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The new Champions League group stage format is set to be more exciting than ever with top teams facing each other from the start
The new UEFA Champions League format for the 2024/25 season has thrown up some mouth-watering affairs with top teams set to clash in the revamped group phase.
The new format will see each team play against eight other teams in single home and away matches, and the draw made in the Swiss model threw up some exciting encounters for fans to look forward to as old enemies lock horns and familiar foes welcome each other in the expanded 36-team format.
Each team is guaranteed a minimum of eight fixtures with two opponents each from pot1 to pot4 of the draw.
Arsenal handed PSG test, Barcelona face Bayern Munich again
In a rarely-seen encounter, Premier League runners-up Arsenal will face Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint Germain during the revised group stage.
The Gunners will also be up against 2023 finalists Inter, as well as newcomers Girona, French giants AS Monaco, Shakhtar Donetsk, Ademola Lookman’s Atalanta, Dinamo Zagreb and Sporting CP.
Meanwhile Barcelona will be faced with another tie against Bayern Munich, who have beaten the Catalan giants in the last six meetings, including an 8-2 drubbing in the 2019/20 quarterfinals.
In addition to Bayern Munich, Barcelona will also play against last season’s losing finalists Borussia Dortmund, Atalanta, Benfica, Young Boys, Red Star Belgrade, Brest and AS Monaco.
Premier League giants Liverpool will return from a one year hiatus to face perennial rivals Real Madrid for the fourth time in four successive Champions League seasons.
The Reds will also lock horns against RB Leipzig, Bayer Leverkusen, Lille, AC Milan, Bologna, PSV Eindhoven, and Girona.
Favourites get tough draws
In addition to taking on Liverpool, reigning champions Real Madrid will also face Borussia Dortmund in a repeat of last season’s final, Atalanta in a repeat of the 2024 UEFA Super Cup final, as well as RB Salzburg, Lille, Stuttgart, and Brest.
Reigning Premier League champions Manchester City will take on Inter, PSG, Club Brugge, Juventus, Feyenoord, Sporting CP, Sparta Praha, and Slovan Bratislava.
Ligue 1 champions PSG were perhaps handed the toughest test of the big teams and will face Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, PSG, RB Salzburg, Girona, and Stuttgart in the league format group stage.
Long time absentees Aston Villa were handed a fixture against Bayern Munich, as well as ties against RB Leipzig, Juventus, Club Brugge, Celtic, Bologna, Young Boys, and AS Monaco.
Nigeria’s best hope for a title in Ademola Lookman’s Atalanta were given a tough draw against Real Madrid, Arsenal, Barcelona, Shakhtar Donetsk, Celtic, Young Boys, Sturm Graz, and Stuttgart.
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