In the vast pantheon of soccer’s greatest competitions, Champions League stands like a colossus; an epic tale of feats and triumphs. It is a tournament where the top clubs from every nation compete to be the best in Europe. It is a competition that, since its revamp in 1992, has prospered into one of the most lucrative media sport commodities in the world.
After some experimentation with multiple group stages, the tournament returned to a single group phase followed by a knockout round of sixteen in season 2003-04. This format remained until 2024-25, when UEFA decided to alter the structure of the Champions League to abandon the group stage and replace it with an expanded league phase.
Teams qualify for the league phase of the competition based on their position in their domestic league. The top eight clubs in each country are guaranteed to reach the knockout phase, while the other 24 qualify via a randomized draw. In the new league phase, teams are ranked in a table and play each other twice over the course of eight matches: once at home and once away. Teams earn three points for a win and one point for a tie.
The top four teams in the league table automatically advance to the quarterfinals, where they will be joined by the four runners-up with the highest aggregate score. Then, in the traditional format, teams play two-legged ties to reach the semifinals (and, if necessary, the final). This article was originally published on April 25, 2019. It has been updated for the most recent Champions League matchups.