2024–25 UEFA Champions League

2024–25 UEFA Champions League
The Allianz Arena in Munich will host the final
Tournament details
DatesQualifying:
9 July – 28 August 2024
Competition proper:
17 September 2024 – 31 May 2025
TeamsCompetition proper: 36
Total: 81 (from 53 associations)
Tournament statistics
Matches played72
Goals scored221 (3.07 per match)
Attendance3,037,217 (42,184 per match)
Top scorer(s)Viktor Gyökeres (Sporting CP)
Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)
Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona)
Raphinha (Barcelona)
5 goals each
All statistics correct as of 6 November 2024.

The 2024–25 UEFA Champions League is the 70th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 33rd season since it was rebranded from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League.[1] This will be the first season under a new format, with 36 participating teams that play eight games each against different opponents in a league phase, all the teams being ranked in a joint group.[2][3] This will increase the total number of matches played in the competition from 125 to 189 (excluding qualifying rounds).

The final will be played on 31 May 2025 at Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany.[4] The winners of the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League will automatically qualify for the 2025–26 UEFA Champions League league phase, the 2025 FIFA Intercontinental Cup, the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup, and earn the right to play against the winners of the 2024–25 UEFA Europa League in the 2025 UEFA Super Cup.

Real Madrid are the defending champions, having won their record-extending 15th title last season.

Association team allocation

[edit]

A total of 81 teams from 53 of the 55 UEFA member associations are set to participate in the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League (the exceptions being Liechtenstein which does not organise a domestic league and Russia which is currently suspended). The association ranking based on the UEFA association coefficients is used to determine the number of participating teams for each association:[5]

  • Associations 1–5 each have four teams.
  • Association 6 has three teams.
  • Associations 7–15 each have two teams.
  • Associations 16–55 (except Liechtenstein[Note LIE] and Russia[Note RUS]) each have one team.
  • The winners of the 2023–24 UEFA Champions League and 2023–24 UEFA Europa League were each given an additional entry if they did not qualify for the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League through their domestic league.
  • The two associations who obtained the most coefficient points in the 2023–24 season will each have one European Performance Spot into the league phase. The winners of the UEFA Champions League and Europa League could not fill the European Performance Spots.

Association ranking

[edit]

For the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League, the associations were allocated places according to their 2023 UEFA association coefficients, which took into account their performance in European competitions from 2018–19 to 2022–23.[6] The table reflects Russia's ongoing suspension from UEFA.

Apart from the allocation based on the association coefficients, associations could have additional teams participating in the Champions League, as noted below:

  • (EPS) – European Performance Spot, the additional berths for associations who finished in the top 2 of the 2023–24 association coefficients
  • (TH) – Additional berth for UEFA Champions League title holders
  • (EL) – Additional berth for UEFA Europa League title holders
Association ranking for 2024–25 UEFA Champions League
Rank Association Coeff. Teams Notes
1  England 109.570 4
2  Spain 92.998
3  Germany 82.481 +1 (EPS)
4  Italy 81.926 +1 (EPS)
5  France 61.164
6  Netherlands 59.900 3
7  Portugal 56.216 2
8  Belgium 42.200
9  Scotland 36.400
10  Austria 34.000
11  Serbia 32.375
12  Turkey 32.100
13  Switzerland 31.675
14  Ukraine 29.500
15  Czech Republic 29.050
16  Norway 29.000 1
17  Denmark 27.825
18  Russia 26.215 0 [Note RUS]
19  Croatia 25.400 1
Rank Association Coeff. Teams Notes
20  Greece 25.225 1
21  Israel 25.000
22  Cyprus 24.475
23  Sweden 23.750
24  Poland 20.750
25  Hungary 20.625
26  Romania 20.500
27  Bulgaria 20.000
28  Slovakia 19.750
29  Azerbaijan 16.625
30  Kazakhstan 12.625
31  Slovenia 12.500
32  Moldova 12.250
33  Kosovo 11.041
34  Liechtenstein 11.000 0 [Note LIE]
35  Latvia 10.625 1
36  Republic of Ireland 10.375
37  Finland 10.200
38  Lithuania 10.000
Rank Association Coeff. Teams Notes
39  Armenia 9.875 1
40  Belarus 9.875
41  Bosnia and Herzegovina 9.750
42  Luxembourg 9.000
43  Faroe Islands 8.750
44  Northern Ireland 8.583
45  Malta 8.250
46  Georgia 8.000
47  Estonia 7.582
48  Iceland 7.250
49  Albania 6.250
50  Wales 6.166
51  Gibraltar 5.791
52  North Macedonia 5.500
53  Andorra 5.165
54  Montenegro 4.750
55  San Marino 1.999

