The world’s most entertaining soccer competition is back. It’s the UEFA Champions League and football fans all over the world are buzzing as the best teams in Europe battle themselves for the most coveted trophy in European club football.
The Premier sports competition began on Tuesday, 14th September and will end on Saturday, the 2nd of May, 2022. Residents of the USA can watch the Champions League on CBS sports channels. They can also stream live matches on Paramount+ and fuboTV (Spanish).
A new Champions League format has been proposed by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). However, the competition will continue with its traditional format for three more seasons, including the current (2021-22) season.
In this year’s competition, the UCL finals will begin with 32 teams. Some teams usually get through three qualifying rounds and also win the play-off round to make it to this stage. Others simply gained direct qualification to the playoffs by finishing the domestic league with a favourable position, usually 4th for Europe’s top leagues. A fourth-place finish gives an automatic ticket to the play-offs which you have to win to make it to the finals.
Other teams do gain automatic qualification to the Champions League either by winning the competition or by finishing in one of the first three positions at the end of the domestic league campaign.
In the end, the UCL tournament proper begins with 32 teams. This is the 67th edition of the competition and the 30th since the time it was renamed the European Champions Clubs’ Cup. Real Madrid remains the team with the most UCL trophies (13).
This season, Chelsea Football Club are the defending champions: a right they earned by defeating the first-time finalist, Manchester City, in May 2021.
Champions League TV channels and Schedule in the USA
Here are the fixtures, kick-off times, TV channels, and streaming platforms for upcoming UCL semi-final matches.
Semi-final: Wednesday, 4th April 2022
| Fixtures | Kick-off time | TV channel | Streaming Platform |
|---|---|---|---|
| Real Madrid vs Manchester City | 15:00 | TUDN | fuboTV, Paramount+ |
Source: 90Min.com
Rule Change: Away Goals Rule abolished
It used to be that when aggregate scores were the same after a two-legged tie, the team with the most amount of away goals would be declared the winner, and consequently, the team that wins the right to progress to the next round.
That will no longer be the case starting from this season’s UCL competition (2021-2022). If the aggregate scores are the same after a two-legged tie, the teams will proceed to extra time which lasts for 30 minutes, and then penalties if there are no winners after extra time.
Before it was abolished by UEFA on the 24th of June 2021, the away goals rule led to the elimination of many top teams. Many football fans will be wishing they had this rule years back. This change also means the “home advantage” thing will now become very real.
Related Article: How to Watch the UCL on DStv.