Ronaldo’s ‘theatric’ reveal in $4 billion competition

The Champions League will have a series of rematches of recent finals in the bigger slate of games paired on Friday in the new format of European football’s signature competition.
Real Madrid will have re-runs of their past three Champions League title wins, against Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund, in a revamped eight game schedule for each team now the traditional group stage is abolished.
Madrid have added France superstar Kylian Mbappe to their stellar team since beating Dortmund in last season’s final.
Watch every match of the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League, streaming ad free, live and on demand on Stan Sport
They also beat Liverpool in the 2018 and 2022 finals among their record 15 European titles.
Madrid will host Dortmund and travel to Liverpool, though the match dates are not confirmed until Sunday (AEST).
Manchester City also gets a Champions League final reunion – hosting Inter Milan who they beat to win their European title in 2023.
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Bayern Munich will host Paris Saint-Germain in a rematch of the 2020 final that the German giant won 1-0.
Defending champion Madrid’s slate of opponents also include home games against seven-time European champion AC Milan, Salzburg and Stuttgart with trips to Atalanta — the Europa League winner that Madrid beat in the UEFA Super Cup this month — and twice to France, to play Lille and debutant Brest.
A complex draw ceremony in Monaco aided on stage by Cristiano Ronaldo gave eight team slates of opponents for all 36 teams in the bigger and more lucrative Champions League, that has a prize money fund of at least $4.08 billion.
Cristiano Ronaldo poses for a photo at Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. Getty
The traditional 32 team group stage played each season since 2003 was scrapped in favour of a single standings league.
Now, 36 teams each will play eight games against eight different opponents through January.
The top eight in the standings in January go direct to the round of 16 in March.
Teams ranked ninth to 24th go into the knockout playoffs in February.
The bottom 12 teams are eliminated.
Man City’s away games at PSG and Juventus were balanced by one of the easier slates of home games: against Club Brugge, Feyenoord and Sparta Prague.
The English champion also must travel to Slovan Bratislava, one of the lowest ranked teams, which meant avoiding Girona, its Spanish sibling in an Abu Dhabi-backed global network of clubs.
Man City is the flagship club and its owners had to put their Girona shares into a blind trust to comply with UEFA integrity rules.
Bayern also will host Barcelona, who they routed 8-2 in the quarter-finals of the 2020 title run, and travel to Aston Villa, the surprise winner of their 1982 European Cup final.
Liverpool will host Bayer Leverkusen, the German champion coached by their former star midfielder Xabi Alonso, in a standout match of the expanded league phase.
Leverkusen will host city rivals Inter Milan and AC Milan, and also travel to Atletico Madrid.
The new style draw was made at a gala ceremony in a beachside concert hall in Monaco with football greats Ronaldo and Gianluigi Buffon.
Cristiano Ronaldo during the UEFA Champions League 2024-25 league phase draw. Getty
After each team’s ball was picked by Buffon from one of four bowls – seeded according to results in the past five years of European club competitions – Ronaldo theatrically pressed a button for the reveal of how a software program allocated two opponents from each of the four seeding pots.
The new format was created by UEFA under pressure from influential clubs who wanted more guaranteed games and a wider variety of high profile opponents, believing the old group stage was predictable and lacked drama.
The later knockout stages have typically involved only wealthy clubs from the richest domestic leagues.
“If you see the number of competitive matches in this format, unbelievable. It’s amazing,” PSG president Nasser al-Khelaifi said.
“That’s what everybody wanted to change.”
Al-Khelaifi leads the influential European Club Association which negotiated the new format with UEFA.
They also manage the competition’s commercial strategy in a joint venture.
The new league phase will have 144 total games compared to 96 in the group stage last season.
By also adding a new knockout playoffs round in February, the competition overall has 189 games instead of 125.
Nacho of Real Madrid lifts the Champions League trophy after his team’s victory. Getty
This Champions League edition already was given a fresh look by unexpected entries from each of the big five domestic leagues, which all were among the lowest ranked seeds.
Villa returns for the first time since their European Cup title defence in 1983 was ended by Juventus, who they will host again.
