Real Madrid Concerned About Tough Group Stage Schedule in Champions League
Emilio Butragueño, Real Madrid’s Director of Communications, has expressed concerns about the challenging group stage schedule in the 2024-2025 Champions League, given the competition’s new form
In the draw held on August 29, Real Madrid was placed in a demanding group where they will face Dortmund, Milan, Salzburg, and Stuttgart at the Bernabéu, and play away against Liverpool, Atalanta, Lille, and Brest in the group stage of the upcoming Champions League season.
Out of these eight opponents, seven are from Europe’s top five leagues, with Salzburg being the only exception. Notably, Real Madrid will once again encounter Dortmund and Liverpool, teams they defeated in the Champions League finals of 2024 and 2022, respectively.
“We are familiar with some of our opponents as we’ve played against them recently,” Butragueño said to Real Madrid’s media channel. “We know their strengths and understand that these matches will be challenging. The other teams, like the two French clubs Lille and Brest, as well as Germany’s Stuttgart, are new opponents for us.”
Butragueño urged fans to fill the Bernabéu and support the team to secure victories in their four home matches, anticipating difficult challenges in the away games. “Liverpool, Atalanta, Lille, and Brest are all tough to play against on their home turf,” the 61-year-old legend added. “It’s going to be complex, but we have full confidence in our players and in how Ancelotti manages the squad.”
This season, the number of teams participating in the Champions League has increased from 32 to 36. Instead of being divided into eight groups as in previous seasons, all 36 teams will compete in a single group, similar to domestic league formats. Each team will play eight matches against eight different opponents, consisting of four home and four away games. The top eight teams will advance directly to the Round of 16, while teams ranked 9th to 24th will enter a two-legged playoff to compete for the remaining eight spots. The bottom 12 teams will be eliminated.
Butragueño emphasized that this new format is particularly challenging and stressed the importance of finishing in the top eight to avoid the additional playoff rounds. “If we perform well, we will have a good chance of achieving our goal,” he confidently stated.
Meanwhile, Liverpool, who will face Real Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen, Lille, and Bologna at Anfield, and play away against RB Leipzig, AC Milan, PSV Eindhoven, and Girona, are also preparing for a tough schedule.
New Liverpool manager Arne Slot acknowledged the difficulty and excitement of the upcoming matches. The Dutch coach understands the high stakes of their clash with the reigning champions, Real Madrid, but urged his team to focus on each game individually. “We have many matches coming up in the Premier League. For the Champions League, the only approach is to prepare for each match as it comes,” he remarked.
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) also faces a challenging group stage, with home games against Manchester City, Atletico Madrid, PSV, and Girona, and away matches against Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Salzburg, and Stuttgart.
PSG President Nasser Al-Khelaifi, who attended the draw ceremony in Monaco yesterday, expressed confidence in his team’s ability to perform well in the group stage. “We love this competition,” he said. “PSG has drawn some of the toughest opponents, but the whole team, especially myself, is highly motivated by this challenge and the new format. We are always full of energy when participating in the Champions League.”
