Already next season we can see changes in the Champions League again
UEFA is considering making three significant changes to the Champions League format, according to German Bild, after several clubs – including Arsenal – have expressed dissatisfaction with the current arrangement.
There are four teams left for semi-finals: Arsenal – Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona – Inter Milan.
This comes just one year after the tournament underwent a revolutionary reform, with the traditional group stage model being replaced by a 36-team league table where each team plays eight matches.
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What’s the problem?
Although the new format has created more excitement, several aspects have been controversial:
- Home game in the second leg unfairly distributed
- Arsenal had to play an away game against Real Madrid in the return leg of the last eight, even though they finished eight places ahead of the Spaniards in the league table.
- The same is now happening in the semi-final against PSG, who also came from the play-off round.
- Barcelona also got the second leg away to Inter despite their better position.
- Proposal to remove extra time
- UEFA is considering jumping straight to penalties in the event of a draw after full-time in the playoffs.
- However, this has not been formally proposed to the IFAB (International Football Association Board) yet.
- National team protection can be removed
- Previously, teams from the same country could not meet before the quarter-finals, but this year it already happened in the play-off round (e.g. PSG against Brest and Bayern against Leverkusen).
- UEFA considers such matches to be less attractive to international TV audiences.
When will the changes be adopted?
These questions will be discussed during the UEFA Club Compensation Committee meeting on May 30 – one day before the Champions League final at the Allianz Arena.
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