Fans tuning into the 2024 UEFA Champions League draw will get a glimpse into the brand new look of Europe's top competition as the event sets the league phase matchups for the coming competition.
UEFA competitions will feature a reworked group stage, no longer referred to as the "group stage" but instead as the "league phase" where all 36 teams will be ordered into a table and paired up during the event to craft each club's eight-game schedule.
With a new competition format, a new draw system is required as well. No longer will teams be drawn into four team groups, with the league phase table being built out instead. For the most part, UEFA will use AI instead of balls and pots to complete the matchups.
The Sporting News brings you all the essentials on when the draw will take place, where you can view the proceedings in Australia, and how it will work.
MORE: What is the Swiss Model? How UEFA drew from competitions like chess to build new UCL format
How to watch Champions League draw 2024: TV channel, live stream
- TV channel: None
- Live stream: Stan Sport
In Australia, you can watch the first draw of the new Champions League era exclusively on the country's home for UEFA competitions, Stan Sport.
Every single Champions League match of the 2024/25 competition will be streamed on Stan Sport in Australia.
For those around the globe in territories where a broadcast partner isn't designated, the draw can be streamed on UEFA.tv.
When is Champions League draw 2024?
The draw for the new UEFA Champions League "league phase" will be held on Thursday, August 29 at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. The Europa League and Europa Conference League draw will then be held the following day, which is Friday, August 30.
Further draws for the Champions League knockout rounds will take place in early 2025, as detailed below, when the participants are determined.
Knockout round play-offs: January 21, 2025
Round of 16, quarterfinal, semifinal: February 21, 2025
What time is Champions League draw 2024?
The 2024/25 Champions League draw will take place in Monaco on Thursday, August 29 at 6 p.m. local time in the principality.
Here's how that time translates across some of the major Australian time zones:
| Date | Draw time | |
| AEST | Fri, Aug. 30 | 2 a.m. |
| ACST | Fri, Aug. 30 | 1:30 a.m. |
| AWST | Fri, Aug. 30 | 12 a.m. |
How Champions League league phase draw will work in 2024
The old group stage has been scrapped and now a "league phase" will be organized to determine the eight-game schedule for each of the 36 participants.
Just like before, all teams will be distributed between four pots, determined by UEFA club coefficient at the start of the season. The only exception is the reigning Champions League winner, who is placed into pot one regardless of standing. This season, with Real Madrid the defending champions, they would have been pot one anyways as one of the world's most successful and powerful clubs, so that exception is moot.
Each team will then be drawn against two clubs from each other pot, including their own pot, one to play at home and the other away. Teams cannot be drawn against other clubs from the same country.
To create the matchups, the use of manually drawing balls from pots will not longer be a major part of the proceedings. This is because in the new format, it would take ages to draw all the required factors from pots.
Instead, the initial team will be drawn from the pot, at which point an AI computer software will be used to create the matchups and determine home and away designations. While this will help the time required for the draw to complete, it will likely destroy the aura of impartiality that is created by a manual draw.