Distribution

[edit]
Teams entering in this round Teams advancing from the previous round
First qualifying round
(28 teams)
  • 28 champions from associations 26–28 and 30–55 (except Liechtenstein)[Note LIE]
Second qualifying round
(28 teams)
Champions Path
(24 teams)
  • 8 champions from associations 15–18 (except Russia)[Note RUS] and 20–24
  • 2 champions from associations 25 and 29 as the teams with highest club coefficients, originally from the first qualifying round
  • 14 winners from the first qualifying round
League Path
(4 teams)
  • 4 runners-up from associations 11–14
Third qualifying round
(20 teams)
Champions Path
(12 teams)
  • 12 winners from the second qualifying round (Champions Path)
League Path
(8 teams)
  • 2 runners-up from associations 8–9
  • 1 third-placed team from association 6
  • 1 fourth-placed team from association 5
  • 2 runners-up from associations 10 and 15 as the teams with highest club coefficients, originally from the second qualifying round League Path
  • 2 winners from the second qualifying round (League Path)
Play-off round
(14 teams)
Champions Path
(10 teams)
  • 3 champions from associations 11–13
  • 1 champion from association 19 as the team with highest club coefficient, originally from the second qualifying round Champions Path
  • 6 winners from the third qualifying round (Champions Path)
League Path
(4 teams)
  • 4 winners from the third qualifying round (League Path)
League phase
(36 teams)
  • 10 champions from associations 1–10
  • 6 runners-up from associations 1–6
  • 5 third-placed teams from associations 1–5
  • 4 fourth-placed teams from associations 1–4
  • 1 champion from association 14 as the team with the highest club coefficient, originally from the play-off round of the Champions Path
  • 1 runner-up from association 7 as the team with the highest club coefficient, originally from the third qualifying round of the League Path
  • 2 associations (Italy and Germany) with the highest coefficients from the previous season each received an extra berth
  • 5 winners from the play-off round (Champions Path)
  • 2 winners from the play-off round (League Path)
Preliminary knockout round
(16 teams)
  • 16 teams ranked 9–24 from the League phase
Knockout phase
(16 teams)
  • 8 teams ranked 1–8 from the League phase
  • 8 winners from the Preliminary knockout round

The information here reflects the suspension of Russia in European football, and so the following changes to the default access list were made:

  • The champions of associations 23 (Sweden) and 24 (Poland) entered the second qualifying round instead of the first qualifying round (Champions Path).

As the Champions League title holders (Real Madrid) qualified via their domestic league's standard berth allocation, the following changes to the default access list were made:

  • Shakhtar Donetsk as the club with the highest club coefficient that would otherwise have entered the Champions Path of the qualifying phase or play-off round, entered the league phase instead of the Champions Path play-off round.
  • Dinamo Zagreb, as the club with the highest club coefficient that would otherwise have entered the Champions Path second qualifying round, entered the Champions Path play-off round.
  • Ferencváros and Qarabağ, as the two clubs with the highest club coefficient that would otherwise have entered the Champions Path first qualifying round, entered the Champions Path second qualifying round.

As the Europa League title holders (Atalanta) qualified via their domestic league's standard berth allocation, the following changes to the default access list were made:

  • Benfica, as the club with the highest club coefficient that would otherwise have entered the League Path third qualifying round, entered the league phase instead of the League Path third qualifying round.
  • Slavia Prague and Red Bull Salzburg, as the two clubs with the highest club coefficient that would otherwise have entered the League Path second qualifying round, entered the third qualifying round.

