Does 5th place qualify for Champions League? Explaining new UCL qualifying rules in Premier League

The 2023/24 Premier League season is set to involve some key changes, including an update to how teams can qualify for the Champions League for the following campaign.

UEFA are changing the structure of the Champions League for the 2024/25 season and the Premier League could benefit – if an English side performs well in Europe this season.

The traditional top four finish will still be the main focus for teams aiming to qualify for the Champions League, but there will now be added route to the biggest stage of European club football.

The Sporting News looks at the incoming changes and how it will impact the chances of Premier League teams reaching the Champions League in 2024/25.

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UEFA have confirmed their plan to increase the number of teams competing in the Champions League from 32 to 36 from 2024/25 onwards.

The change means UEFA will now allocate two spaces to the two countries whose clubs collectively perform the best in UEFA competitions in the season before.

If the Premier League provides one of the top two performers for a nation in the 2023/24 Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League, the team finishing fifth this season will earn a UCL spot in 2024/25.

Based on 2022/23, if these new rules had applied, fifth place Liverpool would have qualified for the Champions League, due to Manchester City winning the Champions League and West Ham winning the Europa Conference League.

In the event of three different nations providing a winner for each competition the season before the two nations with the higher UEFA co-efficient will be granted preference.

Finishing fifth still relies on other variables to