UEFA to hold draw for new European Tournaments tomorrow

Expanded and Restructured
The Champions League will now feature 36 clubs, up from the previous 32. This increase includes an additional spot for France’s Ligue 1, giving it three automatic qualifiers, as well as extra places for the top two leagues from last season’s UEFA coefficient rankings, Germany and Italy. Another slot will be filled by a national champion emerging from the qualifying rounds, which will conclude this week.

New League Format
Previously, the competition had 32 teams divided into eight groups of four, with the top two from each group advancing to the Round of 16. The new format replaces this with a single league of 36 teams using a 'Swiss system,' where teams are not grouped but will play eight matches against teams from different pots.

Increased Matches
Each team will play eight matches—two against each of the four pots, one home and one away. This format aims to increase high-profile matchups and reduce the risk of a breakaway Super League, which had been a concern.

Additional Knockout Round
The top eight teams in the league will advance directly to the Round of 16. Teams ranked 9th to 24th will enter a two-legged knockout play-off to secure the remaining spots in the Round of 16. The bottom 12 teams will be eliminated with no chance to move to the Europa League, a change from previous formats.

With these changes, the number of games increases from 96 in the old format to 144 in the new league phase, extending the competition into January with the new matchdays.