New details emerge of major broadcast change that saw BBC land rights to huge football competition
NEW details around the Champions League’s broadcasting change have been revealed.
The BBC will broadcast a weekly highlights show of Europe’s premier competition for the first time in the 2024/25 campaign.
Three different channels will have Champions League rights in the UK this seasonThe Times
Amazon also have the rights to first pick of the Tuesday matches, while TNT Sports continue to show the remainder of the games.
And according to The Times, this season’s Champions League will see a 20 per cent increase in earnings for clubs taking part.
A rise in the broadcasting rights and sponsorship income is set to mean a more lucrative competition for all those involved.
That is despite the tournament expanding from 32 to 36 teams.
It is understood the average earnings for Champions League teams last season was £54million – and £80m for English clubs.
The increased revenue could be worth around £23m per year for English sides.
Numbers from the 2022/23 season showed £114m in revenue for winners Manchester City, £81m for Chelsea, £71m Liverpool and £56m for Tottenham.
A Uefa source claims the new Champions League format is the reason behind an increase in the price of broadcasting rights.
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All 36 teams will be in one league and play eight games, with the top eight automatically into the last 16 and ninth to 24th facing off in play-off ties.
The source said: “There was declining interest in the old format, with some groups decided after only three or four rounds. The new format should keep the interest going much longer.”
They also went on to add: “For the UK, we have highlights on the BBC for the first time, which is important to ensure greater eyeballs from free-to-air TV.”
As well as a change in the number of teams and format, Uefa have also added two qualification spots for fifth place in Europe’s best performing leagues the previous season.
For the 2024/25 campaign, this has seen Bologna and last year’s runners-up Borussia Dortmund secure places in the league stage.
New Champions League format
Each club will play eight matches in the opening phase – against seeded opposition, in a system designed to ensure that teams play opponents of similar difficulty.
The top eight teams in the “final” table will automatically go through to the last 16, where they will be joined by the eight play-off winners of ties between the sides placed ninth to 24th in the table.
Despite there being just eight matches in the opening phase, European matches will be spread over 10 midweek slots.
The new Champions League format also sees the implication of two additional qualifying spots.
They will be awarded to the nations that are top of the “country coefficient” chart each season.
