Report: UEFA scrapping away goals rule starting next season

European knockout football could have a very different feel next year.

UEFA’s club competitions committee has agreed to ditch the longstanding away goals rule beginning next season, reports Martyn Ziegler of The Times.

UEFA’s executive committee must approve the reported proposal – which would apply to the Champions League, Europa League, and nascent Europa Conference League – before the change can take effect. The governing body’s executives are slated to convene on July 9.

The away goals rule has existed in European competition since 1965.

Under the current rule, if a club knockout match is level after 180 minutes in a continental tournament, the team that has scored more away goals over the two fixtures advances to the next round.

Though some have branded the rule illogical over the years, removing it threatens to eliminate the tension that can only be created when a single goal has the potential to swing a result; the away goals rule creates situations in which one goal can turn a defeat into victory and vice versa.

Bayern Munich and Juventus were both eliminated on away goals in the Champions League this season, losing to Paris Saint-Germain and Porto, respectively.