Champions League: UEFA announce changes for next season

"UEFA have announced important news for football fans around the world regarding changes to the 2018/19 Champions League campaign with the latest news affecting those searching for football tickets next season."
Published by
28th Feb 2018
Categories: Champions League

This week UEFA announced important news for football fans around the world regarding changes to the 2018/19 Champions League campaign. The premier European competition is constantly ‘evolving’ and the latest news will be of great interest to those searching for football tickets next season.

The famous 19.45pm kick-off time is to be scrapped in a drastic and seemingly unpopular change with football fans. Champions League fixtures will now be staggered on match days at 17.55pm GMT and 20:00pm GMT with times set to stay that way until 2021 at least.

This is one of a host of changes confirmed by UEFA which is maintain the UEFA Champions League’s reputation as the most popular and exciting domestic football competition in the world. All of the Champions League and Europa League alterations can be found here.

The Champions League will now use the same system as the Europa League, which already has early and late kick-offs in place. This latest modification will surely have an impact on customers searching for the latest Champions League tickets. Fans should also be reminded to always check the kick-off times of their matches as they can be subject to change from the original announcements.

Starting next season, UEFA also announced changes to gaining qualification. Twenty-six teams will now gain direct entry into the group stages, as opposed to twenty-two this season. Spain, Germany, England and Italy will each be represented by four teams, France and Russia will have two, while Portugal, Ukraine, Belgium and Turkey have one.

As always, the eventual winners of the Champions League and Europa League trophies also gain direct entry into the group stages. This means whoever finishes fourth in the Premier League this season won't have to go through qualifying, unlike previous seasons.

Therefore, the remaining six group stage places will be fought for between the champions of leagues ranked 11th and below and the teams who finish third in both France and Russia through qualifying rounds.

It is still not too late to buy cheap tickets in the Champions League this season with seats still available for all upcoming matches from the last-16. Why not get involved with the biggest match in European football with match tickets on sale for the 2018 Champions League Final in Kiev. Grab your Final tickets now with a 100% guarantee and whole host of ticket options available, including VIP Hospitality, Private Boxes and much more.