Sports
Three ways the Champions League format could be fixed
We’re midway through Year 2 of the revamped UEFA Champions League, and already we’ve witnessed the dramatic impact of the 2024 switch to a 36-team, Swiss-model league phase unlike anything seen in Europe before.
To take one example, the final matchday of the league phase this year featured Benfica goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin delivering an iconic moment, as he scored a 98th-minute header against Real Madrid to stave off elimination and push the Portuguese club to the knockout rounds. On the flip side, the competition’s format is now so confusing that Trubin himself didn’t know how vital his goal was for Benfica’s Champions League hopes.
It’s clear that there’s no perfect solution, but that doesn’t mean we can’t try! With the knockout playoff round taking place Tuesday and Wednesday, we decided to ask our writers: How would you fix the Champions League format, within the bounds of what might be possible?
Here are three fascinating proposals from Mark Ogden, Gabriele Marcotti and Bill Connelly, ranging from innovative to subtly effective.
Two mini-leagues, one gigantic playoff round
UEFA has introduced several iterations of the Champions League since overhauling the old European Cup format in the early-1990s. Despite the tweaks and changes, the competition is still the pinnacle of club soccer, and they haven’t managed to break it just yet.
But the knockout stages are where the magic happens. That’s part of the problem UEFA must overcome, because no matter how many times they reboot the group stages, those early rounds will never have the jeopardy and excitement of classic two-leg, winner-take-all encounters.
The only reason Matchday 8 of the league phase was so enthralling was because it had a knockout feel to it, with Benfica’s 4-2 win against Real Madrid — courtesy of goalkeeper Trubin’s stoppage-time goal — as good as any knockout tie.
– Ogden: Real Madrid broke Mourinho. Now he could break them in UCL
– UCL knockout round analysis, predictions
– Best Champions League tifos, 2025-26: Bob Marley, Haaland as a Viking, more
With all that in mind, how do you fix the format to inject some sense of vibrancy to the group/league stage? We are never going back to straight knockouts from the first round — there’s too much risk and not enough guaranteed money for the top clubs to ever sanction that — so there has to be some form of group stage.
So why not split the league phase in two and have two leagues feeding into the knockout stages, in a similar fashion to the AFC and NFC feeding into the NFL playoffs? Instead of a bloated 36-team league, make it two 18-team sections with only the top two in each guaranteed a round of 16 spot. The remaining 24, 12 in each section, would go into a supersize playoff round — with an open draw!
1:41
Leboeuf: Benfica’s goalkeeper scoring was a Champions League miracle
Jürgen Klinsmann and Frank Leboeuf react to Anatoliy Trubin’s last minute goal to send Benfica to the Champions League playoffs.
Let’s ensure that only the best teams have an advantage, so if you finish outside the top two, you could face anyone in the playoff. You could end up playing Real Madrid or Bodo/Glimt, but it would be down to the luck of the draw rather than a position-based seeding. And all teams would still play eight league phase games, so there would be no reduction in match revenue
It still wouldn’t be an ideal format. Too many teams would still be able to qualify with a mediocre league phase, and you could argue there would be just as many relatively meaningless games, but I want Arsenal vs. PSG or Real Madrid vs. Bayern Munich in November to matter more than they do right now. Having only two automatic spots available would sharpen the tension at the top, and what we all want to see is the big guns playing as though they mean it. — Mark Ogden
Clubs get to pick their opponents
We’re asked to be realistic here, so bear that in mind. We’re not going back to the one league/one team days, and we’re not going back to purely straight knockouts. (Besides, we effectively have a separate straight knockout tournament after the group stage anyway.)
I don’t think there’s much wrong with the current format, but rather, the main problem is with the seeding. Namely, that it’s not particularly meaningful!
Last year, Liverpool topped the group stage, and their “reward” for doing so was a showdown with Paris Saint-Germain, who finished 15th (and knocked the Reds out). Then there was Real Madrid, who finished 11th and ended up playing Manchester City (22nd). Sure, both teams underachieved, but that was “punishment” for both. Had Real Madrid finished just one place lower, they would have faced — no disrespect — Celtic. Who would you rather play?
