If the Champions League Anthem isn't your alarm tone for Tuesday morning, can you even consider yourself a true football fan? Europe's premier club…
Champions League Draw 2024-25: Schedule of Dates for Group Stage Fixtures
Aug 31, 2024
MADRID, SPAIN - JUNE 02: Players of Real Madrid celebrates with the trophy at Plaza de Cibeles during Real Madrid UEFA Champions League Trophy Parade on June 02, 2024 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Diego Souto/Getty Images)
The full 2024-25 Champions League schedule has been released, with the season kicking off on Sept. 17 with six matches.
This season marks the debut of the new format featuring 36 clubs, with the bottom 12 teams being eliminated at the conclusion of the league phase on January 29.
The full fixture list for the new league phase of the Champions League is officially official!
UEFA originally approved the format change in May 2022. The most notable change will see teams playing in one single league table, as opposed to the eight groups of four under the 32-team format.
The group format somewhat remains with four different pots of nine teams. The first pot features the reigning Champions League winner (Real Madrid) and the next eight clubs with the best coefficients.
Pots two through four are determined by club coefficient.
Pots
Pot 1: Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, Barcelona
Pot 2: Bayer Leverkusen, Atlético Madrid, Atalanta, Juventus, Benfica, Arsenal, Club Brugge, Shakhtar Donetsk, AC Milan
Pot 3: Feyenoord, Sporting Lisbon, PSV Eindhoven, Dinamo Zagreb, Salzburg, Lille, Red Star Belgrade, Young Boys, Celtic
Pot 4: Slovan Bratislava, Monaco, Sparta Prague, Aston Villa, Bologna, Girona, Stuttgart, Sturm Graz, Brest
Each club will play two teams from each pot during the league phase. The new format means the total number of matches for the entire season will increase from 125 to 189.
After the league phase is completed, teams ranked in positions nine through 24 will advance to the knockout phase playoffs. The winning teams in the knockout phase will advance to the Round of 16. The top eight teams automatically qualify for the Round of 16.
Real Madrid will begin defense of its Champions League title on Sept. 17 against Stuttgart. There hasn't been a repeat winner since Los Blancos won three straight from 2015-16 to 2017-18.
The biggest obstacle standing in Real Madrid's way figures to be Manchester City. The two teams met in the quarterfinals last season, with Real Madrid advancing 4-3 on penalty kicks after they were tied at four on aggregate.
Arsenal will be looking to play spoiler after a busy transfer season that saw the club bring in Riccardo Calafiori, Mikel Merino and Raheem Sterling.
Champions League Draw 2024-25: Group Stage Fixtures Set Ahead of Schedule Release
Aug 29, 2024
MONACO, MONACO - AUGUST 29: Gianluigi Buffon, Winner of UEFA President's Award 2024 draws out the name of Atletico de Madrid during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Group Stage Draw at Grimaldi Forum on August 29, 2024 in Monaco, Monaco. (Photo by Claudio Lavenia - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
The Champions League is changing its format for the upcoming season, nixing the old group system in favor of a new pot system that will have teams face a far greater variety of clubs.
It's a bit of a confusing change, but we've got all of the pots and matchups from the new "Swiss model" listed below.
Pots
Pot 1: Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, Barcelona
Pot 2: Bayer Leverkusen, Atlético Madrid, Atalanta, Juventus, Benfica, Arsenal, Club Brugge, Shakhtar Donetsk, AC Milan
Pot 3: Feyenoord, Sporting Lisbon, PSV Eindhoven, Dinamo Zagreb, Salzburg, Lille, Red Star Belgrade, Young Boys, Celtic
Pot 4: Slovan Bratislava, Monaco, Sparta Prague, Aston Villa, Bologna, Girona, Stuttgart, Sturm Graz, Brest
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Real Madrid's Stunning UCL Rally to Beat Bayern Munich, Reach Final Thrills Fans
May 8, 2024
MADRID, SPAIN - MAY 08: Joselu of Real Madrid celebrates scoring his team's first goal with teammates during the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg match between Real Madrid and FC Bayern München at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on May 08, 2024 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
Bayern Munich turned back the clock to 1999 and not in a good way.
Thanks to a pair of late goals by Joselu, Real Madrid bested Bayern 2-1 in the second leg of their Champions League semifinals tie to advance 4-3 on aggregate.
For the German giant, it was a collapse reminiscent of Manchester United scoring twice in second-half stoppage time to claim a European title 25 years ago.
A 68th-minute goal from Alphonso Davies put Bayern Munich ahead. An all-German final with Borussia Dortmund looked increasingly likely as the clock ticked up toward the end of regular time. Then Joselu wrote his name into Real Madrid lore forever.
You can't be too surprised by Real Madrid snatching victory from the jaws of defeat in the Champions League because winning in Europe is second nature to the club. But that didn't make Wednesday's comeback any less remarkable.
Now, Borussia Dortmund is all that stands between Real Madrid and a 15th European Cup.
Edin Terzić's squad will be the firm sentimental favorites for the Champions League final June 1 at London's Wembley Stadium, but plenty of fans will feel confident the outcome is already set in stone.
Madrid hasn't lost a European Cup final since 1980-81 and you'd bet that winning streak carries on.
Champions League Final 2024: Date, Venue, Predictions for Real Madrid vs. Dortmund
May 8, 2024
MADRID, SPAIN - MAY 08: Joselu of Real Madrid celebrates scoring his team's first goal during the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg match between Real Madrid and FC Bayern München at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on May 08, 2024 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
The kings of the UEFA Champions League will go after their 15th title in the competition at Wembley Stadium in London on June 1.
