The UEFA Champions League is set for a thrilling season with the return of a historic rivalry. Dinamo Zagreb and Red Star Belgrade, two clubs with a long and storied past, have both qualified for the group stage and could potentially face each other for the first time in 33 years.
Their last meeting came in May 1991 during the Yugoslavian league, a time marked by the beginning of the breakup of the country and the escalating tensions in the Balkans. The match in Zagreb a year earlier had witnessed violent clashes in the stadium, highlighting the intensity of the rivalry.
On Wednesday, Dinamo secured their place in the group stage after overcoming Qarabag with a 2-0 victory in Azerbaijan, finishing the tie with a 5-0 aggregate score. Red Star also emerged victorious, overturning a 2-1 deficit from the first leg against Bodo/Glimt with a 2-0 win in Belgrade.
The draw for the Champions League group stage, scheduled for Thursday, could potentially pair these two historic rivals. Both clubs are among the 36 teams who have qualified for the new league phase, which will kick off next month.
The format of the Champions League has undergone a significant transformation, abandoning the traditional group stage format. The new format will involve a single league standings for the 36 teams, with each team playing eight matches against eight different opponents, four at home and four away. The top eight teams in the standings will advance directly to the round of 16 in February.
The teams ranked ninth to 16th will be drawn to face teams ranked 17th to 24th in two-leg knockout playoffs to secure their place in the last 16. The bottom 12 teams will be eliminated from the competition.
The draw will also see teams seeded into four pots, with Dinamo and Red Star placed in Pot 3, meaning they could potentially be drawn against each other. The anticipation for the draw is high, as fans await the possibility of witnessing this historic rivalry rekindled on the biggest stage of European club football.
