Vienna (dpa) – seven German clubs in the Champions League? From 2024, German football fans can at least dream of a premier class shaped by the Bundesliga.
With the reform of the European Cup competitions, the German clubs have at least a real chance of providing five Champions League starters: the four best clubs, which are already directly qualified for the group stage – and another one, the fifth in the Bundesliga, if the German clubs did well in the previous season.
Two of the four additional starters from 2024 come from the two national associations that have collected the most points in European competitions in the previous season. Germany was one of them in the 2019/20 season when FC Bayern won the premier class. The exact point allocation is still to be determined, said UEFA competition director Giorgio Marchetti. The coefficient system currently applies. England and the Netherlands would benefit in the current season – Holland also because of Feyenoord Rotterdam’s finals in the Conference League.
The winner of the Europa League and the defending champion are also eligible to start in the premier class in the following season. This is already the case, which is why Frankfurt fans have one more reason to hope for victory in the Europa League final on May 18 against Glasgow Rangers. However, there is only an additional premier class starting place if the winner of the respective European Cup has not already qualified via the league, i.e. one of the first four places in Germany. That would be the case with Eintracht.
Seven German starters are therefore possible if both the Champions League and the Europa League are won by German clubs, but they do not make it into the top five in the Bundesliga – and if Germany was one of the two best nations last season.