Archive · 27 Aug 2026
Champions League Draw Sets Opponents for Europe’s Elite
The Champions League draw decides which teams will play one another in the competition’s league phase.
Each club gets eight different opponents.
Four games will be played at home and four will be played away.
Manchester United received difficult opponents including Bayern Munich and Atlético Madrid.
Arsenal will play Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.
Manchester City will meet Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona.
Liverpool will face Atlético Madrid and Inter Milan.
A computer helped choose opponents while following UEFA’s rules.
The dates and starting times are expected to be released by Saturday.
Manchester United were drawn against Bayern Munich, Atlético Madrid, Roma, Sporting, Leipzig, Villarreal, Sabah and Como.
Arsenal will play Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Real Betis, Lille, Napoli, Sabah and Slavia Prague.
Manchester City drew Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona, while Liverpool drew Atlético Madrid and Inter Milan.
Each team receives eight league-phase opponents, with four matches at home and four away.
UEFA says the match calendar will be announced by Saturday, although the article’s listed pots contain 35 entries despite its claim of 36 teams.
- Who
- The 36-team UEFA Champions League lineup, including Manchester United, Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.
- What
- A league-phase draw assigned eight opponents and home-or-away venues to each team.
- When
- The draw was held on Thursday; the match calendar is expected by Saturday.
- Where
- Monaco.
- Why
- UEFA used a computer-assisted draw to create valid league-phase schedules while following restrictions on national associations, opponent distribution and repeated fixtures.
- League-phase format
- Each team receives eight opponents: four home and four away.
- Manchester United
- Bayern Munich, Atlético Madrid, Roma, Sporting, Leipzig, Villarreal, Sabah and Como.
- Arsenal
- Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Real Betis, Lille, Napoli, Sabah and Slavia Prague.
- Manchester City
- Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona, Sporting, Porto, Napoli, Leipzig, AEK and Lens.
- Liverpool
- Atlético Madrid, Inter Milan, Porto, Club Brugge, Villarreal, Fenerbahçe, Lens and LASK.
- Draw restrictions
- Teams from the same national association cannot meet, and a team can face no more than two opponents from any one other association.
- Newcomers listed
- Como, LASK, Viking and Azerbaijani champion Sabah were identified as newcomers.
- Published team-count discrepancy
- The article describes a 36-team lineup, but the four displayed seeding pots contain 35 listed entries.