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FourFourTwo
FourFourTwo
Sport
Tom Hancock

How the controversial new Champions League format will actually IMPROVE European football

Europa League Europe Football the Champions League Alamy Atalanta Bayern Munich FC Barcelona Liverpool Paris Saint-Germain
The UEFA Champions League trophy is displayed during the UEFA Champions League 2023/24 play-off round draw at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, 7 August 2023.

The new Champions League format has not proved universally popular. In fact, among fans at least, the overwhelming consensus seems to be it's a terrible idea – a financially motivated move by UEFA; a back door to a European Super League, even.

From this season, there is no more Champions League group stage. Instead, UEFA have adopted the 'Swiss model', an ostensibly complicated first phase of the competition in which all 36 teams (yep, four more than before) form one big league table.

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