The Champions League has only just undergone a major shakeup with the introduction of the 'league phase' in 2024, but UEFA wants to keep evolving the competition and the next set of format changes coming into force the season after next are expected to make even more of the action accessible to fans. A big part of that is copying a season-opening tradition used in American sports.
New commercial strategy identifies need to evolve
UC3, the joint venture between UEFA and European Football Clubs (EFC, formerly European Club Association), announced a new commercial strategy that will run for six years from the start of the 2027-28 season, through to the 2032-33 campaign.
UC3 has been created as the exclusive rights management company for the Champions League and all of UEFA’s other club competitions, trusted as the "commercial steward of the world's premium international football club competitions".
The plan is for UC3 to "imminently go to market with an innovative media, sponsorship and licensing rights strategy for the UEFA Men's Club Competitions cycle post 2027". In the changing media and entertainment landscape, a new strategy will seek to maximise opportunities and grow visibility.
UC3 said: "At the heart of the strategy is the recognition that media markets are changing fast, with new global, digital-first entrants offering differentiated fan propositions, whilst established broadcast partners remain eager to ensure optimal visibility for the competitions across Europe and the world."
AdvertisementGetty Images SportChange to the Champions League format
Barring occasional scheduling conflicts, men's Champions League football – up to the final – has long been a permanent fixture of Tuesday and Wednesday nights. But with UC3 trying to find ways to increase the visibility for all clubs when the competition gets going, Thursday is being introduced as an extra matchday to spread the opening games across more days.
Part of that will see the first Tuesday become the exclusive domain of the holders, who will begin the entire league phase with at home with no other competing fixtures. All eyes will be on them – it means that, had it already been in place, the first game of this season's Champions League would have been Paris Saint-Germain welcoming an opponent to Parc des Princes. It is similar to how seasons begin in U.S. sports, for example in the NFL where the previous season's Super Bowl champion is always first up on a Thursday night, before the rest of the teams begin on the Sunday.
New approaches to sponsorship and licensing
Through UC3, UEFA and ECF want build up sponsorship and licensing that will again "expand the reach" of their competitions, primarily the Champions League.
UC3 explained: "The approved commercial strategy also introduces new approaches to sponsorship and licensing packages that create stronger alignment between brands and media partners, opening up opportunities for new partnerships that will expand the reach of the competitions in key regions while preserving their premium nature. Details will be announced at a later date. UC3 and Relevent Football Partners will look to enhance and build on the already long-standing portfolio of partners for the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, UEFA Super Cup, UEFA Youth League and the UEFA Futsal Champions League."
AFPChampions League on Netflix?
Champions League football is already no longer exclusively held by traditional broadcast media. That began to change when Amazon Prime Video secured the rights to show a Tuesday night game from each matchweek in the UK. Disney+ has also entered the space this season, taking over broadcast rights for the Women's Champions League across Europe.
UEFA want to appeal to the streaming platforms as they look to drive up revenue from selling the rights, which could fetch $5.9 billion or more when the next cycle begins in 2027. It was reported last week that Netflix, which has been progressively expanding its own sporting portfolio, has been specifically sounded out to gauge interest in bidding for a Champions League rights package.
Broadcast contracts have historically been three years at a time, but CBS managed to secure a six-year deal for the rights to broadcast the Champions League to an American audience and such longer deals could become more of the norm if it brings in the bigger bucks.
