UEFA rule could help Manchester City secure Champions League spot despite poor season
Manchester City have fallen short of expectations in the 2024-25 season, having been eliminated by Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League and currently sitting outside the Premier League title race. However, a new UEFA rule could still offer the Citizens a lifeline to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Pep Guardiola’s side currently sits 5th in the Premier League standings, struggling to break into the crucial top four — the standard qualification zone for the Champions League. City are level on 47 points with Newcastle United, while Chelsea hold a slight advantage in 4th place with 49 points and 10 games remaining in the season.
However, UEFA’s revamped European competition format introduces a significant opportunity. The updated system awards two additional Champions League spots to the top-performing leagues in UEFA competitions — and the Premier League is currently leading the race, giving English clubs a major advantage.
This change opens a clear pathway for Manchester City, as a 5th-place finish could now be enough to secure a spot in the 2025-26 Champions League. Pep Guardiola has already acknowledged that qualifying for Europe’s top competition is now his team’s main objective:
“We have 10 games to qualify for the Champions League. We need to win matches to secure that, and we’ll take it one step at a time. With every season, the Premier League gets better and better. We have 10 finals ahead of us. We haven’t won enough consecutive matches to feel safe, so we must take action — this won’t fall from the sky,” the coach said after City’s 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest, adding urgency to their quest for a top-five finish.
Premier League and La Liga lead UEFA coefficient race
UEFA’s club coefficient ranking — which determines the allocation of extra Champions League spots — is based on the performances of all clubs from each federation in UEFA competitions.
Currently, the Premier League leads the rankings with a significant margin of 22,178 points. La Liga sits second with 19,892 points, occupying the second additional Champions League spot for next season. The Serie A (18,937 points) and the Bundesliga (16,671 points) follow closely behind, while Portugal ranks fifth with 16,250 points.
This expanded Champions League system has already been implemented for the 2024-25 edition, where the additional slots were awarded to Serie A and the Bundesliga, allowing Borussia Dortmund and Bologna to qualify via their respective 5th-place finishes.
If the Premier League maintains its top spot, Manchester City could turn what seemed like a disappointing season into a successful one by clinching a Champions League spot through UEFA’s new rule.