The UEFA Champions League, also known as the UEFA Cup is a tournament which consist of four teams from the different countries of Europe. The qualification process of these cups is done through a playoffs where the top four teams from each group are invited to participate. The competition is quite hard and has great financial value as the teams are generally from the highest leagues in their respective leagues. It also counts among the most popular and watched competitions in Europe.
The European soccer governing body, FIFA, decided to create a competition which can be played in different countries across Europe and it was first held in Germany in 1996 when the name was changed to the tournament we know today. It was a replacement for the FIFA World Cup which took place in different countries and was considered as a replacement competition for the World Cup. As the competition gained popularity, other countries were invited to join, like the United Kingdom, Russia and others. The competition is very prestigious and is widely acclaimed as one of the most prestigious tournaments in the world today.
The competition consists of 16 teams which are divided into four groups of four. The four groups of four have been decided based on their geographical placement within the continent. From this group the semi finals are arranged in the format seen in the knockout stage of the EUROTO CHAMPIONSHIP. The knockout stage consists of four matches with the eliminated teams getting a chance to play in the cup for the last stage. This can either be a domestic cup or a continental final which will see the winners get a chance to lift the trophy.
The format of the tournament is quite simple with the elimination process taking place at different stages. The first stage consists of the first two teams from each of the groups from the european competition. Then the other teams are matched against these teams and if they win the set amount of points then they are added to the pot in the competition. The winning team is designated as the european champions league qualifying team and get a ticket to represent the team at the EUROTO CHAMPIONSHIP.
The format of the european club competition is similar to that of the EUROTO CHAMPIONSHIP with the group stage featuring four groups of four. The last stage consists of the semi finals and the champions of each group go on to the final competition where the team with the most points wins the trophy. The european competition also has a break clause which gives each team an equal chance of earning a break during the group stage. It is also worth noting that the semi finals do not feature live football and the only action seen is a set of penalty kicks.
The away goals scored by each team during the group stage decides who qualifies for the knockout stage. The previous years EUROTO CHAMPIONSHIP has featured four teams in each group stage with the teams separated by geographical region. This year there will be only one team per group playing out the entire competition. This means that the away goals scored by each team are more important and will determine who qualifies for the playoffs.