Why did the third round of the Champions League group stage have a record number of goals?

(Dan Tri) - The third round of the 2025-26 Champions League group stage set a historic record with 71 goals after 18 matches. This is the week with the highest number of goals ever.

According to the latest statistics from the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), this match recorded 71 goals, becoming the highest mark in UEFA Champions League history for a match, surpassing the previous record of 67 goals in the 5th round of the 2024-25 season.

PSG beat Bayer Leverkusen in a match with a record number of goals in the third match of the 2025-26 Champions League group stage (Photo: Getty).

This record-breaking goal tally is a clear reflection of the aggressive attacking trend that has been sweeping the Champions League this season. Many managers now favour a more polished and attacking philosophy, creating high-tempo games with plenty of chances.

Most notable in this match was the historic 7-2 victory of Paris Saint Germain (PSG) over Bayer Leverkusen, a typical example of the goal explosion trend.

Along with PSG's victory, this round also saw PSV Eindhoven create a "rain of goals" when crushing Napoli with a score of 6-2. Barcelona also impressed at home with a devastating 6-1 victory over Olympiacos Piraeus.

Meanwhile, the English representatives were not far behind when Chelsea and Liverpool both had impressive 5-1 victories over Ajax and Eintracht Frankfurt, completing a fiery week of Champions League attacks.

The third round took place with a total of 71 goals scored (Photo: Getty).

The change in the Champions League format is also seen as a big reason for the high-scoring group stage. From the 2024-25 season, the tournament will expand to 36 teams instead of 32.

The increase in the number of participating teams not only created more matches in the group stage but also highlighted the difference in level between clubs, leading to many high-scoring matches, contributing to setting new goal records.

According to UEFA, the Champions League group stage's switch to a new format will create opportunities for clubs to face more opponents, giving fans more "big battles" from the early stages.

UEFA has confirmed that this new format will also promote higher competition for all participating clubs right from the group stage. After 8 matches, the top 8 teams in the group will qualify directly for the round of 16 as seeds.

The teams ranked 9th to 16th will play two play-off matches against the teams ranked 17th to 24th to determine the remaining eight places. Teams ranked 25th or lower will be eliminated entirely and will not be relegated to the Europa League.

In particular, the clubs ranked from 9th to 16th will be seeded and have the advantage of playing the second leg at home. This creates pressure to win the group stage to gain an advantage, forcing teams to take more risks, increasing their attacks in search of goals, despite the risk of being counter-attacked.

The new format in the Champions League makes teams play more aggressively, leading to more goals (Photo: Getty).

The fourth round of the 2025-26 Champions League group stage will return with great excitement on November 5 and 6, promising many fierce confrontations. The focus of attention will be on the classic rematch between Liverpool and Real Madrid. In addition, Bayern Munich will have a difficult away trip to PSG and Man City will host Dortmund at home.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/vi-sao-luot-thu-3-vong-bang-champions-league-co-so-luong-ban-thang-ky-luc-20251023163553136.htm