The 2025/26 Champions League league phase draw will take place in Monaco on August 28 at 5 p.m. UK time.
The pots for the forthcoming Champions League league phase draw have been almost finalized, with a record six Premier League teams participating this season.
Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, and Newcastle are among the 36 teams that will compete in the Champions League league phase during the 2025/26 season.
Liverpool, the six-time European champions, are the second favourites to win this year’s league, trailing only current holders Paris Saint-Germain.
Meanwhile, La Liga heavyweights Barcelona and Real Madrid are among the favourites to win the prized prize in May 2026.
Last year, the clubs played at least two additional games as a result of the 36-team league phase, which replaced the previous format of eight four-team groups.
The top eight teams will now advance directly to the knockout stages, while the teams ranked ninth to 24th will compete in a play-off round.
But first, on Thursday, the league phase draw will take conducted in Monaco.
The 36 teams will be divided into four pots. Currently, 32 teams have confirmed their entry into the draw, while Qarabag, Ferencvaros, Club Brugge, Rangers, Copenhagen, Fenerbahçe, Basel, and Benfica will compete in qualification later today (August 27).
The pots are set by the UEFA club coefficients. According to the UEFA website, “the coefficient of each club is calculated each season based on the clubs’ results in the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, and UEFA Conference League. The season coefficients from the five most recent seasons are used to rank the teams for seeding (sporting club coefficient).
So, what teams are in each pot?
Pot one will comprise PSG, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund, and Barcelona, as well as Premier League teams Liverpool, Manchester City, and Chelsea.
Pot two will include Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, Atletico Madrid, Atalanta, Villarreal, Juventus, and Eintracht Frankfurt, with the remaining clubs yet to be announced.
PSV Eindhoven, Ajax, Napoli, Sporting Lisbon, Olympiakos, Slavia Prague, Marseille, and Bodo/Glimt make up the third pot.
Athletic Club, Galatasaray, Union Saint-Gilloise, Pafos, Kairat Almaty, and Newcastle United will compete in Pot Four.
2025/26 Champions League Schedule: League Phase
Matchday 1: September 16-18, 2025.
Matchday 2: 30 September–1 October 2025
Matchday 3: October 21/22, 2025.
Matchday 4: November 4 and 5, 2025.
Matchday 5: November 25/26, 2025.
Matchday 6: 9/10 December 2025.
Matchday 7: January 20/21, 2026.
Match day 8: January 28, 2026
Knockout stages.
Knockout phase play-offs are scheduled for February 17/18 and 24/25, 2026.
Round of 16: March 10/11 and 17/18, 2026.
Quarter-finals: 7/8 and 14/15 April 2026
Semi-finals: 28/29 April and 5/6 May 2026.
Final date: May 30, 2026 (Budapest).
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