Fans of Liverpool display a giant flag which reads "Liverpool FC, 20 times" and features the Liverbird and depictions of the UEFA Champions League trophy prior to the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Arsenal FC at Anfield on May 11, 2025 in Liverpool, England.Fans of Liverpool display a giant flag which reads "Liverpool FC, 20 times" and features the Liverbird and depictions of the UEFA Champions League trophy prior to the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Arsenal FC at Anfield on May 11, 2025 in Liverpool, England.
Fans of Liverpool display a giant flag which reads "Liverpool FC, 20 times" and features the Liverbird and depictions of the UEFA Champions League trophy prior to the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Arsenal FC at Anfield on May 11, 2025 in Liverpool, England. | Liverpool FC via Getty Images
Liverpool secured their place in next season’s Champions League last month
Liverpool went against the odds to win the Premier League title without breaking a sweat this season, capping off a dream first campaign for Arne Slot with the club’s 20th top-flight title to draw level with Manchester United.
If we rewind to the end of January, the Reds looked primed for success on the European front in addition to domestically, having finished top of the new-look Champions League league phase format with seven wins and one solitary defeat at PSV Eindhoven with top-eight qualification already secured.
But Slot’s men were unfortunate to draw a revitalised PSG in the round of 16, the now-finalists having just found form after a staggering 15th-placed finish in the league phase. Luis Enrique’s Parisian side have now beaten all four Premier League sides en route to the final, but Liverpool took them the closest - winning 1-0 in a defensive masterclass in Paris before eventually going out in a penalty shootout at Anfield.
So while the Reds went out with their heads held high, there was certainly disappointment around Anfield that a more serious Champions League challenge to the latter stages didn’t materialise.
How LFC performed in new format - and who has qualified for next season
Slot’s new side adapted perfectly to the new format, blowing away European giants such as Real Madrid (2-0), Bayer Leverkusen (4-0), AC Milan (3-1) and Lille (2-1) on the way to finishing in first place in the league phase and appearing to be early favourites for the competition.
Had the Reds been lucky enough to end up on the other side of the draw to PSG, they could have given anyone a game and may well have progressed further into the competition. Next year, they will go again - and Arne Slot will be confident they can go further this time around.
Here are the 24 teams to have secured a spot in next season’s Champions League:
England: Arsenal, Liverpool
Spain: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Athletic Bilbao, Villarreal
Italy: Napoli, Inter, Atalanta
Germany: Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen, Eintracht Frankfurt, Borussia Dortmund
France: PSG, Marseille, Monaco
Netherlands: PSV, Ajax
Portugal: Sporting CP
Belgium: Union Saint-Gilloise
Turkey: Galatasaray
Czechia: Slavia Praha
Greece: Olympiacos
What Arne Slot has made of new Champions League format
He said: “It is something now to take into consideration about how much worth it is to end up first in the league table if you can face Paris Saint-Germain in the next round. It is what it is.
“Maybe I am [speaking] too soon now but maybe it would be more fair that after the round in between, the one that wins the league table plays against the team that is lowest position after the teams have played.
“That is also because we were so unlucky to play Paris Saint-Germain because we could have also gone to the other side of the draw. In the end, if you want to win the tournament, you have to beat teams like Paris Saint-Germain, and that’s what we didn’t do today after an incredible first 90 minutes of football from us.”
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