What is the new Champions League format?

For those that qualify for the group stage, an entirely new format will be awaiting them.

Instead of eight groups consisting of four teams, there will now be one league containing all 36 teams.

Each team will play 10 different teams across their games with five being at home and the other five being away.

From there the top eight sides will automatically qualify for the round of 16 knockout stage.

The teams finishing ninth to 24th will then compete in a two-legged play-off to secure their path to the last 16.

How will the knockout stages draw work?
With the current format teams are drawn manually from seeded pots for the knockout stage fixtures, but UEFA's deputy general secretary Giorgio Marchetti admitted it would not be possible for the draw to remain fully manual, stating that if they were to do so, the Champions League draw alone could last 'three or four hours' and feature around 900 balls if it continued as it is now.

The precise format for the draw - which is like the tennis-style seeding system - is still in the final development phase but UEFA have said it would be a 'hybrid' event involving some manual drawing of balls and some automation.

UEFA said any automated elements would continue to be independently audited to avoid any accusations of the draw being rigged.