It is arguably the largest sporting event in the world since the Covid-19 pandemic, with eight of Europe’s leading club soccer teams set to take place over a 12-day period in the Portuguese capital, Lisbon.
The European Champions League winner will be crowned in the final on 23 August.
But while millions of viewers will turn on television to watch the action from Wednesday night, you will be forgiven for walking the streets of Lisbon and not even realizing some of the world’s top footballers are in action.
There are no billboards welcoming you and very little marketing has been done.
There are no fan spots for fans, no posters announcing the star players and no packed hotels.
No spectators are allowed at matches and even the media is very restricted. Restaurants and bars will not overflow.
There will also be no party for the people of Lisbon.
Alcohol may not be used in public and restaurants close at 23:00.
Wearing masks is compulsory and the use of public transport and large gatherings is discouraged.
Even those who just want to see one of the big names in world football walk down the street will be disappointed.
The teams live in bio-bubbles in their hotels and training facilities.
In the hotels they have private routes to their own dining rooms.
With no spectators to worry about, the Portuguese police focus on creating a safe environment for the players rather than looking out for the troublemakers.
There is a chance that fans of teams that reach the final may travel to Portugal rather than just sit at home and watch it on television. Due to television rights, the organizers, UEFA, decided to complete the season.
The Euro2020 tournament for national teams has already been postponed by a year and UEFA could hardly afford to give up this nest egg with the Champions League as well.
There are now no home and away matches as is usually the case in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, and if matches end in a draw, additional playing time and a penalty shootout will be used to determine a winner.
The knockout matches for the European League, the competition one level lower than the Champions League, are decided on a similar basis in Germany and matches are played on the rest days of the Champions League.
The first match in the Champions League is on Wednesday night between Paris St. Germain from France and the Italian club Atalanta. On Friday there is a big match between Bayern Munich and Barcelona.
Wednesday 18th September 2024 | |||
Sparta Prague v RB Salzburg | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports 6 |
Bologna v Shakhtar Donetsk | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports 4 |
Club Brugge v Borussia Dortmund | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 5 |
Manchester City v Inter Milan | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 1 / TNT Sports Ultimate |
PSG v Girona | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 4 |
Celtic v Slovan Bratislava | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 2 |
Thursday 19th September 2024 | |||
Crvena zvezda v Benfica | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports 4 |
Feyenoord v Bayer Leverkusen | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports 2 |
Atalanta v Arsenal | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 1 |
Atlético Madrid v RB Leipzig | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 4 |
Brest v Sturm Graz | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 5 |
Monaco v Barcelona | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 2 |
Tuesday 1st October 2024 | |||
RB Salzburg v Brest | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports 3 / TNT Sports 9 |
VfB Stuttgart v Sparta Prague | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
Bayer Leverkusen v AC Milan | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Slovan Bratislava v Manchester City | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
PSV Eindhoven v Sporting CP | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 8 |
Inter Milan v Crvena zvezda | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 7 |
Borussia Dortmund v Celtic | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Barcelona v Young Boys | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 6 |
Arsenal v PSG | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | Amazon Prime Video |
Wednesday 2nd October 2024 | |||
Girona v Feyenoord | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports 3 / TNT Sports 10 |
Shakhtar Donetsk v Atalanta | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
Aston Villa v Bayern Munich | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Benfica v Atlético Madrid | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 7 |
Dinamo Zagreb v Monaco | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 8 |
Lille v Real Madrid | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Liverpool v Bologna | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
RB Leipzig v Juventus | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 6 |
Sturm Graz v Club Brugge | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports 9 |
Tuesday 22nd October 2024 | |||
AC Milan v Club Brugge | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
Monaco v Crvena zvezda | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
Arsenal v Shakhtar Donetsk | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | Amazon Prime Video |
Aston Villa v Bologna | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Girona v Slovan Bratislava | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Juventus v VfB Stuttgart | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
PSG v PSV Eindhoven | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Real Madrid v Borussia Dortmund | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Sturm Graz v Sporting CP | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Wednesday 23rd October 2024 | |||
Atalanta v Celtic | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
Brest v Bayer Leverkusen | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
RB Salzburg v Dinamo Zagreb | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Young Boys v Inter Milan | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
RB Leipzig v Liverpool | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Benfica v Feyenoord | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Barcelona v Bayern Munich | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Atlético Madrid v Lille | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Manchester City v Sparta Prague | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Tuesday 5th November 2024 | |||
PSV Eindhoven v Girona | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
Slovan Bratislava v Dinamo Zagreb | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
Celtic v RB Leipzig | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Sporting CP v Manchester City | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Real Madrid v AC Milan | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Liverpool v Bayer Leverkusen | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | Amazon Prime Video |
Lille v Juventus | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Borussia Dortmund v Sturm Graz | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Bologna v Monaco | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |
Wednesday 6th November 2024 | |||
Club Brugge v Aston Villa | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
Shakhtar Donetsk v Young Boys | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 17:45 | TNT Sports TBC |
Bayern Munich v Benfica | UEFA Champions League League Phase | 20:00 | TNT Sports TBC |