When we rank teams in the group stage by single points (or, worse, goal difference), it’s not exactly a scientific assessment of their relative strength. So let’s make the seedings mean something: Let clubs pick their opponents.
How would it work? Real Madrid finished ninth, making them the top-ranked team in the knockout round playoffs. Instead of being forced to play the 24th team (Benfica), they can choose any playoff team. Next up, Internazionale in 10th … they too can pick their poison.
Maybe Real Madrid don’t want to see Jose Mourinho again so soon after the fact. Maybe Inter, who are matched up with Bodo/Glimt, don’t want to travel north of the Arctic Circle to play on a plastic pitch in February. Whatever the reason, it would give a club a meaningful reward for finishing higher, in addition to creating a TV event: Imagine giving a representative from each team 60 seconds “on the clock” to pick their opponent. Plus, it would naturally ensure the bigger, better teams are kept apart for as long as possible.
Then you’d repeat this in the round of 16: Arsenal get first pick, followed by Bayern Munich, and so on. While we’re at it, let the higher-ranked team decide if they want to play home or away first. We assume playing at home second is an advantage, but maybe some would rather not, whether due to fixture congestion or style of play or some other reason. Heck, let them decide if they want to play Tuesday or Wednesday, too.
These “sporting advantages” are things you can earn on the pitch and are actually meaningful. They make it less likely that late in the group stage, clubs are going to mail it in or settle for a draw, once they know they’re not making top eight. — Gabriele Marcotti
Actually, the new format is … mostly fine, but let’s make the seeding more concrete
Honestly, I think the biggest change we can make is one of mindset. A giant, eight-match league phase offers minimal jeopardy, yes, but that created some of the best stories of this season. With eight matches, Benfica and Bodo/Glimt were able to weather some early setbacks and play their way into the competition. Hell, Pafos and Union Saint-Gilloise nearly did the same. They played better as they got their footing, and that lack of jeopardy actually benefited us as viewers. Treating the league phase as a true season — albeit a small one — with time for twists and turns and late surprises makes this format awfully fun, even if we know no one’s going to be eliminated in October.
If we’re insisting on making changes, however, I have a couple of small ones.
First, for the countries that provide four or more competitors, I would allow for at least one match against a domestic opponent in the league phase. If we’re going to live in a world in which the Premier League makes all the money and can afford most of the best players, then it actually benefits them even further to not have to play each other. It certainly would have been trickier for Premier League teams to end up with five of the top eight spots in the table if, say, Chelsea had faced a trip to Arsenal, or Manchester City had to play its bogey team (Tottenham Hotspur). And hey, if we end up with a random extra El Clasico or Der Klassiker dropped into the November slate, who would complain?
Meanwhile, though there are plenty of Americanized touches getting proposed, I would actually go even further in one specific area. Forget getting rid of seeding — I’d hard-seed everything!
There’s a potentially huge difference between drawing, say, seventh-place Sporting CP (currently 16th in Opta’s power rankings) and eighth-place Manchester City (second) this year, or 17th-place Borussia Dortmund (19th) and 18th-place Olympiacos (45th). Last year, there was an immense difference in top-seeded Liverpool drawing 15th-place PSG instead of 16th-place Benfica, or 21st-place Celtic instead of 22nd-place Man City. There’s already quite a bit of randomness baked into how the final table looks — we don’t need one last burst of it with the draw. Let the table drive everything: In the round of 16, the first-place team plays the winner of No. 16 and No. 17, No. 2 plays the winner of No. 15 and No. 18, et cetera.
Those aren’t huge changes because, honestly, I don’t think much needs changing. We play a miniseason long enough to have serious plot twists and evolutions, we have a couple of wild matchdays at the end of the league phase, then we have a giant bracket leading us through a few months of action. The competition’s expansion was driven almost entirely by the endless quest for more money, but as tends to happen in this sport, the craven pursuit of cash has given us more fun soccer to watch. — Bill Connelly
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The New York Islanders have fired head coach Patrick Roy despite being in a tight playoff race.
Islanders GM Mathieu Darche announced the change from Roy to Peter DeBoer, who was fired by the Dallas Stars in June 2025.
