Paris Saint-Germain v FC Internazionale Milano - UEFA Champions League Final 2025
Photo by Kevin Voigt/GettyImages
Heading into the first year of the new-look Champions League format, with an eight game league phase and preliminary knockout round added to the mix along with first round byes for top finishers, there were always questions about how it would play out in practice.
Most agree that on the whole the changes were positive, bringing more opportunities for smaller clubs and giving fans a more varied slate of matches to choose from, though for many concerns over the additional games in an already overpacked schedule do remain.
One choice that raised eyebrows when the knockout rounds kicked off this season was the decision not to five sides that finished higher in league play the second leg of knockout ties at home—choosing instead of only give clubs that advantage through the Round of 16.
That meant a club like Liverpool, who finished top eight in the league phase, would get a bye through the preliminary knockout round and then play the second leg of the Round of 16 at home. In the quarter and semi-final, that advantage would be replaced by a draw.
For 2025-26 that changes. Liverpool, as not just top eight but the best side in league play, would get home advantage in the second leg through the tournament. It seems a sensible tweak—though one that doesn’t answer how Liverpool drew PSG in the Round of 16.
It seems that Liverpool’s reward for finishing first being the toughest possible opponent has been written off as simple bad luck. Statistically, it probably was. Though that’s not much comfort to the Reds. That aside, though, the change being made does seem reasonable.