Champions League 2024-25 format: What to know about league stage, teams, how to watch draw, matchdays

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It’s almost time for the UEFA Champions League draw, with the league stage of the 2024-25 season to be decided on Thursday, August 29. The UCL format has changed, so we analyse everything you can expect from the brand-new European top-tier competition. Defending champions Real Madrid have already kicked off the new campaign with continental silverware in the UEFA Super Cup, but who will they face to defend their title with new signing Kylian Mbappe?

Here’s how the road to the UCL Final, scheduled to be held at the Allianz Arena in Munich on May 31, 2025, looks like.

How to watch the UCL draw on the Golazo network

UCL Playoffs for the league stage

Bodo/Glimt or Red Star Belgrade (2-1 after first leg)
Lille or Slavia Praha (2-0 after first leg)
Dinamo Zagreb or Qarabag FK (3-0 after first leg)
Young Boys vs. Galatasaray (3-2 after first leg)
Midtjylland vs Slovan Bratislava (1-1 after first leg)
Dynamo Kyiv or RB Salzburg (0-2 after first leg)
Malmö or Sparta Prague (0-2 after first leg)

What is the UCL league stage?

The group stage as we knew it is now overInstead, each team reaching the new league stage will face eight different opponents. Four of these games will be played at home and the other four away and this stage lasts longer than the previous group stage, with the eighth and final round of games scheduled for late January despite the regular break in late December. Teams are divided into four pots and each team will play against two teams from each of those pots. One home game and one away game against a team from each of those pots will make up the fixture list. The top eight teams in the table will qualify directly for the round of 16 and teams ranked ninth to 24th will go through to the knockout rounds. Those finishing 25th and below will be eliminated from Europe and will not enter the UEFA Europa League.

UCL League Phase Pots

Pot 1: Real Madrid (titleholders), Manchester City, Bayern Munich, PSG, Liverpool, Inter, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig and Barcelona.
Pot 2: Bayer Leverkusen, Atletico Madrid, Atalanta, Juventus, Benfica, Arsenal, Club Brugge, Shakhtar Donetsk and Milan.
Pot 3: Feyenoord, Sporting CP, PSV Eindhoven, Young Boys or Galatasaray, Dinamo Zagreb or Qarabag FK and Lille or Slavia Praha.
Pot 3 or Pot 4: Midtjylland or Slovan Bratislava, Bodo/Glimt or Red Star Belgrade and Dynamo Kiev or RB Salzburg.
Pot 4: Monaco, Aston Villa, Bologna, Girona, Stuttgart, Sturm Graz, Brest and Malmo or Sparta Praha.