European women's football is set to undergo major structural changes, with the showpiece Champions League switching to the ‘Swiss model’ format and the launch of a new second-tier competition.
The UEFA Executive Committee approved the changes on Saturday at its Executive Committee meeting in Hamburg ahead of the group stage draw for next summer's European Championships.
The changes will come into effect at the start of the 2025-26 season. Existing media and sponsorship rights agreements will last until the end of the 2024-25 campaign.
The shift to the 'Swiss' model format for the Champions League will introduce an 18-team league phase with three home and three away matches followed by knockout rounds.
The men’s Champions League will use the Swiss model format from next season, which will see one big group replace the existing format of four groups of four.
The creation of a first-ever second European competition for women's clubs was also approved by the committee. There has been a second-tier men’s European competition since 1971 (introduced as the UEFA Cup, before changing its name to the Europa League in 2009).
UEFA's decision to enact sweeping changes to the current European format arrives after fierce clamour for a redress of the tournament’s qualifying stages following early exits for last year's semi-finalists Arsenal and finalists Wolfsburg, along with Italian juggernauts Juventus.
The women’s Champions League was expanded ahead of the 2021-22 season, with 16 teams from at least 10 member associations competing in its group stage.
However, with only four teams qualifying automatically for the group stage (the four winners of the highest-ranked leagues) the rest enter into a chaotic play-off system that often pits Europe's biggest hitters against each other before the competition has even begun.
Manchester United boss Marc Skinner was among the noisiest of detractors this season as his side were knocked out of their first-ever Champions League qualification by Paris Saint-Germain. PSG midfielder Jackie Groenen also questioned the benefits of the current qualification system as the women’s game continues to grow around the world.
Join our new WhatsApp community! Click this link to receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.