By Staff Writer Morganne Guhl
With Argentina’s World Cup triumph done and domestic leagues restarted in Europe after the winter break, one of the most watched annual sporting competitions has returned, UEFA Champions League Football.
The Champions League was founded in 1955, originally called The European Cup. At the time, a far smaller affair with only 16 teams, and only the winners of the domestic’s leagues around Europe were allowed to compete. Today the Champions League has grown to 32 teams competing for one of the most coveted trophies in sports. The most significant four domestic leagues in European, England, Spain, Italy, and Germany receive four guaranteed spots, going to the four top teams in their domestic leagues. The rest are divided between several more minor leagues and through an additional playoff tournament.
Beginning in early September and ending in June 2023 due to the World Cup, this year’s Champions League has proven exciting. Mighty clubs such as F.C. Barcelona and Juventus F.C. fell, while smaller clubs, FC Porta and Club Brugge, made it through the group stage.
The premier club football tournament in European began its rounds of 16 with matches on the 14-15 of February, with the second set of first-round games occurring the following week. The marquee match for this week was between German giant Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain F.C., France’s most famous club. The first half was a quiet affair. But the second half exceeded expectations when Bayern went ahead by a goal. PSG believed they had clawed their way back with two goals by French sensation Kylian Mbappé. The goals were disallowed due to offsides. Milan won over Tottenham Hotspur F.C. by a goal. Borussia Dortmund overcame Chelsea F.C. by the same amount in their match. Benfica verse Club Brugge was livelier, with the Portuguese side winning by two goals to nil. For upcoming games, most eyes will be on Liverpool F.C. verse Real Madrid CF, a rematch of last year’s Champions League final.