Bologna last qualified in 1964, Stuttgart is back after a 14 year gap, while Girona and Brest will make their European competition debuts.
Brest will host defending champion Madrid and Leverkusen in a borrowed stadium in nearby Breton town Guingamp because its 102-year-old home ground is outdated.
Match pairings drawn for the UEFA Champions League
Top seeded teams
Real Madrid (Spain) – Home games: Borussia Dortmund (Germany), AC Milan (Italy), Salzburg (Austria), Stuttgart (Germany). Away games: Liverpool (England), Atalanta (Italy), Lille (France), Brest (France).
Manchester City (England) – Home games: Inter Milan (Italy), Club Brugge (Belgium), Feyenoord (Netherlands), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic). Away games: Paris Saint-Germain (France), Juventus (Italy), Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia).
Bayern Munich (Germany) – Home games: Paris Saint-Germain (France), Benfica (Portugal), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia). Away games: Barcelona (Spain), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Feyenoord (Netherlands), Aston Villa (England).
Paris Saint-Germain (France) – Home games: Manchester City (England), Atlético Madrid (Spain), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Girona (Spain). Away games: Bayern Munich (Germany), Arsenal (England), Salzburg (Austria), Stuttgart (Germany).
Liverpool (England) – Home games: Real Madrid (Spain), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), Lille (France), Bologna (Italy). Away games: Leipzig (Germany), AC Milan (Italy), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Girona (Spain).
Inter Milan (Italy) – Home games: Leipzig (Germany), Arsenal (England), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia), Monaco (France). Away games: Manchester City (England), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), Young Boys (Switzerland), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic).
Borussia Dortmund (Germany) – Home games: Barcelona (Spain), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Celtic (Scotland), Sturm Graz (Austria). Away games: Real Madrid (Spain), Club Brugge (Belgium), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), Bologna (Italy).
Leipzig (Germany) – Home games: Liverpool (England), Juventus (Italy), Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Aston Villa (England). Away games: Inter Milan (Italy), Atlético Madrid (Spain), Celtic (Scotland), Sturm Graz (Austria).
Barcelona (Spain) – Home games: Bayern Munich (Germany), Atalanta (Italy), Young Boys (Switzerland), Brest (France). Away games: Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Benfica (Portugal), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia), Monaco (France).
Second seeded teams
Bayer Leverkusen (Germany) – Home games: Inter Milan (Italy), AC Milan (Italy), Salzburg (Austria), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic). Away games: Liverpool (England), Atlético Madrid (Spain), Feyenoord (Netherlands), Brest (France).
Atlético Madrid (Spain) – Home games: Leipzig (Germany), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), Lille (France), Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia). Away games: Paris Saint-Germain (France), Benfica (Portugal), Salzburg (Austria), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic).
Atalanta (Italy) – Home games: Real Madrid (Spain), Arsenal (England), Celtic (Scotland), Sturm Graz (Austria). Away games: Barcelona (Spain), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Young Boys (Switzerland), Stuttgart (Germany).
Juventus (Italy) – Home games: Manchester City (England) Benfica (Portugal), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Stuttgart (Germany). Away games: Leipzig (Germany), Club Brugge (Belgium), Lille (France), Aston Villa (England).
Benfica (Portugal) – Home games: Barcelona (Spain), Atlético Madrid (Spain), Feyenoord (Netherlands), Bologna (Italy). Away games: Bayern Munich (Germany), Juventus (Italy), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia), Monaco (France).
Arsenal (England) – Home games: Paris Saint-Germain (France), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), Monaco (France). Away games: Inter Milan (Italy), Atalanta (Italy), Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Girona (Spain).
Club Brugge (Belgium) – Home games: Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Juventus (Italy), Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Aston Villa (England). Away games: Manchester City (England), AC Milan (Italy), Celtic (Scotland), Sturm Graz (Austria).
Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine) – Home games: Bayern Munich (Germany), Atalanta (Italy), Young Boys (Switzerland, Brest (France). Away games: Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Arsenal (England), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Bologna (Italy).
