Champions League set for format change with one week mini-tournament proposed

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UEFA are considering making a change to the format of the Champions League by removing the two-legged semi-final ties.

The current format sees the semi-final tie played over two legs, one at one team’s home ground, and the other game at the other team’s home ground.

According to The Times, UEFA are considering changing the format of the final two ties of the Champions League. The semi-finals and final will all be played in one mini-tournament in one city over the course of a week, if the proposal goes ahead.

The issue we have with football nowadays is the governing bodies are constantly looking for ways to improve the game, but the decisions made often have their downsides.

Changing the format to a mini-tournament style would mean we see less games in the competition, due to removing the two legs from the semi-finals.

Also, playing the last few games in a single city would mean fans from four different clubs would all be congregated in the same place, which is simply asking for trouble.

An advantage would be having the semi-finals played at a neutral ground, which eliminates any advantages of playing home or away. Only one of the legs can go to penalties, so if you’re playing at home in the second leg you will have the home advantage if it does go to a shootout.

The current format has been in place since 1955, so to change it now for no real necessary reason seems a bit of a strange decision.