The Champions League league phase draw takes place this afternoon, with five Premier League teams involved. Arsenal and Manchester City are joined by Manchester United, Liverpool and Aston Villa, who return to the competition as Europa League holders after finishing fourth last season.
PSG lead the contenders
Paris Saint-Germain beat Arsenal on penalties in last season's final and have strengthened during the summer to remain favourites for a third consecutive European title. Arsenal are expected to be their closest challengers, followed by Barcelona and Real Madrid, now managed by Jose Mourinho for a second time.
When and where is the draw?
The draw for the league phase of the 2026/27 Champions League takes place today, Thursday, August 27, 2026, from 5pm BST at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco.
How to watch the draw
The draw will be shown live in the UK on TNT Sports 1, with coverage starting at 5pm BST. TNT Sports subscribers can stream it via the HBO Max app and website, while UEFA.com and the TNT Sports YouTube channel will also show proceedings live for free. Standard Sport's live blog will follow the draw.
Confirmed pots
All 36 qualified clubs are divided into four pots of nine based on club coefficients at the start of the season. The pots were confirmed on Wednesday evening following the play-off ties.
Pot 1: Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Man City, Arsenal, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid
Pot 2: Borussia Dortmund, Roma, Sporting CP, Aston Villa, Porto, Manchester United, Club Brugge, Real Betis, PSV Eindhoven
Pot 3: Feyenoord, Lille, Bodo/Glimt, Napoli, RB Leipzig, Villarreal, Fenerbahce, Shakhtar Donetsk, Galatasaray
Pot 4: Slavia Prague, Slovan Bratislava, Stuttgart, AEK Athens, LASK, Como, Lens, Viking, Sabah
How the draw works
Under the new format, teams play eight matches in the league phase against eight different opponents, with four at home and four away. Each team is drawn to play two opponents from each pot, one at home and one away.
Matchday dates
Matchday 1: September 8-10, 2026; Matchday 2: October 13/14; Matchday 3: October 20/21; Matchday 4: November 3/4; Matchday 5: November 24/25; Matchday 6: December 8/9; Matchday 7: January 19/20, 2026; Matchday 8: January 27, 2026.