Teams

[edit]

The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:

  • TH: Champions League title holders
  • EL: Europa League title holders
  • 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc.: League positions of the previous season
  • EPS: The European Performance Spots given to clubs from the 2 associations with the highest coefficient points in 2023–24

The second qualifying round, third qualifying round and play-off round were divided into Champions Path (CH) and League Path (LP).

Qualified teams for 2024–25 UEFA Champions League
Entry round Teams
League phase Spain Real Madrid (1st)TH Italy Atalanta (4th)EL England Manchester City (1st) England Arsenal (2nd)
England Liverpool (3rd) England Aston Villa (4th) Spain Barcelona (2nd) Spain Girona (3rd)
Spain Atlético Madrid (4th) Germany Bayer Leverkusen (1st) Germany VfB Stuttgart (2nd) Germany Bayern Munich (3rd)
Germany RB Leipzig (4th) Germany Borussia Dortmund (5th)EPS Italy Inter Milan (1st) Italy Milan (2nd)
Italy Juventus (3rd) Italy Bologna (5th)EPS France Paris Saint-Germain (1st) France Monaco (2nd)
France Brest (3rd) Netherlands PSV Eindhoven (1st) Netherlands Feyenoord (2nd) Portugal Sporting CP (1st)
Portugal Benfica (2nd) Belgium Club Brugge (1st) Scotland Celtic (1st) Austria Sturm Graz (1st)
Ukraine Shakhtar Donetsk (1st)
Play-off round CH Serbia Red Star Belgrade (1st) Turkey Galatasaray (1st) Switzerland Young Boys (1st) Croatia Dinamo Zagreb (1st)
Third qualifying round LP France Lille (4th) Netherlands Twente (3rd) Belgium Union Saint-Gilloise (2nd) Scotland Rangers (2nd)
Austria Red Bull Salzburg (2nd) Czech Republic Slavia Prague (2nd)
Second qualifying round CH Czech Republic Sparta Prague (1st) Norway Bodø/Glimt (1st) Denmark Midtjylland (1st) Greece PAOK (1st)
Israel Maccabi Tel Aviv (1st) Cyprus APOEL (1st) Sweden Malmö FF (1st) Poland Jagiellonia Białystok (1st)
Hungary Ferencváros (1st) Azerbaijan Qarabağ (1st)
LP Serbia Partizan (2nd) Turkey Fenerbahçe (2nd) Switzerland Lugano (2nd) Ukraine Dynamo Kyiv (2nd)
First qualifying round CH Romania FCSB (1st) Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad (1st) Slovakia Slovan Bratislava (1st) Kazakhstan Ordabasy (1st)
Slovenia Celje (1st) Moldova Petrocub Hîncești (1st) Kosovo Ballkani (1st) Latvia RFS (1st)
Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers (1st) Finland HJK (1st) Lithuania Panevėžys (1st) Armenia Pyunik (1st)
Belarus Dinamo Minsk (1st) Bosnia and Herzegovina Borac Banja Luka (1st) Luxembourg Differdange 03 (1st) Faroe Islands (1st)
Northern Ireland Larne (1st) Malta Ħamrun Spartans (1st) Georgia (country) Dinamo Batumi (1st) Estonia Flora (1st)
Iceland Víkingur Reykjavík (1st) Albania Egnatia (1st) Wales The New Saints (1st) Gibraltar Lincoln Red Imps (1st)
North Macedonia Struga (1st) Andorra UE Santa Coloma (1st) Montenegro Dečić (1st) San Marino Virtus (1st)
  1. ^
    Liechtenstein (LIE): The seven teams affiliated with the Liechtenstein Football Association (LFV) all played in the Swiss football league system. The only competition organised by the LFV was the Liechtenstein Football Cup – the winners of which qualified for the UEFA Conference League for the 2024–25 season.
  2. ^
    Russia (RUS): On 28 February 2022, Russian football clubs and national teams were suspended from FIFA and UEFA competitions due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[7] The tables reflect Russia's ongoing suspension from UEFA competitions.[8]

Schedule

[edit]

The schedule of the competition is as follows.[9] Compared to past seasons, one "exclusive week" will be introduced in which Thursday will also be a matchday.[2][10][11] All matches in other weeks will be played on Tuesdays and Wednesdays apart from the final.

