New Champions League Format Here to Stay?
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On Sunday the 23rd of August, Bayern Munich were crowned the Champions of Europe at the Estádio da Luz in Portugal. More often than not, the final of the Champions League is played at a neutral venue unless one of the teams to make it to the final happens to be from the host city.
However, in the latter stages of the 2019/20 Champions League we have witnessed a change to the usual format.
The outbreak of COVID-19 across the world saw the suspension of football and the Champions League, along with the majority of other competitions, was suspended in March. By the time it was possible to begin playing Champions League matches, there was not enough of the season remaining to conclude the competition in the regular format. Usually, from the Round of 16 onwards, Champions League ties are played over two legs, with each team having the opportunity to play at their own a stadium.
However, due to the situation it was not possible this season and the Champions League was switched to a one-off match format in Portugal. From the quarter-final stage, right the way through to the final itself, matches were played as a one-off on a neutral venue, with the winners progressing to the next round of the competition.
For many onlookers, this was seen as an improvement from the regular home and away legs we would normally see in the Champions League. It will never be the same without fans inside the stadium but everyone can admit the way the competition was staged by UEFA was a resounding success. We saw some excellent games of football including the late drama in the game between Paris Saint-Germain and Atalanta, the upset of Lyon defeating Manchester City and the thrashing of Barcelona by Bayern Munich.
None of this would have happened during a regular Champions League season as the ties would have been played across two legs. There can be no doubt the winner deserved to lift the trophy. Bayern Munich have enjoyed a tremendous season and they were excellent during the Champions League knockout stages in Portugal.
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has already been making subtle suggestions that the new set-up could be here to stay. However, the drama provided by the two legged set-up should not be forgotten and some of the greatest nights in the history of the Champions League have come because of the two legged format.
Who can forget Barcelona's fantastic recovery from 4-0 down to beat PSG in the last 16 in 2017 or Manchester United’s comeback in Turin against Juventus in 1999? Other great moments include Chelsea's 2-2 draw against Pep Guardiola's Barcelona at the Camp Nou in 2012, Liverpool's 4-0 win over Barcelona at Anfield in the 2019 semi-final and Lucas Moura's last minute winner for Tottenham against Ajax in 2019.
All of those great games were produced curtesy of the home and away format of the knockout stages of the Champions League. It would be a shame if it were to be removed from the competition in future and hopefully things will return to normal during the 2020/21 campaign.
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