What the new Champions League structure entails for Liverpool under Arne Slot for the upcoming season

Next season, Liverpool will participate in the Champions League once more.

Liverpool is one of four Premier League teams who will compete in the Champions League next season.

After participating in the Europa League this season, the Reds will return to the competition the following year. The Anfield team participated in three finals between 2018 and 2022, losing to Real Madrid, Tottenham, and Los Blancos once more, but ultimately winning the trophy for the first time in fourteen years on the second try.

It will appear somewhat different when Liverpool plays in the Champions League again. Liverpool Echo has looked at the redesigned tournament and how it might affect Premier League teams.

A revamped group stage

To guarantee a berth in the competition, certain clubs will, as per customary, have to make their way through three qualifying rounds and a play-off round in July and August. But instead of the well-known four-team group stage, they’ll face a single league stage with 36 teams.

Every side will play four home games and four away games, against eight different opponents. The teams that place ninth through twenty-four will participate in the knockout stages of the competition, while the top eight teams go directly to the round of 16.

The victor of these two-leg matches advances to the round of 16. Teams that place 25th or lower will not be eligible for a Europa League lifeline and will be removed from the competition.

The knockout stages does not change 

As in the past, the competition will proceed to a straight knockout format with two-leg ties after the last 16. On May 31, 2025, the championship game is scheduled to occur at Munich, Germany’s Allianz Arena.

When are the games going to be held?

The Conference League will run from September to December, while the Champions League and Europa League will run their league phases from September to January. Throughout the season, there will be one special match week for each of the three UEFA club championships; no other competitions are planned for that week.

Tuesdays and Wednesdays will see Champions League games, and Thursdays will have games from the Conference League and Europa League. On the other hand, the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League will all play on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of the recently instituted exclusive match weeks. The Conference League will only play on Thursday.

Every competition will have simultaneous kickoffs for all of its matches on the final matchday.

Important dates to keep in mind

On August 29, 2024, the draw will be held for the redesigned league stage, with match rounds falling between September and January.

Matchday 1 – September 17-19, 2024

Matchday 2 – October 1 and October 2, 2024

Matchday 3 – October 22 and October 23, 2024

Matchday 4 – November 5 and November 6, 2024

Matchday 5 – November 26 and November 27, 2024

Matchday 6 – December 10 and December 11, 2024

Matchday 7 – January 21 and January 22, 2025

Matchday 8 – January 29, 2025

The clubs placed ninth through twenty-fourth will participate in the draw for the knockout round play-offs on January 31, 2025. The dates for the two legs of this round are February 11–12 and February 18–19, 2025.

On February 21, 2025, the draw for the round of 16 and the quarter-finals and semifinals will take place. The dates of those games are March 4–5, 2025, and March 11–12, 2025. The quarterfinals will take place in 2025 on April 8–9 and April 15–16.