UEFA European Cups: beginning of the group stage a year before the adoption of a new format

The group stages of the 2023-24 European Cups kick off this week with the Champions League on Tuesday 19 and Wednesday 20, followed by the Europa League and Europa Conference League on Thursday 21/09/2023.

This is the last season in the current format for UEFA's club competitions, which will undergo major changes from 2024-25, starting with an increase in the number of participating clubs from 32 to 36 for each of the three events, and a new 'league' format in which each team will play eight matches (four at home and four away) against different opponents, instead of three two-legged ties in a four-team pool at present. The number of matches will thus be increased from 125 to 189 in total, with significantly higher revenues as a result (the 40% increase in audiovisual rights initially suggested by UEFA could, however, only reach 23% according to several media reports).

The clubs that qualify for the European Cups will share the sum of €2.732bn for the final season of the 2021-2024 cycle, distributed as follows:
• €2.032bn (74.4%) for the clubs that qualified for the Champions League…