UEFA have made another significant Champions League rule change to ‘protect the integrity’ of the competition in future seasons.

The Champions League is already set to undergo the biggest change in its history next season, with the traditional group stage dropped in favour of a new league phase.

The amount of teams that can qualify will rise from 32 to 36, with all those teams placed in a single league phase and playing eight games each.

The top eight-placed teams in that phase will move straight to the last 16 stage, while the teams placed between ninth and 24th will take part in a two-legged play-off to determine the final eight teams that reach the knockouts.

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But as part of the new league system, it has been confirmed that UEFA will make another change to the schedule which football fans will truly love.

The Daily Mail report that, due to ‘concerns about integrity’, the final round of Champions League group stage matches will all take place on the same day from next season – for the first time in the competition’s history.

That is because, with all teams competing as part of one league, it ensures that no side gains any sort of advantage by playing later than another team in their group.

That is surely a recipe for chaotic scenes on the final day, with the small number of games and large number of teams making it likely that there will be plenty to play for when it comes to qualifying for the last 16 and the play-offs.

There’s still a while to wait for that, though, with the Champions League last 16 clashes for this season taking place next month.

Holders Manchester City are among the teams still involved, who will all be looking to lift the European crown for the last time ever in its current guise before big changes are made next term.

Man Utd ‘seeking Champions League rule change’ as they face elimination f

Manchester United are facing elimination from the Champions League after another disappointing result away from home in Europe.

‘s side twice let a two-goal lead slip to draw 3-3 with Galatasaray in Istanbul on Wednesday night.

Alejandro Garnacho and Bruno Fernandes put the visitors in a strong position before former Chelsea man Hakim Ziyech pulled one back for the hosts from a free-kick.

Scott McTominay restored United’s two-goal buffer after the break but a calamitous error from Andre Onana allowed Ziyech to score his second from another free-kick.

Muhammed Akturkoglu then equalised for the home side with a brilliant strike as the match ended a draw – a better result for the Turkish side.

Officials check Galatasaray pitch ahead of Man United clash

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United remain bottom of their group and now face a huge task to qualify for the knockout phase after Copenhagen held Bayern Munich to a goalless draw away from home.

It means United must beat Bayern at Old Trafford on December 12 and hope Galatasaray and Copenhagen draw to progress to the last 16.

United’s potential elimination comes amid doubts over whether the club will even be able to compete in the competition next season.

The Sun claim that Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s soon-to-be-announced deal to become a minority owner of United – in which he will assume control of football operations at Old Trafford – threatens the club’s place in the Champions League because of his ownership of surprise French title contenders Nice.

Current UEFA regulations state that no individual or entity “may have control or influence over more than one club participating in a UEFA competition”.

The rules also state that no individual can be “involved in any capacity” or have any “power whatsoever in the management, administration and/or sporting performance of any other club” participating in a UEFA competition.

A senior UEFA source has told The Sun that a number of clubs have been lobbying for changes for next season, when the new expanded Champions League format comes in.

It is suggested that United are among this group of clubs.

While some clubs are said to want UEFA to simply take the multi-club regulations out of the rulebook, another option would see multi-club teams prevented from meeting each other in the new initial league stage.

However, under this system multi-club teams could potentially face each other in the knock-out phase.

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has previously hinted European football’s governing body would be open to changing the current regulations.

“We are not thinking about Manchester United only,” Ceferin told Gary Neville’s The Overlap.

“We’ve had five or six owners of clubs who want to buy another club. We have to see what to do. The options are that it stays like that or that we allow them to play in the same competition.

“I’m not sure yet. We have to speak about these regulations and see what to do about it.”

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England were barred from being drawn against one nation in the Nations League draw – because of a little-known UEFA rule.

The draw for the upcoming Nations League group stage, which took place in Paris, saw Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions drawn against Finland, Greece and rivals Republic of Ireland.

The league phase will take place between September 5 and November 19, with the quarter-finals, play-offs and finals being staged across the first three months of 2025.

England were relegated from League A in the 2022/23 edition of the tournament, meaning they were placed in League B2 this time around.

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As a result of the opening stages of the draw, though, the Three Lions were unable to draw one nation out of pot four.

They drew Finland and Republic of Ireland first, with one team left to be drawn.

Kazakhstan were then the next team out of the pot – but were moved into a different group.

That is because a UEFA rule limits the distance in which Kazakhstan have to travel in the federation’s competitions, meaning an agreement was put in place that meant they could only draw one nation out of Wales, England and Republic of Ireland.

As the latter two of those nations had already been drawn in the same group, it meant Kazakhstan had to be placed elsewhere.

They were instead added to League B3 alongside Austria, Norway and Slovenia, with Greece going into B2.

Speaking after the draw was made in Paris, Southgate said (via BBC Sport): “There’s some teams we haven’t played for a while. There’s going to be some difficult games for us.

“I think everybody in England will think it was a big disappointment to drop down to League B, but you still have some difficult games.

“Obviously our objective will be, we have to win the group to get back up into League A.”