Schedule for 2024–25 UEFA Champions League
Phase Round Draw date First leg Second leg
Qualifying First qualifying round 18 June 2024 9–10 July 2024 16–17 July 2024
Second qualifying round 19 June 2024 23–24 July 2024 30–31 July 2024
Third qualifying round 22 July 2024 6–7 August 2024 13 August 2024
Play-offs Play-off round 5 August 2024 20–21 August 2024 27–28 August 2024
League phase Matchday 1 29 August 2024 17–19 September 2024
Matchday 2 1–2 October 2024
Matchday 3 22–23 October 2024
Matchday 4 5–6 November 2024
Matchday 5 26–27 November 2024
Matchday 6 10–11 December 2024
Matchday 7 21–22 January 2025
Matchday 8 29 January 2025
Knockout phase Knockout phase play-offs 31 January 2025 11–12 February 2025 18–19 February 2025
Round of 16 21 February 2025 4–5 March 2025 11–12 March 2025
Quarter-finals 8–9 April 2025 15–16 April 2025
Semi-finals 29–30 April 2025 6–7 May 2025
Final 31 May 2025 at Allianz Arena, Munich

Qualifying rounds

[edit]

First qualifying round

[edit]

The draw for the first qualifying round was held on 18 June 2024. The first legs were played on 9 and 10 July, and the second legs were played on 16 and 17 July 2024.

The winners of the ties advanced to the Champions Path second qualifying round. 12 of the 14 losers were transferred to the Conference League Champions Path second qualifying round and 2 were transferred to the Conference League Champions Path qualifying and received a bye to the third qualifying round.

First qualifying round
Team 1Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
Slovan Bratislava Slovakia6–3North Macedonia Struga4–22–1
The New Saints Wales4–1Montenegro Dečić3–01–1
Borac Banja Luka Bosnia and Herzegovina2–2 (4–1 p)Albania Egnatia1–01–2 (a.e.t.)
Ħamrun Spartans Malta1–1 (4–5 p)Gibraltar Lincoln Red Imps0–11–0 (a.e.t.)
UE Santa Coloma Andorra3–3 (6–5 p)[a]Kosovo Ballkani1–22–1 (a.e.t.)
Flora Estonia1–7Slovenia Celje0–51–2
 Faroe Islands2–0Luxembourg Differdange 032–00–0
Panevėžys Lithuania4–1Finland HJK3–01–1
RFS Latvia7–0Northern Ireland Larne3–04–0
Víkingur Reykjavík Iceland1–2Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers0–01–2
Virtus San Marino1–11Romania FCSB1–70–4
Ludogorets Razgrad Bulgaria3–2Georgia (country) Dinamo Batumi3–10–1
Ordabasy Kazakhstan0–1Moldova Petrocub Hîncești0–00–1
Dinamo Minsk Belarus1–0Armenia Pyunik0–01–0
Notes:
  1. ^ Order of legs reversed after original draw.

Second qualifying round

[edit]

The draw for the second qualifying round was held on 19 June 2024. The first legs were played on 23 and 24 July, and the second legs were played on 30 and 31 July 2024.

The winners of the ties advanced to the third qualifying round of their respective path. The Champions Path losers were transferred to the Europa League Champions Path third qualifying round, while the League Path losers were transferred to the Europa League Main Path third qualifying round.

