Creating the most exciting competition in the world.
The competition.
The best always strive to be better. The new Unify League aims to be the most exciting football competition in the world.
At the heart of our vision are 108 men’s and 34 women’s teams playing midweek in exciting competitions across Europe with competitive drama and decisive matches throughout the entire football season.
Our approach reflects extensive consultation with football stakeholders including fans, clubs, players and others, whose feedback has been instrumental in shaping our proposal. The proposal adheres to the core principles of European football, keeping the current access system in place so that over 700 clubs have the potential to play in the competition based on annual performance in their domestic leagues.
With clubs now empowered to shape their own future at the European level, we remain committed to creating a forum where the best compete with the best, allowing top athletes to reach their full potential and thrilling fans worldwide.
The men’s competition.
The men’s competition features 108 clubs competing across three leagues: Star, Gold and Blue. Each league will include 36 clubs.
Access to the competition will be the same as the access for current UEFA Club Competitions, based on annual performance in domestic leagues.
In the Star League, Group A will contain the champions of the Star League and of the top-6 domestic leagues by UEFA Country Coefficient, along with the top-11 clubs by UEFA Coefficient of the remaining 29 qualified clubs. Group B will contain the other 18 qualified clubs.
In the Gold League and the Blue League, the top-18 clubs by UEFA Coefficient will be in Group A, and the other 18 qualified clubs will be in Group B.
Within each group, clubs will be drawn into 2 pots, based on their UEFA Club Coefficient, with clubs playing 4 opponents from each pot.
By creating two groups of 18 clubs, we increase the number of games between peer clubs leading to increased competitive tension and excitement from the very first match all while maintaining every club’s chances of lifting the trophy at the end of the season.
This system further helps to increase the fairness of the random draw. Where today clubs face 2 of 9 clubs in each pot, in our proposed system clubs would face 4 of 9 possible rivals in each pot during the Group Stage.
In the Group Stage, each club will play 8 matches against clubs in their group, 4 home and 4 away.
After the 8 matches have been played:
- The top-6 clubs in Group A and the top-2 clubs in Group B will qualify directly to the Round of 16.
- Clubs that finished 7th – 14th in Group A and 3rd – 10th in Group B will qualify for the Playoff Round.
In the Playoff Round, 16 teams will play a home and away tie to qualify to the Round of 16.
The Round of 16, Quarter-finals and Semi-finals will be home and away knock-out rounds.
In the Final, 2 teams will play a single match at a neutral venue for the title.
As is the case in current UEFA Club Competition, matches will be played midweek and will not interfere with the match calendar of domestic leagues.
The women’s competition.
The women’s competitions will remain unchanged vis-à-vis the current UEFA women’s club competitions.
The top competition – the Star League – will feature 18 clubs, while the Gold League will feature 16 clubs. Access to the Women’s Star and Gold Leagues will be the same as the access for the current UEFA Women’s Club Competitions.
In the Star League, the 18 qualified teams will play 6 matches, 3 home and 3 away in a Swiss-system League Phase:
- Clubs ranked 1st-4th in the League Phase will advance to the quarter-finals
- Clubs ranked 5th-12th will qualify to a knockout play-off round
- The remaining six teams will be eliminated
In the Playoff Round, 8 teams will play a home and away tie to qualify to the Quarter-finals.
From the Quarter-finals onwards, the competition will follow the existing format of home and away knockout rounds leading to the final staged at a neutral venue.
The Gold League will be a straight knock-out competition starting from the Round of 16.
The Round of 16, Quarter-finals, Semi-finals and Final will be home and away knock-out rounds.
The men’s competition.
The men’s competition features 108 clubs competing across three leagues: Star, Gold and Blue. Each league will include 36 clubs.
Access to the competition will be the same as the access for current UEFA Club Competitions, based on annual performance in domestic leagues.
In the Star League, Group A will contain the champions of the Star League and of the top-6 domestic leagues by UEFA Country Coefficient, along with the top-11 clubs by UEFA Coefficient of the remaining 29 qualified clubs. Group B will contain the other 18 qualified clubs.
In the Gold League and the Blue League, the top-18 clubs by UEFA Coefficient will be in Group A, and the other 18 qualified clubs will be in Group B.
Within each group, clubs will be drawn into 2 pots, based on their UEFA Club Coefficient, with clubs playing 4 opponents from each pot.
By creating two groups of 18 clubs, we increase the number of games between peer clubs leading to increased competitive tension and excitement from the very first match all while maintaining every club’s chances of lifting the trophy at the end of the season.
This system further helps to increase the fairness of the random draw. Where today clubs face 2 of 9 clubs in each pot, in our proposed system clubs would face 4 of 9 possible rivals in each pot during the Group Stage.
In the Group Stage, each club will play 8 matches against clubs in their group, 4 home and 4 away.
After the 8 matches have been played:
- The top-6 clubs in Group A and the top-2 clubs in Group B will qualify directly to the Round of 16.
- Clubs that finished 7th – 14th in Group A and 3rd – 10th in Group B will qualify for the Playoff Round.
In the Playoff Round, 16 teams will play a home and away tie to qualify to the Round of 16.
The Round of 16, Quarter-finals and Semi-finals will be home and away knock-out rounds.
In the Final, 2 teams will play a single match at a neutral venue for the title.
As is the case in current UEFA Club Competition, matches will be played midweek and will not interfere with the match calendar of domestic leagues.
The women’s competition.
The women’s competitions will remain unchanged vis-à-vis the current UEFA women’s club competitions.
The top competition – the Star League – will feature 18 clubs, while the Gold League will feature 16 clubs. Access to the Women’s Star and Gold Leagues will be the same as the access for the current UEFA Women’s Club Competitions.
In the Star League, the 18 qualified teams will play 6 matches, 3 home and 3 away in a Swiss-system League Phase:
- Clubs ranked 1st-4th in the League Phase will advance to the quarter-finals
- Clubs ranked 5th-12th will qualify to a knockout play-off round
- The remaining six teams will be eliminated
In the Playoff Round, 8 teams will play a home and away tie to qualify to the Quarter-finals.
From the Quarter-finals onwards, the competition will follow the existing format of home and away knockout rounds leading to the final staged at a neutral venue.
The Gold League will be a straight knock-out competition starting from the Round of 16.
The Round of 16, Quarter-finals, Semi-finals and Final will be home and away knock-out rounds.
A message from our CEO.
Bernd Reichart
CEO of A22 Sports Management
Now is the time for all stakeholders, including UEFA, to bring real innovation that prioritizes fan experience and affordability, player welfare and match competitiveness. We remain committed to fostering relationships built on mutual respect, transparency, and constructive dialogue. The fans, players, clubs, leagues and other groups that make up the football community deserve nothing less.