The move comes with just four games left in the regular season for the Islanders, who sit on a four-game losing streak entering Sunday. And the streak comes with seven losses in their last 10 games.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM
Head coach Patrick Roy of the New York Islanders manages bench duties during the first period against the Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, on March 21, 2026. (Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
As the NHL standings sit entering Sunday, the Islanders, who were once comfortably in position to reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs, sit third in the Metropolitan division with 89 points, which would give them a slot if the season ended today.
However, the Philadelphia Flyers (88 points) and Columbus Blue Jackets (88) are gunning for that third and final divisional spot in the few games remaining. As a result, the Islanders are making the surprise change in hopes DeBoer can get them into the playoffs over the next week.
HOCKEY OFFICIALS REJECT CANADIAN COACH’S COMPLAINTS OF 3-ON-3 OVERTIME RULES AFTER OLYMPIC LOSS
Roy’s exit comes after a loss where the Carolina Hurricanes, who already secured a playoff spot, out shot them 40-16 in a 4-3 loss for New York.
The Islanders are not the only NHL team making a change at head coach with just days left in the regular season. The Vegas Golden Knights axed Bruce Cassidy from his role, hiring veteran coach John Tortorella on an interim basis last week.
Patrick Roy coaches the New York Islanders during a game against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., on Feb. 5, 2026. (Rich Graessle/NHLI)
Like the Islanders, the Golden Knights (86) have the third and final position in their division, though the race is a bit more comfortable for Vegas with a five-point lead over the Los Angeles Kings.
But, while Tortorella is an interim move for Vegas, the Islanders are keeping DeBoer intact heading into the 2026-27 campaign.
DeBoer has been head coach of five different franchises over his extensive coaching career. He owns a career 662-447-152 record in 1,261 games with the Florida Panthers, New Jersey Devils, San Jose Sharks, Golden Knights and the Stars, who he led for the past three seasons before his firing.
Head coach Patrick Roy of the New York Islanders looks on during a game against the Philadelphia Flyers at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y., on April 3, 2026. (Steven Ryan/NHLI)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
DeBoer wasn’t with a team this season, but he’s stepping up for the opportunity to help turn the tides on Long Island, as the Islanders hope to make the playoffs after missing out the previous two seasons.
While DeBoer hasn’t coached this season, he was a part of Jon Cooper’s Team Canada staff for the Milan Cortina Olympics earlier this year.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
For months, Inter Miami advertised Nu Stadium with one simple message: “We’re coming home.'” On Saturday, in a 2-2 draw with Austin FC that was the first official game at the stadium, the club finally made good on its promise the only way it knows how.
The arena was covered with pink lights before the match, while a tifo in the stands read “Aquí empieza una nueva eraqui,” meaning “Today starts a new era.” In the center of the pitch, Lionel Messi got the game underway and within 10 minutes, he scored the club’s first goal there in front of a stand that bears his name.
“To see this stadium come to life after years and years of trying to get this stadium up and running in Miami, is something that’s very special,” club co-owner and founder David Beckham said.
“I came to America and the MLS 20 years ago, and I made a lot of promises. Twelve years ago, I made a lot of promises again, announcing that I was coming to Miami. Today, it’s just a dream come true for us… Today I stand in our new home, we are champions of MLS and have the best player in the history of the game playing in Miami.”
It has been a long time coming for everyone involved with Inter Miami, but particularly for Beckham. His dream to build a Miami Dade-based stadium began in 2014, moments after MLS commissioner Don Garber officially awarded Beckham the expansion franchise. He envisioned a waterfront destination based in the heart of the city to build a 20,000-30,000-seater stadium.
Beckham’s first bid targeted land next to the Kaseya Center, the Miami Heat’s home, with views of Biscayne Bay and Downtown, but his initial efforts were quickly shut down by the city, forcing him to unsuccessfully chase leads in Little Havana and Overtown.
By 2018, Jorge and Jose Mas, founders of the Miami-based construction and engineering company MasTec, joined Inter Miami’s ownership and the search for a venue.
With no lease agreement in sight and the team’s MLS debut fast approaching, the new ownership group decided to remodel Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale as a temporary solution. After an almost $100 million facelift that included a training facility, several practice fields and a redone 20-000 seat stadium, Inter Miami prepared to debut at the then-newly named DRV PNK stadium.
