Club football's most prestigious European competition, the UEFA Champions League, is back and boasts an entirely new format that will guarantee viewers top-tier fixtures all year round, all of which will be live on SuperSport.
The expanded tournament sees an increase in participating teams from 32 to 36, with a single league table group stage system, meaning more titanic clashes among the European elite. The total number of games has risen from 125 to 189, with estimated live hours of scintillating action up from 240 to 355.
The new format is simple to follow. Clubs have been seeded based on coefficient rankings into 4 groups of 12, after which they were manually allocated 8 fixtures by a computer – 4 at home and 4 away. Teams face 2 teams from all 4 pots, meaning teams seeded in pot 1 won't have the luxury of avoiding teams from the same pot.
Matchday 1 was a colossal tussle between the bookies' favourites and 2022 champions, Manchester City and the team they beat to lift the coveted trophy, Inter Milan, and perfectly illustrates how the format will instantly deliver big ticket matches.
Also setting the wheels in motion was defending champions Real Madrid, who started the defence of their title at home to the resurgent German outfit, Stuttgart, which saw Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jnr and co, christen Kylian Mbappe's arrival at the Santiago Bernabeu with an astonishing 16th title.
The new competition format, which will look to provide more balance, equity and unpredictability, will also see Champions League games on Thursday nights, with stars such as Lamine Yamal and Bukayo Saka entering the foray.
SuperSport CEO Rendani Ramovha said, "Live broadcasts of all Champions League matches on SuperSport is yet another illustration of SuperSport's commitment to giving our DStv subscribers nothing but the best in sporting entertainment across the continent as well as unlimited access to world-class football.
"Fans can expect more edge-of-your-seat action during the staggering 189 games. We are committed to putting the ALL in FootbALL and we're not content with the live action. We have upped the ante when it comes to our build-up, too, with the introduction of Match Centre on our SuperScreen channel (199)."
SuperSport's innovative SuperScreen – which was first launched on the final matchday of the 2023-24 English Premier League season and extended to the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics – will showcase 9 live matches with 7 of them kicking off simultaneously at 21:00.
Match Centre on matchday 1 kicked off with South African favourite Julia Stuart and a host of knowledgeable experts, starting at 18:00 (CAT). Viewers will also gain expert analysis from people such as Bafana Bafana legends Shaun Bartlett, and Bongani Khumalo, Banyana Banyana goalkeeper Kaylin Swart, and SuperSport presenters Neil Andrews, Wesley Gabriels, and Lwazi Ziqubu.
There will be tons of dissecting to do as, after the group stage, the top 8 will automatically qualify for the round of 16, whereas the teams that finish between 9th and 24th collide with each other to determine the final 8 spots in the round of 16.
From then on, the tournament will proceed in the traditional knockout football format until the final at the Allianz Arena in Munich on 25 May.
September is football derby month on SuperSport.
The North London Derby kicked off the rivalries, as Tottenham Hotspur hosted Arsenal, the Tshwane Derby saw Mamelodi Sundowns take on SuperSport United, the Milan Derby between Inter Milan and AC Milan prepared fans for the Cape Derby where Stellenbosch faced off against Cape Town City.
The Madrid Derby, which sees Atletico Madrid take on Real Madrid, rounds off the incredible dish of five derbies, from four major football leagues in two just weeks on SuperSport!
SuperSport has proven without a shadow of a doubt that it's bringing FootbALL: ALL the biggest stars and ALL the thrilling action, ALL in one place, Your World of Champions.
For more fixtures and broadcast information visit SuperSport.com.
