The league phase of the fourth edition of the new Football Conference League begins this Wednesday. The thirty-six teams, representing twenty-nine nations, will each play six matches, three at home and as many away. Fiorentina, Chelsea and Betis Sevilla seem to be favorites.
The ranking established on December 19, at the end of the six days, will qualify the first eight for the round of 16. The teams ranked between 9th and 24th places will compete in play-offs to join them. No team will now be removed from the Europa League at the end of this league phase. Two matches are scheduled for Wednesday, to kick off the 2024-2025 Conference League season: Basaksehir-Rapid Vienna and Guimaraes-Celje.
The competition favorites will play the next day. Fiorentina, finalist last year beaten by Olympiakos (1-0, after extra time), will host The New Saints, modest Welshmen who have never reached a European Cup final phase. Chelsea hosts La Gantoise. Betis Sevilla, for their part, will travel to Legia Warsaw.
The German representative, Heidenheim, will make its European debut against the Slovenes of Olimpija Ljubljana. Another candidate for a long run in the competition: Panathinaikos dreams of doing as well as its great rival Olympiakos, reigning champion. The Athenian club will play against the Bosnians Borac Banja Luka. In addition to La Gantoise, Cercle Bruges managed to climb into this league phase. He will make his debut against the Swiss Saint-Gall.
Eleven of the thirty-six teams are discovering this level of competition, including the Armenian team FC Noah, which plays in Yerevan. She is the first in Conference League history to successfully advance through all four preliminary rounds.