But the push for a permanent home never stopped.
Beckham and the Mas brothers began conversations for the site of the Melreese golf course in 2018 after 60% of voters approved the referendum that authorized the city to negotiate and execute a 99-year lease. It then took another four years to be officially approved, but Beckham and the Mas brothers finally secured the site they craved.
“This is a dream come true,” club co-owner Jorge Mas said. “This has been a stadium that was born from a dream, which was to create a first-class stadium in my hometown to celebrate football. Miami is today a capital of the world, and it will be the capital of football, especially with our club, with our captain, Leo Messi.”
On the field, Austin FC spoiled the party early on as winger Guilherme Biro scored the first official goal at Nu Stadium in the sixth minute. That was until Messi got proceedings back on track with a well-weighted header. For the first time, but certainly not the last, the entire stadium chanted Messi’s name.
Beckham and Mas got their dream moment, but not the dream finish: It wouldn’t end without further setback: winger Jayden Nelson restored Austin’s early in the second half. It wasn’t until the final minutes of the game that a goal from Miami striker Luis Suárez, who converted at the back post from a corner, managed to salvage a point.
Suarez is one of the best players of his generation, but he has struggled with osteoarthritis in recent seasons and hadn’t scored in a competitive game since Oct. 11, 2025. His strike, then, came at just the right time. He could have had a winner moments later, too: Messi fired a free-kick at goal as the game ticked towards stoppage-time, and the ball bounced off the post before Suarez nodded it home. However, he was ruled offside, and the goal was disallowed.
A draw wasn’t the ideal start that Miami had in mind, but, like the rest of the Miami Freedom Park sports complex surrounding Nu Stadium, this team is a work in progress. “I believed in Miami, and Miami believes in us,” Beckham said.
For now, Miami will continue to seek its first victory in a city and a stadium they can finally call home.
Bruno Fernandes has outlined one player he believes should be among Manchester United‘s midfield targets this summer, while Chelsea will again look to sister club Strasbourg to add to their own squad.
Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.
Transfers home page | Men’s winter grades | Women’s grades
TRENDING RUMORS
– Manchester United are in the market for two midfielders this summer and, according to The Sun, Bruno Fernandes will recommend that one of them is West Ham United‘s Mateus Fernandes. United are set to lose Casemiro this summe when his contract expires and have been linked with a number of replacements, including Nottingham Forest‘s Elliot Anderson. Fernandes will urge United to sign his Portugal teammate, with United sporting director Hugo Viana already a strong admirer of the 21-year-old.
– Chelsea are in talks to sign Strasbourg midfielder Valentín Barco, as reported by TalkSport. The 21-year-old permanently joined the Ligue 1 club last summer for £8 million having previously played for them on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion, and he could now reunite with Liam Rosenior by following his route from Strasbourg to Stamford Bridge. The Argentina international has recorded two goals and nine assists in 28 appearances across all competitions so far this season.
– Manchester United have been closely tracking Bayern Munich winger Maycon Cardozo, according to TEAMtalk. The 17-year-old signed a new contract with Bayern last month and has since made his first-team debut. United are reportedly impressed by his technical ability and, although a move anytime soon would be difficult to complete for due to the recent contract renewal.
– Atlético Madrid will soon make their opening offer for Atalanta midfielder Éderson with a proposal worth €35 million plus €3 million in add-ons, as reported by Sky Sports Italia. That falls short of the figure of €50 million that Atalanta expect to receive for the 26-year-old. Éderson has already agreed a four-year contract with Atlético worth €5 million-per-season plus a €2 million signing bonus. Negotiations appear to have begun and Atleti are making aggressive moves to complete a deal.
– Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United are among the clubs interested in Blackburn Rovers defender Tom Atcheson, according to TEAMtalk. The 19-year-old has stepped up to the senior level for Blackburn and Northern Ireland under Michael O’Neill, which has also resulted in further Premier League attention from Sunderland, Everton, Brentford and Brighton & Hove Albion. He is also being looked at by European clubs such as RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund, Atalanta and Napoli.
