams from the same country will be separated during the league phase. Each team will play a maximum of two opponents from another nation.

The top eight clubs in the league will automatically qualify for the round of 16. The teams finishing ninth to twenty-fourth will play each other in a two-legged tie for a place in the round of 16.

Teams ranked 25th to 36th will be eliminated from all competitions, with no chance of qualifying for the Europa League. The knockout stage will take place in mid-February, followed by the round of 16 in early March. The final will be held at Bayern Munich's Allianz Arena on 31 May.

Confirmed teams

Arsenal, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Manchester City will represent England in the Champions League, while Celtic will carry Scotland's hopes. Although Premier League teams cannot play each other in the group stage, there could be a potential clash between an English team and Celtic.

Germany (Bayern, Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig and Stuttgart) and Italy (AC Milan, Atalanta, Bologna, Inter Milan and Juventus) were each awarded an extra place based on their clubs' performances last season.

Defending champions Real Madrid will be joined by FC Barcelona, ​​Atletico Madrid and Girona in Spain. France (Brest, Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain) will have three teams while the Netherlands (Feyenoord and PSV Eindhoven) will have two.

European League and Conference League

The Europa League and Conference League will follow the same format as the Champions League, with the only difference being that Conference League teams will play six league games instead of eight.