Previously on SuperClub Diaries, Paris Saint Germain fell in the Last 16 of the 2023/24 Champions League.

The 2024/25 Swiss Model

On Wednesday 13 December 2023, European football said goodbye to the Champions League Group Stages; a system that UEFA have had in place for the majority of my life. But there’s no time for mourning, as FMers we have the opportunity to peek into the future and experience the new ‘Swiss model’.

In fact, it’s been in FM for at least two editions now…yet my first experience of it came in Season 2 of SuperCub Diaries in Football Manager 2024. I had always planned to spend some time writing about my experience with Swiss models, and why I actually liked them over previous models, but that was made certain when I saw a Scottish FMer shitpost about them. So, herein lies the purpose of this blog: why I like Swiss models…

It is probably worth clarifying that my view is solely from the point of view of a super club. Afterall, this is SuperClub Diaries. The experience of Swiss models may well be different if you’re (1) not elite (like I am) or (2) lack the Qatari billions of a top 5 GDP nation (like I do). Being aware of your biases is something I am increasingly more conscious of as I grow older, so it is probably worth thinking about your biases relating to any Swiss models before reading on further.

Thought about them already? Wow, that was quick. Let’s begin…

Variety

Should we frown upon a couple more games in the revised group format? Maybe, but let’s not forget this is the UEFA Champions League. This is the pinnacle of club football. I would rather have more games at this level than a domestic dead rubber. The new Swiss model now introduces eight matches, and all of them with different opponents. I quite like the variety this brings and the tactical match ups they allow.

Temperature gauge

As an elite club, I found the Swiss model an effective gauge to see how good my PSG was in Season 2 Vs other Super Clubs earlier on in the UCL campaign. We faced Manchester City at home, arguably the toughest opposition in Europe during the 3rd UCL gameweek. I was quickly able to get a feel how good we really were, and that’s nice before going into the crucial two-legged knockouts.

Bravo FFF

The French Football Federation is prepared for Swiss models (no Coupe de la Ligue and a reduction in Ligue 1 sides to 18). It seems other nations, like England, are not. This goes back to my first point, more games in UCL are compensated for by a reduction in French domestic games. I’m ok with that, most of you readers probably call it a Farmer’s League anyway. Shame on you, connards.

Feel rewarded

Again, in keeping the busy schedules in mind…as a super club I feel rewarded for doing well by finishing in the top 8. I try to gamify many things in my real life in order for things to work better (my own children finishing their meals, the girls I train at football, my work colleagues’ output etc.) and it is good to see UEFA taking a similar approach by incentivising the big clubs for performing well within the Swiss model.

I appreciate that there will still be dead rubber matches, for example: between two top 8 teams cancelling one another out in order to both go through. But that’s not my problem. I simply enjoyed the gamification of finishing in that top 8 and getting a convenient bye into the Last 16.

Knockouts

Despite the introduction of a round before the Last 16 (for those teams finishing in places 9-24), the UCL then became familiar again with a two-legged knockout pathway to the Final. I appreciate this is not the Swiss model, but it’s worth once again praising UEFA for not changing everything, all at once. So, that means all the familiar FM heartbreak is still there to experience year-on-year…like this Semi Final defeat AET against Liverpool:

The 2025 Club World Cup

Not to be outdone by UEFA, it’s now FIFA’s turn to revise their premium club competition: the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. If you are not familiar with the revised format, don’t worry…I am sure you can guess what it means: more clubs, more games and more excitement.

32 teams fall into eight groups, with the top two progressing to the Last 16, it almost feels (dare I say it) a lot like the pre-Swiss UEFA Champions League Group Stage format. PSG were not the only SuperClub Diaries representatives either with Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Inter, Manchester City and Real Madrid joining them (that latter joining the Parisians in Group F)…

It’s fair to say that my PSG side found their groove in the competition, and although we didn’t quite get the big wins that some had in the tournament, we beat everything in front of us in a new-look 4222 shape. Rather embarrassingly, I think we have become the first side to win the Club World Cup without having won a top continental trophy. We really are trailblazers!

Note - I could go into how poorly this revised competition has been implemented in Football Manager 2024. Like the lack of training beforehand, or the bugs around the draw taking place after the groups are already visible in another window. Or the season reseting mid-tournament, which mucks up a lot of things like Board expectations, players’ statistical data etc. But I won’t, simply have fun with it 😀

England

Manchester City once again pipped Liverpool to the Premier League title on the final day of the season, and also boast a League Cup win. However, question marks remain over Pep Guardiola’s performance this season having exited at the Champions League Last 16 stage against Italian super club Juventus. Liverpool’s painful season continued with a 0-2 Champions League final defeat against Barcelona in Munich. Both goals came in the final few minutes of normal time. Chelsea and Manchester United qualify for next season’s Champions League, with the former also winning their 9th FA Cup.

France

A combined €85m January investment in Ousmane Diomande, Karim Konaté and Teun Koopmeiners energised Paris Saint Germain to see them lift a 4th consecutive league title. The Parisian outfit broke a defensive club record with 14 goals conceded throughout the Ligue 1 campaign. An improved performance in the Champions League saw the club exit at the Semi Final stage, but the management team’s greatest reprieve will be the club’s 1st ever Club World Cup trophy. Will it be enough to see them stay on for 2025/26?

Germany

The €100m signing of Victor Osimhen was not enough to grant Bayern Munich anything more than a Last 16 Champions League exit. However they did take back the Bundlesiga title from RB Leipzig, and also won the DFB-Pokal. The Munich Board will be expecting more from Thomas Tuchel’s men however, after allowing almost €250m to be invested into the play squad over 2024/25.

Italy

The Milan clubs occupy 1st and 2nd place in Serie A. AC Milan win their 20th Serie A title, partly led by a terrific campaign from Samuel Chukwueze with 16 goals and 5 assists. Inter fall short against Napoli in the Coppa Italia, and Juventus finished 5th for the second consecutive season. Only this time, the Turin outfits missed out on Champions League football due to the European coefficient changing adversely for Italian clubs.

Spain

18-year-old Endrick arrives for his debut season with Real Madrid and scores 19 goals in all competitions, he experiences his first taste of LaLiga silverware too with Real Madrid’s 95 point haul. 2nd place Barcelona will not grimace too much though, having beaten rivals Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final and the big one: a 6th European Cup, courtesy of a 2-0 Vs Liverpool. Diego Simeone left Atlético de Madrid in the Summer of 2024, and replacement Antonio Conte can only achieve 4th place in the league. It’s enough for Champions League football at least.

That’s season 2 complete in SuperClub Diaries. Similar to the conclusion at Season 1: have I done enough to stay on? Personally, I feel there’s been enough progress in the Champions League to give the Champions league one last go in season 3, and the move to 4222 and subsequent Club World Cup win has me hopeful that I will finally bring the trophy to Paris.

As always, this will be the place to find out how we do.

Thank you for reading/sharing and caring. I hope you have a nice festive holiday with friends and family, see you in 2024 🎄

Tony / FM Grasshopper