The general reaction was mixed when the new Champions League format was released. The format felt like an “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” proposition, and the change was met with many questions and some backlash.
As we are now three games into this new format, many people have started to express their overall feelings, and this page is dedicated to how we feel about the format. We have already written a few pages about how the Champions League format is different and what these changes mean, so today will be strictly about how we feel about the changes.
The Good
Although there were many changes to the system, we think that UEFA has done an overall good job with this format. One of the best things about this format is the number of games available for fans. The Champions League is one of the biggest tournaments in the sport’s history, and having even more games available nearly every week is massively exciting and makes the tournament the biggest thing in the world when it’s on.
We also love the number of teams in this new format. Adding to the number of teams has meant that teams that have never been in the Champions League have made it to the biggest stage and are giving the games their all. The number of games and new teams make Champions League betting extra fun, as you have even more options.
These games and the level of the teams have made the tournament more enjoyable overall. We see bigger teams clash earlier, smaller teams fighting the big dogs and getting results, and a generally bigger feeling for more games.
The Bad
But this is where our first issue comes in. Despite bigger teams clashing earlier and the games feeling like they mean more, we think the new league system negatively affects how the big games feel. We just saw Barcelona vs Bayern Munich, and usually, this would be massive, but because it’s so early and the game effectively means nothing, the game felt less important than it should have felt.
With the group stage, if a team lost, the implications were usually quite big, especially if it was a clash of big teams. However, this format has added more games, making the games that should feel massive smaller.
One of the biggest talking points in football is how many games the players play. We have seen many injuries for players this year, and the list keeps growing. With more games being added all the time, player safety is a massive concern. The new format means that every team is playing even more games, which will wear away at these players bit by bit.
Lastly, we want to discuss the format as a whole for the negatives. We find it a bit confusing. We know that we will get it more over time, and it will be less confusing, but considering how simple the last format was, we don’t understand why they had to make this change so complicated.
Our General Opinion
Despite the list of negatives, we think that this new system is a good one and one that will get better year by year. The start of the league stage will always be slow and dull, but the last three games should be carnage and have everyone fighting to get into that top eight or the playoff spots.
Although it was unnecessary, we welcome it with open arms and are excited to see how it goes as we progress into the season.