The other ‘Champions League’ that will revolutionize Europe: UEFA’s next big idea to change World Cup qualifying - RAW CHILI

The coming days and weeks will be crucial in reshaping international soccer as we know it. At the end of this month, the first double international break in history will begin. International games will take place over two weekends rather than one, with each country playing four games instead of the usual two per window.

That means domestic leagues will still stop for 15 days, but October will be cleared from the calendar, leaving two international breaks before the end of the year rather than three. FIFA approved the change when it introduced its new global calendar.

But there is more to come. Tomorrow in Thessaloniki, Greece, UEFA will announce the venues for upcoming European finals – with the 2029 Champions League final going to Camp Nou – and is also set to ratify changes to the format of the Nations League and qualifying for the World Cup and European Championship from 2028.

The Swiss model will be adopted, following the same system now used in the Champions League – essentially a league in which teams do not all play one another. From a television and audience-engagement perspective, the format has proved a major success in the world’s leading club competition.

UEFA believes the current national-team qualifying system is monotonous, insufficiently competitive and offers too few games for broadcasters, whose money underpins the rights deals. It will therefore create a 36-team league featuring Europe’s top 36 national teams.

Each country will play six games against opponents of varying strength, determined by three seeding pots in the draw, with games split between home and away. In other words, it will closely mirror the Champions League format.

The conclusion of the Champions League’s league phase has worked particularly well, with small goal-difference margins capable of sending teams several places up or down the standings, while the simultaneous final round of games has created an especially compelling spectacle for fans.

The move also comes amid the ongoing UEFA-FIFA battle for influence, with elections at both organizations scheduled for next year. Highlighting the success of your own competitions is one way of projecting confidence.

The Champions League is UEFA’s golden goose. Now it is preparing to create another one – a Champions League for national teams.