Currently, people have easy access to sports contents. In particular, the UEFA Champions League is receiving plenty of attention from all over the world as well. To the extent that it is called War of Stars, it is necessary to see the difference from last season, and which teams are participating......Ed
We are living in an era where over-the-top (OTT) services, such as Netflix and Coupang Play, are dominating. As a result, more people can easily access sports contents, and we can find someone cheering for a foreign sports player quite often in our daily lives. Especially, the need for overseas soccer relay services is increasing with the outstanding performances of Korean soccer players like Heung-min Son and Kang-in Lee. There are many international soccer leagues, but, among them, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Champions League is patronized worldwide.
The UEFA Champions League consists of tournaments and leagues between the winners of each country’s league. It usually begins in July, and ends in May of the following year. The League, also known as “the War of Stars,” will be revamped. The most significant change is the increase in the number of participating teams from 32 to 36. The participating teams are basically determined by the league rankings of the participating countries in the European Professional Football League. The existing method consists of a total of 32 teams, including the Champions League winning team, the Europa League winning team, the top 24 teams from the European Association league, four from Champions Pass teams, and two from League Pass teams. The revamped method added four more teams: the third-ranked team in the fifth-ranked European association league, one from the Champions Pass team, and two from the first and second ranked team in the previous season’s UEFA coefficient.
The 36 teams as composed above will be divided into four ports, nine teams in the ranking, and one team will play against two teams in each port. One of the two teams in each port will play a home game and an away game against the other for the right to play in the league of eight games each. Then, the top eight teams will advance to the round of 16, and the 9th to 16th and 17th to 24th teams will again select eight teams through the playoffs to advance to the round of 16. From then on, the tournament will be held as the previous method. Despite UEFA’s intention to hold as many good games as possible, some say that it may be inefficient game management for the sake of financial gain.
The UEFA Champions League is a dream stage where soccer players from around the world can belong to the team they want according to abilities. Some soccer players perform better and show more skills in overseas leagues than in the World Cup where they play soccer based on nationality. Meanwhile, the reason there are many stories about whether Tottenham, where Heung-min Son is playing, could return to the Champions League lies in the authority of the Champions League as the best soccer league. With the conclusion of the 2023/2024 season on June 2, it opens with a new season on July 9. It will be quite meaningful to see how the different method from last season will affect the outcome, and which teams will be able to participate in the new season.
Seo Jun-hee (ST Cub-reporter)
20231933@soongsil.ac.kr