Second qualifying round
Team 1Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
Champions Path
Ludogorets Razgrad Bulgaria2–1Belarus Dinamo Minsk2–00–1
APOEL Cyprus2–1Moldova Petrocub Hîncești1–01–1
Ferencváros Hungary7–1Wales The New Saints5–02–1
PAOK Greece4–2Bosnia and Herzegovina Borac Banja Luka3–21–0
Bodø/Glimt Norway7–1Latvia RFS4–03–1
Malmö FF Sweden6–4Faroe Islands 4–12–3
Shamrock Rovers Republic of Ireland2–6Czech Republic Sparta Prague0–22–4
UE Santa Coloma Andorra0–4Denmark Midtjylland0–30–1
Celje Slovenia1–6Slovakia Slovan Bratislava1–10–5
Panevėžys Lithuania1–7Poland Jagiellonia Białystok0–41–3
Lincoln Red Imps Gibraltar0–7Azerbaijan Qarabağ0–20–5
FCSB Romania2–1Israel Maccabi Tel Aviv1–11–0
League Path
Lugano Switzerland4–6Turkey Fenerbahçe3–41–2
Dynamo Kyiv Ukraine9–2Serbia Partizan6–23–0

Third qualifying round

[edit]

The draw for the third qualifying round was held on 22 July 2024. The first legs were played on 6 and 7 August, and the second legs were played on 13 August 2024.

The winners of the ties advanced to the play-off round of their respective paths. The Champions Path losers were transferred to the Europa League play-off round, while the League Path losers were transferred to the Europa League league phase.

Third qualifying round
Team 1Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
Champions Path
Qarabağ Azerbaijan8–4Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad1–27–2 (a.e.t.)
Slovan Bratislava Slovakia2–0Cyprus APOEL2–00–0
Sparta Prague Czech Republic4–3Romania FCSB1–13–2
Malmö FF Sweden6–5Greece PAOK2–24–3 (a.e.t.)
Midtjylland Denmark3–1Hungary Ferencváros2–01–1
Jagiellonia Białystok Poland1–5Norway Bodø/Glimt0–11–4
League Path
Slavia Prague Czech Republic4–1Belgium Union Saint-Gilloise3–11–0
Lille France3–2Turkey Fenerbahçe2–11–1 (a.e.t.)
Dynamo Kyiv Ukraine3–1Scotland Rangers1–12–0
Red Bull Salzburg Austria5–4Netherlands Twente2–13–3

Play-off round

[edit]

The draw for the play-off round was held on 5 August 2024. The first legs were played on 20 and 21 August, and the second legs were played on 27 and 28 August 2024.

The winners of the ties advanced to the league phase. The losers were transferred to the Europa League league phase.

Play-off round
Team 1Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg
Champions Path
Young Boys Switzerland4–2Turkey Galatasaray3–21–0
Dinamo Zagreb Croatia5–0Azerbaijan Qarabağ3–02–0
Midtjylland Denmark3–4Slovakia Slovan Bratislava1–12–3
Bodø/Glimt Norway2–3Serbia Red Star Belgrade2–10–2
Malmö FF Sweden0–4Czech Republic Sparta Prague0–20–2
League Path
Lille France3–2Czech Republic Slavia Prague2–01–2
Dynamo Kyiv Ukraine1–3Austria Red Bull Salzburg0–21–1

League phase

[edit]
Location of Benelux teams of the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League league phase.

The league phase draw for the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League took place at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco on 29 August 2024, 18:00 CEST.[12][13] The 36 teams were divided into four pots of nine teams each based on their UEFA club coefficient, except for the Champions League title holders, who were automatically placed as the top seed in pot 1.

The 36 teams were manually drawn and then automated software digitally drew their eight different opponents at random, determining which of their matches were at home and which ones away. Each team will face two opponents from each of the four pots, one at home and one away. Teams could not face opponents from their own association, and could only be drawn against a maximum of two sides from the same association.[14]

Aston Villa, Bologna, Brest, Girona and Slovan Bratislava made their debut appearances since the introduction of the group stage. Brest and Girona also made their debut appearances in European football.[15][16]

A total of 16 national associations are represented in the league phase.

Table

[edit]

The top eight ranked teams will receive a bye to the round of 16. The teams ranked from 9th to 24th will contest the knockout phase play-offs, with the teams ranked from 9th to 16th seeded for the draw. Teams ranked from 25th to 36th are eliminated from all competitions, with no access to the 2024–25 UEFA Europa League.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 England Liverpool 4 4 0 0 10 1 +9 12 Advance to round of 16 (seeded)
2 Portugal Sporting CP 4 3 1 0 9 2 +7 10
3 France Monaco 4 3 1 0 10 4 +6 10
4 France Brest 4 3 1 0 9 3 +6 10
5 Italy Inter Milan 4 3 1 0 6 0 +6 10
6 Spain Barcelona 4 3 0 1 15 5 +10 9
7 Germany Borussia Dortmund 4 3 0 1 13 6 +7 9
8 England Aston Villa 4 3 0 1 6 1 +5 9
9 Italy Atalanta 4 2 2 0 5 0 +5 8 Advance to knockout phase play-offs (seeded)
10 England Manchester City 4 2 1 1 10 4 +6 7
11 Italy Juventus 4 2 1 1 7 5 +2 7
12 England Arsenal 4 2 1 1 3 1 +2 7
13 Germany Bayer Leverkusen 4 2 1 1 6 5 +1 7
14 France Lille 4 2 1 1 5 4 +1 7
15 Scotland Celtic 4 2 1 1 9 9 0 7
16 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb 4 2 1 1 10 12 −2 7
17 Germany Bayern Munich 4 2 0 2 11 7 +4 6 Advance to knockout phase play-offs (unseeded)
18 Spain Real Madrid 4 2 0 2 9 7 +2 6
19 Portugal Benfica 4 2 0 2 7 5 +2 6
20 Italy Milan 4 2 0 2 7 6 +1 6
21 Netherlands Feyenoord 4 2 0 2 7 10 −3 6
22 Belgium Club Brugge 4 2 0 2 3 6 −3 6
23 Spain Atlético Madrid 4 2 0 2 5 9 −4 6
24 Netherlands PSV Eindhoven 4 1 2 1 7 5 +2 5
25 France Paris Saint-Germain 4 1 1 2 3 5 −2 4
26 Czech Republic Sparta Prague 4 1 1 2 5 8 −3 4
27 Germany VfB Stuttgart 4 1 1 2 3 6 −3 4
28 Ukraine Shakhtar Donetsk 4 1 1 2 2 5 −3 4
29 Spain Girona 4 1 0 3 4 8 −4 3
30 Austria Red Bull Salzburg 4 1 0 3 3 10 −7 3
31 Italy Bologna 4 0 1 3 0 5 −5 1
32 Germany RB Leipzig 4 0 0 4 4 9 −5 0
33 Austria Sturm Graz 4 0 0 4 1 6 −5 0
34 Switzerland Young Boys 4 0 0 4 1 11 −10 0
35 Serbia Red Star Belgrade 4 0 0 4 4 16 −12 0
36 Slovakia Slovan Bratislava 4 0 0 4 2 15 −13 0
Updated to match(es) played on 6 November 2024. Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: League phase tiebreakers

Results

[edit]
Matchday 7
Home teamScoreAway team
Monaco France21 JanEngland Aston Villa
Atalanta Italy21 JanAustria Sturm Graz
Atlético Madrid Spain21 JanGermany Bayer Leverkusen
Bologna Italy21 JanGermany Borussia Dortmund
Club Brugge Belgium21 JanItaly Juventus
Red Star Belgrade Serbia21 JanNetherlands PSV Eindhoven
Liverpool England21 JanFrance Lille
Slovan Bratislava Slovakia21 JanGermany VfB Stuttgart
Benfica Portugal21 JanSpain Barcelona
Shakhtar Donetsk Ukraine22 JanFrance Brest
RB Leipzig Germany22 JanPortugal Sporting CP
Milan Italy22 JanSpain Girona
Sparta Prague Czech Republic22 Jan