Champions League Returns with a New Format: Don't Even Try to Understand It
The Champions League, one of the most prestigious club competitions in the world, has returned with a new format for the 2022/23 season.
The changes are designed to make the competition more exciting and unpredictable, but they have also made it more confusing for fans to understand.
Here's a quick guide to the new format:
- The group stage has been expanded from 32 to 36 teams. This means that more teams will have a chance to compete in the Champions League, but it also means that the competition will be more diluted.
- The teams will be divided into four pots, based on their UEFA coefficient. The top eight teams in Pot 1 will be seeded into the eight groups, while the remaining teams will be drawn into the groups from Pots 2, 3, and 4.
- The teams in each group will play each other twice, home and away. The top two teams in each group will advance to the knockout stage, while the third-placed teams will drop into the Europa League.
- The knockout stage will consist of two-legged ties, with the away goals rule no longer in effect. The teams will be drawn against each other based on their finishing position in the group stage, with the top team in each group playing the fourth-placed team, the second-placed team playing the third-placed team, and so on.
- The final will be played at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, on June 10, 2023.
The new format is designed to make the Champions League more competitive and unpredictable, but it is also more complex than the old format. Fans will need to familiarize themselves with the new rules and regulations before the competition begins in order to avoid confusion.
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