Why Champions League Matches Are Played on Thursdays During Opening Week

Seeing Champions League games on a Thursday night might seem odd to many fans used to associating that evening with Europa League or Conference League matches. For years, Thursday nights were reserved for those competitions, often becoming the subject of social media jokes. Yet, since the 2024-25 season, and continuing this year, Europe's top clubs have taken over Thursday slots—but only during one special week.

This unusual scheduling stems from changes UEFA made to the competition's structure, especially with the shift to a larger league phase format. Thursday night fixtures in the Champions League first appeared in September 2024 and have returned as the tournament opens again.

The 36-Team Format and Its Impact

The biggest change behind this schedule is expanding the number of teams from 32 to 36. Instead of traditional groups, all clubs now compete in a single league phase. Each team plays eight matches—four at home and four away—against different opponents. The results create one unified table.

After these eight rounds, the top eight teams go straight into the round of 16. Teams ranked 9th to 24th enter playoffs for remaining spots, while the others are out. This increase in teams and games led UEFA to rethink how to manage so many fixtures simultaneously.

Since the old group-stage setup allowed staggered matches over two nights, the new format’s volume meant matchday one had to be spread across three nights instead of two. This extra night gave space to fit all opening matches.

How Exclusive Matchweeks Work

UEFA assigns each of its three club tournaments one exclusive matchweek without overlapping fixtures from the other two competitions. For the Champions League, this exclusive week happens on the opening matchday.

During this week, the Champions League games run across Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. This setup ensures proper rest between matches and avoids broadcast clashes by spreading games over three evenings. Once this week ends, the schedule returns to normal: Champions League games are only on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with Thursdays going back to Europa and Conference League contests.

The Europa League then has its own exclusive week the next time it begins, playing across Wednesday and Thursday before settling into its usual Thursday-only matches. The Conference League stays on Thursdays throughout, with its final league fixtures featured on a dedicated Thursday slot.

Opening Matchday 2026-27

The Champions League kicks off on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, marking the start of the exclusive three-night opening week. The schedule includes big matchups like Real Madrid vs Inter Milan on Tuesday, Barcelona vs Feyenoord on Wednesday, and Manchester United vs Sabah on Thursday.

• Fenerbahce vs Roma: 5:45 pm
• PSV Eindhoven vs Shakhtar Donetsk: 5:45 pm
• Como vs RB Leipzig: 8:00 pm
• Bayern Munich vs Bodo/Glimt: 8:00 pm
• Manchester United vs Sabah: 8:00 pm
• Slavia Praha vs Lens: 8:00 pm

After this week, starting October 13 and 14, the Champions League schedule returns to its standard Tuesday-Wednesday format. Thursday nights then revert to hosting Europa and Conference League games until the cycle repeats with the next season's opening matchweek.