UEFA have made a decision on reform plans for the Champions League, following discussions between the governing body’s executive committee on Tuesday.
The controversial proposal to allocate positions to two teams based on historical merit have been confirmed, though the places will be given to the two country’s with the best European performance over the past year.
Previous plans had been to award places to the two sides with the highest co-efficient ranking who failed to qualify domestically – a figure awarded based on achievements in European football over the past five years.
The Guardian are reporting that if the new rules were applied this season, the additional places would be awarded to England and The Netherlands and are based on the performance of each nation’s clubs in the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League.
Under the reforms which will come into place in 2024, the group stage will now consist of eight games per team and the Champions League will increase from 32 to 36 teams.
The group stage will move to a ‘Swiss model’ in which teams compete in one single league, playing matches against opponents of different ranks to decide which teams reach the knockout stages.