EXPERT TAKE
ESPN’s resident scout Tor-Kristian Karlsen ranked Mateus Fernandes at No. 33 in his list of the best U21s players in world football. He wrote:
Last season, Fernandes suffered relegation with Southampton despite winning both of the club’s Player of the Season and Fan’s Player of the Season awards, but he had to play only three games in the Championship before making a £40 million move to West Ham. However, somehow he is in much the same predicament this season, as West Ham are in a battle to avoid the drop.
Fernandes is a central midfielder who equally brings defensive and attacking qualities. On one hand, he makes tackles, presses well and regains possession — 158 duels puts him in the 95th percentile among midfielders — while he also has the vision to deliver excellent long passes (61.1% success rate) and pick out deep runs from his teammates.
He generally covers a lot of ground and reads danger superbly, winning a lot of loose balls, while he copes well under pressure and can shift play quickly. That, along with fine dribbling at high speed, makes him equally useful at either end of the pitch. But his three goals this season — including the fastest Premier League goal of the campaign, scored after just 29 seconds against Aston Villa — also suggest he has a knack of arriving in good goal-scoring positions.
OTHER RUMORS
0:57
Hutchison: Cucurella ‘out of order’ for Chelsea transfer policy criticism
Don Hutchison reacts to Marc Cucurella’s recent comments about Chelsea’s transfer policy.
– Chelsea have a strong interest in Sunderland goalkeeper Robin Roefs but face competition from Liverpool and Manchester City. (Football Insider)
– Minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe wants Manchester United to make £100 million from departures with Manuel Ugarte, Joshua Zirkzee, Andre Onana, Rasmus Hojlund and Marcus Rashford all set to leave. (The Sun)
– Liverpool, Inter Milan, Juventus and Tottenham Hotspur all have Atalanta’s Cagliari loanee Marco Palestra on their radar. (Caught Offside)
– Juventus and Como have both sent scouts to watch Real Valladolid attacking midfielder Chuki in recent weeks. RB Leipzig and Stuttgart have already made moves for the 21-year-old. (La Gazzetta dello Sport)
– Juventus could be willing to let Gleison Bremer leave during the summer transfer window. (La Gazzetta dello Sport)
– Juventus are looking at Genoa for right-back Brooke Norton-Cuffy, striker Jeff Ekhator and center back Leo Skiri Ostigard. (La Gazzetta dello Sport)
– Roma are preparing their strategy to sign Almeria attacking midfielder Sergio Arribas and are interested in Kerim Alajbegovic, whose re-sign clause has been triggered to move him from RB Salzburg to Bayer Leverkusen. (Corriere dello Sport)
– AC Milan and Napoli also want Kerim Alajbegovic, with the former sending scouts to watch him during Bosnia & Herzegovina’s win against Wales. (Corriere dello Sport)
– Paris Saint-Germain Feminines have reached an agreement with Real Madrid striker Naomie Feller. (L’Equipe)
– Several Premier League clubs are monitoring Sassuolo centre-back Tarik Muharemovic. (Nicolo Schira)
– Ollie Watkins is growing increasingly likely to leave Aston Villa during the summer transfer window. (Football Insider)
Islanders fire head coach Patrick Roy with four games left in the season amid playoff race
Actress Tori Spelling hospitalized after Southern California crash; authorities investigating cause
With Messi goal, Inter Miami open new stadium with dream moment
-
Sports1 week agoUSMNT handed reality check by Doku, Belgium ahead of World Cup
-
Sports1 week ago2026 NCAA men’s hockey tournament: Schedule, results
-
Fashion1 week agoEU apparel imports slump 15.48% YoY in Jan; Bangladesh hardest hit
-
Uncategorized3 days ago
[CinePlex360] Please moderate: “Trump signals p
-
Uncategorized6 days ago
[CinePlex360] Please moderate: “Further tariff
-
Tech2 days agoOur Favorite iPad Is $50 Off
-
Uncategorized1 week ago
[CinePlex360] Please moderate: “Apple scrapping
-
Entertainment1 week agoThe Avett Brothers’ bassist explains why he wrote a book about John Quincy Adams