In the 2024/2025 season, 36 teams will compete in the Champions League in the so-called league phase. Each team will play eight matches – four at home, four away. The eight best teams will qualify directly for the 1/8 finaland teams from 9th to 24th places will compete in the play-offs to advance to this stage of the competition. The remaining teams are eliminated from the Champions League and are not relegated to the Europa League.
Lothar Matthaeus sees two “big favourites” to win the Champions League
Real Madrid will defend their title from the previous edition. The “Royal” are the absolute record holders of this competition, having won it 15 times. However, will they be the favorites in the current edition? Lothar Matthaeus shared his opinion on the subject.
– I consider the defending champions Real Madrid and Manchester City to be the big favourites, of course – said the legendary Bayern Munich and German national team midfielder, quoted by sport.de. The “Royal” (twice) and the “Citizens” (once) have won the last three editions of this competition. – Carlo Ancelotti and Pep Guardiola have been in these clubs for a long time and in my opinion these teams have a slight advantage – he added.
– Next I see Bayern Munich [w gronie faworytów – przyp. red.]. In addition, Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig have a chance of direct qualification for the knockout phase, Matthaeus said of the German teams.
The German pointed out that in fights Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Atletico Madrid will also be eligible for direct promotion, PSG and clubs from Italy and Portugal. – There are many teams that have the quality and ambition to reach the final, but they may not qualify for the next round without the play-offs because there are simply too many top clubs – he concluded.
The first round of the new edition of the Champions League will be played from September 17 to 19. The first two matches at 6:45 PM on Tuesday will be Juventus – PSV Eindhoven and Young Boys Bern – Aston Villa. The most important information Information about the results will be available on Sport.pl and in the Sport.pl LIVE mobile application.