AC Milan (Italy) – Home games: Liverpool (England), Club Brugge (Belgium), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia), Girona (Spain). Away games: Real Madrid (Spain), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia).
Third seeded teams
Feyenoord (Netherlands) – Home games: Bayern Munich (Germany), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), Salzburg (Austria), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic). Away games: Manchester City (England), Benfica (Portugal), Lille (France), Girona (Spain).
Sporting Lisbon (Portugal) – Home games: Manchester City (England), Arsenal (England), Lille (France), Bologna (Italy). Away games: Leipzig (Germany), Club Brugge (Belgium), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Sturm Graz (Austria).
PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) – Home games: Liverpool (England), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Girona (Spain). Away games: Paris Saint-Germain (France), Juventus (Italy), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia), Brest (France).
Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) – Home games: Borussia Dortmund (Germany), AC Milan (Italy), Celtic (Scotland), Monaco (France). Away games: Bayern Munich (Germany), Arsenal (England), Salzburg (Austria), Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia).
Salzburg (Austria) – Home games: Paris Saint-Germain (France), Atletico Madrid (Spain), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), Brest (France). Away games: Real Madrid (Spain), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), Feyenoord (Netherlands), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic).
Lille (France) – Home games: Real Madrid (Spain), Juventus (Italy), Feyenoord (Netherlands), Sturm Graz (Austria). Away games: Liverpool (England), Atletico Madrid (Spain), Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Bologna (Italy).
Red Star Belgrade (Serbia) – Home games: Barcelona (Spain), Benfica (Portugal), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Stuttgart (Germany). Away games: Inter Milan (Italy), AC Milan (Italy), Young Boys (Switzerland), Monaco (France).
Young Boys (Switzerland) – Home games: Inter Milan (Italy), Atalanta (Italy), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia), Aston Villa (England). Away games: Barcelona (Spain), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Celtic (Scotland), Stuttgart (Germany).
Celtic (Scotland) – Home games: Leipzig (Germany), Club Brugge (Belgium), Young Boys (Switzerland), Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia). Away games: Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Atalanta (Italy), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), Aston Villa (England).
Fourth seeded teams
Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia) – Home games: Manchester City (England), AC Milan (Italy), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), Stuttgart (Germany). Away games: Bayern Munich (Germany), Atletico Madrid (Spain), Celtic (Scotland), Girona (Spain).
Monaco (France) – Home games: Barcelona (Spain), Benfica (Portugal), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia), Aston Villa (England). Away games: Inter Milan (Italy), Arsenal (England), Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia), Bologna (Italy).
Sparta Prague (Czech Republic) – Home games: Inter Milan (Italy), Atletico Madrid (Spain), Salzburg (Austria), Brest (France). Away games: Manchester City (England), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), Feyenoord (Netherlands), Stuttgart (Germany).
Aston Villa (England) – Home games: Bayern Munich (Germany), Juventus (Italy), Celtic (Scotland), Bologna (Italy). Away games: Leipzig (Germany), Club Brugge (Belgium), Young Boys (Switzerland), Monaco (France).
Bologna (Italy) – Home games: Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Lille (France), Monaco (France). Away games: Liverpool (England), Benfica (Portugal), Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Aston Villa (England).
Girona (Spain) – Home games: Liverpool (England), Arsenal (England), Feyenoord (Netherlands), Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia). Away games: Paris Saint-Germain (France), AC Milan (Italy), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Sturm Graz (Austria).
Stuttgart (Germany) – Home games: Paris Saint-Germain (France), Atalanta (Italy), Young Boys (Switzerland), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic). Away games: Real Madrid (Spain), Juventus (Italy), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia), Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia).
Sturm Graz (Austria) – Home games: Leipzig (Germany), Club Brugge (Belgium), Sporting Lisbon (Portugal), Girona (Spain). Away games: Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Atalanta (Italy), Lille (France), Brest (France).
Brest (France) – Home games: Real Madrid (Spain), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands), Strum Graz (Austria). Away games: Barcelona (Spain), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Salzburg (Austria), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic).