The Champions League 2024/25 It represents a revolution in the calendar of all participants.. The top European competition debuts a new format, with 36 teams and an initial phase consisting of eight matchesinstead of the six that were played until now. That is, two more matches to accommodate in the already congested schedule of the best European teams.
Specifically, in the new league phase, which replaces the obsolete groups, Each team plays four home games and four away games, all against different opponents.. However, the results are fed into a general classification, which is used to determine the knockout phase. Therefore, Every game counts and the calendar, being different for each team, plays an important role in the fate of the different teams.
The 2024/2025 Champions League match schedule
Although the 2024/25 Champions League draw determines all the rivals for each participating team, as well as home and away games. The truth is that The final schedule for each Champions League team will not be known until Saturday, August 31.
This is because, once the rivals of each team are known, UEFA must agree on the dates and times of the matches. Above all, depending on the availability of cities and football stadiums. For example, sThe aim is to prevent teams that play in the same city, whether in the Champions League, but also in the Europa League or even the Conference, from having a match on the same day.especially as locals. This is because a high-level football match requires logistics, for example security, but also health or even accommodation and transport, which makes it It is not recommended that two events of the same magnitude be held simultaneously in the same location..
In addition, for several years now the UEFA Try to ensure that the matches of those clubs with the most pull in the same market do not coincide at the same timeThat is to say, in Spain the idea is for Real Madrid and Barcelona to play on alternate days, or if that is not possible at different times, since it is considered that there is a large part of fans interested in watching both matches on television.
Champions League 2023/24 dates
However, what is known are the dates on which the different Champions League rounds will be played. A section that comes with news. For the first time, the top European club competition will play a matchday on a Thursday. Specifically September 19thin a week reserved exclusively for the European Cup and with matches on Tuesday 17, Wednesday 18 and Thursday 19.
In addition, due to the league format that is being launched in this edition, For the last matchday, UEFA has prepared a unified macro-matchday on 29 January 2025It should also be noted that for the first time, the first month of the year will host Champions League matches, eliminating the traditional winter break that the tournament has suffered until now.
These are the dates of the 8 Champions League rounds
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Day 1: 17–19 September 2024
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Matchday 2: October 1/2, 2024
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Matchday 3: October 22/23, 2024
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Matchday 4: November 5/6, 2024
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Matchday 5: November 26/27, 2024
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Matchday 6: December 10/11, 2024
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Matchday 7: January 21/22, 2025
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Matchday 8: January 29, 2025
In addition, the Champions League also has the rest of the key dates reserved for the knockout phase. A section that also comes with novelty, since A qualifying round will be held before the round of 16. between the teams that finish between 9th and 24th in the standings. Once the round of 16 is reached, the Champions League adopts the classic two-legged knockout format until the grand final on 31 May.
Key dates for the 2024/25 Champions League
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League phase: from September 17 to January 29
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Preliminary play-off round: 11/12 (first leg) and 18/19 (second leg) February 2025
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Round of 16: 4/5 (first leg) and 11/12 (second leg) in March 2025
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Quarter-finals: 8/9 (first leg) and 15/16 (second leg) in April 2025
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Semi-finals: 29/30 April (first leg) and 6/7 May 2025 (second leg)
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End date: May 31, 2025
