Champions League Table
The season has not started yet. The table fills in after the first round of matches.
Thirty-six clubs in one table. The top eight go straight to the round of 16, ninth to twenty-fourth play a two-legged play-off, and the rest are out of Europe.
Reading the league phase table
One table, thirty-six clubs, eight matches each, and no two clubs play the same eight opponents. Every side draws two teams from each of the four seeding pots, one at home and one away, so the schedules differ in difficulty in a way a domestic table never does. Points are still points, but twelve of them against one set of opponents is not the same season as twelve against another.
Three lines in the table matter. The top eight go straight to the round of 16. Ninth to twenty-fourth enter a two-legged play-off in February for the remaining eight places. Twenty-fifth to thirty-sixth are out of Europe for the season: under the old group format the third-placed club dropped into the Europa League, and that parachute no longer exists.
Goal difference separates clubs level on points, which is the reason the final round is played with every match kicking off simultaneously.
Coloured bands mark European qualification and relegation as things stand today. See also the fixtures and results, and where to watch.