Why we’re excited for the new Champions League format

Looking forward to the new UEFA Champions League format – otherwise known as the “Swiss model” – for next season. Yeah, I think so, and here’s why.

In 2023-24 we have a format with eight groups of four where everyone plays home and away, and the top two qualify for the round of 16. Easy enough.

The Swiss model features 36 teams, divided into four pots of nine based on rankings – think of them as champions’ material, underdog’s material, attendance material and cannon fodder material. Each team plays two matches in each of the four pots, home or away. You still get three points for a win and one for a draw, but everyone is ranked on a big leaderboard, from one to thirty-six, based on points. The top eight earn a bye to the round of 16, nine through 24 compete in a home-and-away elimination round for a place in the round of 16 against the top eight and the bottom 12 go home.

And like I said, I’m all in.

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I know all the counter-arguments. It’s more games, which equals more money. GOOD. This creates more meetings in an already busy schedule. Yeah. It grants more places to big clubs in the big leagues. It doesn’t bother me, but whatever. It’s a stupid name, derived from chess tournaments. I’m not going to dispute that, even if they tell me that the clashes between Boris Spassky and Bobby Fischer were televised meetings. (I wouldn’t know because they took place before I was born.)

But I’m not going to lie. I agree with that, and matchday four of the Champions League kind of proves my point.

With two days to go, six clubs (Manchester City, Leipzig, Real Sociedad, Inter, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich) have already qualified for the 16-team round of 16. Eight more can qualify on day five; It probably won’t happen that all of them succeed, but one could imagine that at least four will prevail. Except for a few tight groups, that would make matchday six something of a snooze… unless you’re excited about that coveted third place, which sends teams into the Europa League – and that’s sort of the l The equivalent of watching an ad on your phone so you can continue playing Candy Crush after losing all your lives.

Worse still, the teams already qualified for the round of 16 no longer have any real incentives in the group stage and, one can imagine, will succumb to playing against their B teams. (Either that, or they will play their starters with the handbrake on, which is probably even worse.) I don’t blame them – I would do the same thing if I were a coach – and they have earned the right to rest for the league, but as a fan, I have no illusions. Playing against Manchester City on matchday six, when you’re playing Stefan Ortega, Oskar Bobb and Micah Hamilton, isn’t quite the same as playing them on matchday one when Erling Haaland, Bernardo Silva and Rodri are in the field. . This can lead to lousy results that affect the other teams in the group – and not in a good way either.

Of course I know what managers say. They want to finish first in the group. They don’t want to lose momentum. Their kids are really good. Never mind: I understand that it helps to finish first and be seeded, because you risk facing a worse team in the round of 16. But it’s not a guarantee: half of last year’s semi-finalists did not win their group. And besides, managers (and by extension, their players) will always prioritize the here and now of a weekend championship game, as opposed to what’s happening. could That will happen if they finish first versus second when the round of 16 begins weeks later in February. Plus, at some point, you still have to face the big clubs.

Exiting in the round of 16 or quarterfinals makes little difference to most fans (or even players). The only ones who really care are the accountants, who write down the extra few million in money earned.

Now, I’m not writing this to criticize the Champions League. I love everything from music to football to discovering teams and players I don’t often watch. (Yes, that means you, FC Salzburg midfielder Oscar Gloukh). It’s football’s premier competition – a showcase of the highest level of the sport – but I also like meaningful matches with something even more important at stake.

play

Gab and Juls explain: The new format of the Champions League

Gab Marcotti and Julien Laurens explain the changes to the Champions League format from the 2024/2025 season.

Will the Swiss model succeed? I don’t know, but I’m pretty sure no one will have qualified for the round of 16 after just four games. And finishing in the top eight – the equivalent of winning your group now – will mean more because you’ll get a bye to the round of 16.

Will there be a big group of teams between ninth and 24th that reasonably know they are playoff bound no matter what? Maybe, but you hope that between the risk of missing the opportunity and slipping below 24th place and the incentive to get into the top eight and get the bye, the motivation will stay strong until the eighth day, or at least the seventh day. And the fact that once you reach the round of 16, you will be seeded until the final should provide an extra boost of motivation.

(If it were up to me, I’d make the rewards for finishing higher even bigger and introduce some spice to WWE. Finish first and you get to choose your opponent in the next round. Finish second, you get the next pick, and so on. I presented it to UEFA: they’re not quite ready for that…yet.)

The Swiss model may be driven by money and I guarantee that next season many people will be pining for the Champions League of yesteryear (just as there were – and still are – many of those who long for the days of the old European Cup). Me? Looking at the Day 5 and 6 prospects (with a few notable exceptions), I’m ready for a change.