The Premier League’s hopes of securing an additional Champions League spot next season have suffered a significant blow following West Ham and Liverpool’s exits from European competitions on Thursday.
The path to a fifth Champions League spot for the Premier League has become virtually impossible. Even if Aston Villa were to win all their remaining Europa Conference League matches, a highly unlikely scenario coupled with a German collapse in the Europa League semifinals, would be required for England to secure the additional berth.
This season, top European leagues have been competing for two additional Champions League spots due to the competition’s upcoming format expansion. This expansion, scheduled for next season, will see an increase from 32 teams to 36, requiring a reshuffle in qualification.
The revamped Champions League format will introduce a “Swiss” style group stage. This will involve 36 teams playing eight matches each (four home and four away) during the qualification stage. The top eight teams will progress directly to the knockout stages, while teams ranked ninth to 24th will face two-legged playoffs for remaining spots.