Here we go again. The battle for Ol’ Big Ears starts again in earnest with this draw. Normally this would be for the group stage, but this is a new world. We’re just now sure if we like it (yet).
","elementId":"c4189f35-6d1d-4d98-b066-3cca851883d3"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.SubheadingBlockElement","html":"How will the new format work?
","elementId":"f4da9cb1-f151-482c-b537-2a865747bb5d"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"This is a high-stakes experiment from Uefa, implemented initially for the 2024-27 Champions League cycle. The old group stage has been replaced by a single 36-strong league table with each team playing eight matches against eight different opponents, four at home and four away. It is known as a “Swiss model” and will shake down into a top eight, who qualify directly to the knockout stage, with 16 sides contesting a playoff round. The teams finishing between 25th and 36th will be eliminated when the league phase concludes in January. The knockouts will look familiar, a round of 16 funnelling towards a May final, this time in Munich, and they will be bracketed so the clubs can plot their potential path.
","elementId":"a1ea60ce-39ba-4b0e-9d55-bc7aa9a7c265"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.SubheadingBlockElement","html":"How will the draw work?
","elementId":"4154256d-92ed-4624-8079-5e3474dae3d2"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"A new “hybrid concept” will replace the old-fashioned method that was based purely on picking balls from bowls. Each team will be drawn out by hand before software designed by AE Live, a technology solutions provider that works with a range of major sports institutions, selects their eight opponents. No club can play another team from their own domestic league or play more than two games against sides from a particular country. Supporters with their fingers poised on Skyscanner can ease off: the fixture list, including the order in which matches are played, will not be published until Saturday.
","elementId":"86ca2b9c-6cab-4e70-9369-a4c6dcb4bb1b"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement","prefix":"Related: ","text":"Everything you need to know about the new ‘Swiss model’ Champions League","elementId":"1dbbcdfc-7c31-4e9d-b6a5-76a8bf83b377","role":"thumbnail","url":"https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/aug/28/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-new-swiss-model-champions-league"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":"The draw will take place at 5pm BST and is expected to last for around an hour! How exactly it will do that, I have no idea!
","elementId":"a68e3835-e74f-4db5-9c3d-f457c974a2d1"}],"attributes":{"pinned":false,"keyEvent":true,"summary":false},"blockCreatedOn":1724946207000,"blockCreatedOnDisplay":"11.43 EDT","blockLastUpdated":1724946187000,"blockLastUpdatedDisplay":"11.43 EDT","blockFirstPublished":1724946207000,"blockFirstPublishedDisplay":"11.43 EDT","blockFirstPublishedDisplayNoTimezone":"11.43","title":"Preamble","contributors":[],"primaryDateLine":"Thu 29 Aug 2024 12.16 EDT","secondaryDateLine":"First published on Thu 29 Aug 2024 11.43 EDT"}],"filterKeyEvents":false,"id":"key-events-carousel-mobile","absoluteServerTimes":false}">Grandes eventos
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