Real Madrid advanced to the 2023-24 UCL final with a remarkable comeback against Bayern Munich on Wednesday to deny an all-German championship match.
Borussia Dortmund, a surprise finalist, will try to complete its European run with the second UCL title in club history.
The June 1 final will mark the first time Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund square off in the Champions League title match. It will be just the third time a Spanish and German side play each other in the tournament's final.
UEFA Champions League Final Info
Date: Saturday, June 1
Start Time: 3 p.m. ET
Venue: Wembley Stadium, London
Preview
Real Madrid is known for its magical moments in the Champions League.
Los Blancos won the competition on 14 occasions and they are the only club to win multiple Champions League titles since 2015. Real Madrid earned four UCL crowns in that span and it won another in 2014.
They ran through a gauntlet in the knockout round just to reach Wembley.
Real Madrid defeated RB Leipzig, Manchester City and Bayern Munich over the course of six matches across three rounds.
Wednesday's win over Bayern Munich to clinch a spot in the final was the most dramatic of the victories in the knockout round. Real Madrid used two goals in a four-minute span from substitute Joselu to defeat Bayern 4-3 on aggregate.
Real Madrid carries the biggest stars in the championship matchup, led by Brazilian forward Vinicius Junior, who scored the game-winning goal against Liverpool two years ago to win Real Madrid's 14th UCL crown.
A lot of attention will be paid to midfielder Jude Bellingham as well. The English star will play the final on his home soil against the club that sold him to Real Madrid last summer.
Dortmund usually plays second fiddle to Bayern in the Bundesliga, but it carved out its own successful route to the final this season.
Dortmund survived a semifinal bout with Kylian Mbappe's Paris Saint-Germain with some stout defending and some help from the post. PSG hit the post on a handful of occasions over 180 minutes in the semifinal.
The German side conceded one or zero goals in four of its six knockout-round matches. It defeated PSV Eindhoven, Atletico Madrid and PSG on its way to the final.
Center-back Mats Hummels, who played in Dortmund's last UCL final at Wembley in 2013 will be vital to slowing down Vinicius, Rodrygo, Bellingham and the Real Madrid attack.
The best attacker in Dortmund's squad, whether you consider it to be Nicklas Fullkrug or Donyell Malen, would be considered the fourth-or-fifth-best attacking threat on the field in the UCL final.
Real Madrid should win the match with its overwhelming attacking talent. Dortmund's only path to victory is through a low-scoring battle in which it gets one or two moments to score, like it did in Tuesday's semifinal win with a Hummels goal off a corner kick.
Prediction: Real Madrid 3, Borussia Dortmund 1
Kylian Mbappé, PSG Trolled for Champions League Failure as Dortmund Advance to Final
May 7, 2024
PARIS, FRANCE - MAY 07: Kylian Mbappe of Paris Saint-Germain looks dejected during the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg match between Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund at Parc des Princes on May 07, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)
The wait goes on for Paris Saint-Germain.
The French giant was felled by Borussia Dortmund in the semifinals of the Champions League.
With Dortmund holding onto a 1-0 lead from the first leg, Mats Hummels provided some insurance with a header in the 50th minute.
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) May 7, 2024
Symbolizing how the two-legged affair unfolded, Hummels' goal came moments after PSG midfielder Warren Zaïre-Emery hit a close-range effort off the woodwork. That was one of four shots the team hit off the frame of the goal.
Paris Saint-Germain was a bit unfortunate to be held scoreless in the first leg. Its luck was even worse in the return fixture.
Tuesday night offered another searing indictment of PSG's long-term project. It can keep winning Ligue 1 every season, but that's overshadowed by the absence of a single Champions League trophy to date.
The managers have changed. The key players have changed. And the outcome remains the same.
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) May 7, 2024
PSG are officially jinxed never to win the Champions League.Dortmund magnificent defending. One of their greatest nights. Back to Wembley for the final.
The amount of talent that PSG has had since they started their project and this is all they have to show for it. Disgusting. pic.twitter.com/wIzjcyNma4
PSG spent €400M last summer alone on players yet they can’t win a single UCL. When you could not win a UCL while having Messi, Neymar AND Mbappé, it tells you that brand names alone don’t = success. Congrats to BVB, a win for football.
Nobody represents Paris Saint-Germain's failures better than Kylian Mbappé. While the 25-year-old's talent is undeniable, you can't help but think his career has stagnated a bit thanks in part to his side's domestic dominance.
Now Mbappé is poised to leave France behind — likely for Real Madrid — without having even collected a Champions League medal. Assuming he's out the door, being largely anonymous over the two legs against Borussia Dortmund is a disappointing way for what should've been a much more memorable run to end.
In the pantheon of Paris Saint-Germain's defeats in the Champions League knockout stages, this probably isn't the worst or most embarrasing.
But it might be the most frustrating because the road couldn't have been much easier to the final. While far from a minnow, Borussia Dortmund sits fifth in the Bundesliga and clearly couldn't match the Parisians' talent level. Overturning a one-goal deficit at Parc des Princes should've been pretty straightforward for PSG.
There's also Mbappé's impending free agency, which added a layer of urgency to this season. The club should have ample funds to sign a replacement(s), but taking a step backward might be inevitable when losing a star of his caliber.
It will be fascinating to see whether Paris Saint-Germain opts for a more dramatic shift in its approach in a post-Mbappé future. The status quo certainly isn't cutting it.
