The Europa League, previously known as the UEFA Cup, has grown in stature since its re-brand in 2009, with bigger clubs such as 2013 winners Chelsea- who also won last year's Champions League- putting out full-strength sides in an attempt to win the trophy.

And with Champions League spots becoming even more elusive for many clubs in Europe, the announcement is sure to boost the competition's prestige and the quality of play in the tournament.

"I have thought about this for a long time, and I am delighted we are upgrading the Europa League," said UEFA President Michel Platini.

"It is an excellent competition in its own right but needed a boost and it now has one.

"This year's final between Chelsea and Benfica could easily have been the Champions League final itself and I hope it will now grow in appeal."

The Europa League has often been the subject of ridicule and has not been taken seriously by many clubs and fans due to its status as effectively a consolation cup for Champions League teams that finish third in the group stages and are relegated to the Europa League as a result.

Michel Platini has stated that the upgrading will be a major boost to the competition

But with the prize of a Champions League spot on offer, which brings the opportunity for huge sums of television revenue and the opportunity to compete against the best teams in the continent, UEFA secretary general Gianni Infantino believes that the move can have a positive move on domestic league's across the continent.

"This decision will have a huge impact on the Europa League and it will also have an impact on national league competitions," he said.

"It is fair to say there has not been the same enthusiasm for the competition in the past but this will boost the whole of the European football movement."

"It will also benefit clubs in some of the lower ranked leagues, as 16 teams from the top 12 nations will now go directly into the Europa League group stage,"

"This means that, for example a team from the country ranked 25th say, would not have to play a team from one of the top nations to qualify, but has a better chance against say a team from a country ranked 20th, so it will have a big impact."

UEFA also confirmed that a maximum of five teams from any nation will be able to compete in the Champions League in any one season.

If team's from a nation that's league offers four Champions League spots- England, Germany or Spain- win both competitions, the team that finishes fourth in the domestic league will be demoted to the Europa League.

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