With rematches of past on the cards, Champions League to start new era

The new Champions League format kicks off Tuesday after more than six years of planning, one failed proposal and one Super League launch fiasco.

In the end, storied clubs who pushed for change from UEFA and created turmoil in European soccer got most of what they wanted: More teams, more games and more of them against strong opponents, more money.

Now there are 36 teams instead of 32, each playing eight games instead of six, against eight different opponents instead of three.

Kylian Mbappe starts his quest for a first title with his third club, the record 15-time European champion Real Madrid that hosts Stuttgart. Mbappe reached the semifinals in 2017 with Monaco and was a beaten finalist in 2020 with Paris Saint-Germain.

Ultimately, all 36 teams will be ranked from top to bottom in a single league standings that finishes in January instead of traditional four-team groups that would end in December.

UEFA has cleared its midweek schedule to relaunch the marquee club event over ...