Italy will have five teams competing in the 2024-25 edition of the Champions League, after Roma and Milan progressed to the Europa League semi-finals on Thursday night, while Fiorentina booked their place in the Conference League final four.
Roma rose to a 3-1 aggregate victory over Stefano Pioli’s Milan, Atalanta defeated Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool by the same margin over two legs, while Fiorentina beat Viktoria Plzen to go through at 2-0 after 210 minutes of action.
The Italian federation is the first of the two nations who will be afforded an additional spot in Europe’s flagship competition, as Germany and England look set to battle it out for the other extra Champions League spot.
The 2024-25 edition of the Champions League will feature 36 clubs instead of the more familiar 32-team format as part of a series of changes, which will also see the first half of the tournament contested as a mini-league instead of eight separate groups.
What needs to happen for a sixth Champions League spot
There is still an eventuality where Italy could have six teams competing in the Champions League next season.
In order for that to happen, an Italian side would need to win the Europa League and, importantly, also finish the Serie A season outside of the top four.
That means it comes down to either one of Roma or Atalanta, who, as it stands, currently sit in fifth and sixth in Serie A respectively.
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