The UEFA Women's Champions League gets underway on Oct. 7 in the new-look league phase.
So, what is the new format? How does it differ from the men's competition? And what's this new competition called the UEFA Women's Europa Cup?
- Kassouf, Keogh: Explaining Thompson's move from Angel City to Chelsea
- Lindop: Everton beat Liverpool at Anfield to maintain WSL derby dominance
- Kassouf: How Canada moved on from Olympics cheating scandal
What is the new Women's Champions League format?
Let's start with the basics. Under the old format, 16 teams competed in four groups of four teams, with the top two going through to the quarterfinals -- and then onto the semifinals and the final.
This season sees the Women's Champions League take on a similar format to the revamped men's competition (which has 36 teams) -- with all 18 teams in one big league table. That means two extra teams will be in the competition proper.
Nine teams qualified automatically from the top seven nations:
Titleholders: Arsenal
France: OL Lyonnes, Paris Saint-Germain
Germany: Bayern Munich, VfL Wolfsburg
Spain: Barcelona
England: Chelsea
Portugal: Benfica
Italy: Juventus
The final nine places were filled through the qualifying rounds, with the losing teams dropping into the new UEFA Women's Europa Cup (more on that later).
Final qualifying round teams:
Valerenga
OH Leuven
St. Pölten
Twente
Atlético Madrid
Paris FC
Manchester United
Real Madrid
AS Roma
So, how does it work?
• Teams in positions 13 to 18 are eliminated at the end of the league phase in December.
• The eight teams in positions 5 through 12 play in the knockout phase playoffs, in February, to earn a place in the quarterfinals.
• The top four go straight through to the quarterfinals, played in March and April.
From the knockout phase playoffs onward, the competition has a two-legged format through to the semifinals, with a traditional one-legged final, but with limited draws.
How does the league phase feed into the knockout bracket?
The new format gives importance to league placing with teams paired. The higher you finish, the more favorable your path, including that jump direct to the quarterfinals for the top four.
For the women's tournament, there's just one draw, on Dec. 18, which sets the full path of the bracket. There is no country protection, meaning teams from the same league can face each other throughout the knockouts.
Here's how it works.
For the knockout phase playoffs, the draw will create four ties from:
11 or 12 vs. 5 or 6 (two ties)
9 or 10 vs. 7 or 8 (two ties)
The draw will place the four ties which have been created into a position in the bracket, in either the silver or blue half.
Then the paired teams in positions 1 & 2, and 3 & 4, will be drawn into one of two possible positions, again to create fixtures.
For the quarterfinals, the draw will be:
The winners of a tie involving 7, 8, 9 and 10 will play 1 or 2 (two ties)
The winners of a tie involving 5, 6, 11 and 12 will play 3 or 4 (two ties)
The whole bracket is now set.
The teams that finish in positions 1-4 will be at home in the second leg of the quarterfinals.
The semifinal ties are already set by the bracket draw. In principle, the teams ranked 1 and 2 will play the semifinal second leg at home. However, if 1 and/or 2 are knocked out in the quarterfinals, the home right will pass to the team that has eliminated them. For instance, if Arsenal (first) are knocked out by Paris FC (ninth), it's Paris FC who will have home advantage in the final four.
So, it isn't based on league placing -- and that means it's impossible for the teams that finish in third and fourth to get a home semifinal second leg, as they cannot claim it off first or second.
When will the games be played?
League Phase
Matchday 1: Oct. 7-8
Matchday 2: Oct. 15-16
Matchday 3: Nov. 11-12
Matchday 4: Nov. 19-20
Matchday 5: Dec. 9-10
Matchday 6: Dec. 17
On Matchday 6, all nine matches kick off at the same time.
Quarterfinals
Leg 1: Feb. 11-12
Leg 2: Feb. 18-19
Semifinals
Leg 1: March 24-25
Leg 2: April 1-2
Final
May 22, 23 or 24 at Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo, Norway.
What is the UEFA Women's Europa Cup?
It's a new second-tier European competition but doesn't automatically feature any teams from the top seven nations: France, Germany, Spain, England, Portugal, Italy and Sweden.
A total of 43 teams will compete, with runners-up and third-place teams from the nations ranked 8 to 24 earning a place by right.
The allocation will be filled by teams losing in the qualifying rounds of the Women's Champions League. Inter Milan (Italy), Eintracht Frankfurt (Germany), Braga, Sporting CP (Portugal) and BK Häcken, Hammarby, Rosengård (Sweden) are the teams from a top-seven league who were eliminated and have dropped into the Women's Europa Cup.
The whole competition, including the final, is played in a two-legged knockout format.
Second qualifying round
Leg 1: Oct. 7-8
Leg 2: Oct.15-16
Round of 16
Leg 1: Nov. 11-12
Leg 2: Nov. 19-20
Quarterfinals
Leg 1: Feb. 11-12
Leg 2: Feb. 18-19
Semifinals
Leg 1: March 24-25
Leg 2: April 1-2
Final
Leg 1: April 25 or 26
Leg 2: May 2 or 3