The league phase draw for the 2026-27 Champions League campaign will take place on Thursday, 27 August at 18:00 CET in Monaco. According to UEFA's official draw page, the procedure and seedings will be published from 08:30 CET on the morning of the draw.
A total of 36 teams will compete in the league phase. The field comprises 29 automatic qualifiers from the previous season's European competitions and seven additional teams determined through play-off matches. This expanded format represents a significant change from previous Champions League structures.
The 2026 Champions League final, contested between Arsenal and Paris St-Germain on 30 May at Budapest's Puskas Arena, determined several of the teams now entering the league phase draw. PSG's victory as back-to-back champions secured their automatic qualification for the new campaign.
How will the league phase format work?
Each of the 36 teams will face eight different opponents once during the league phase, playing four matches at home and four away. The draw will determine these fixtures based on pot placement and geographical restrictions.
Teams are divided into four pots according to their UEFA club coefficient ranking, calculated over the five-season period ending at the conclusion of 2025-26. Pot one contains the highest-ranked clubs, while pot four contains the lowest-ranked teams. Each team will face exactly two opponents from each pot, and no team can be drawn against another club from the same country.
The league phase concludes with teams ranked first through eighth qualifying automatically for the round of 16. Clubs finishing between ninth and 24th will enter a play-off knockout round, while the 12 teams ranked 25th to 36th will be eliminated from the competition.
Which clubs are in each pot?
Pot one features nine of Europe's elite clubs: Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City and Paris St-Germain, alongside Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. The three Premier League representatives reflect English football's strength in European competition.
Pot two contains Aston Villa and Manchester United, both returning to the Champions League after missing the previous season. They join Borussia Dortmund, Roma, Sporting, Porto, Club Brugge, Real Betis and PSV Eindhoven in this group.
Pot three comprises nine teams: Feyenoord, Lille, Bodo/Glimt, Napoli, RB Leipzig, Villarreal, Shakhtar Donetsk, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce. These clubs represent a mix of established European sides and emerging challengers.
Pot four consists of nine teams: Slavia Prague, VfB Stuttgart, Lask, Como, Lens, Sabah, AEK Athens, Slovan Bratislava and Viking. These represent the lowest-ranked qualifiers in the new league phase format.
How can you watch the draw?
The draw will be broadcast live and free on multiple platforms. According to UEFA's official announcement, viewers can follow proceedings on UEFA.com and UEFA.tv. The event will also be available through various national broadcasters and their digital platforms.
What happens next?
Following the Champions League draw on Thursday, 27 August, the Europa League and Conference League league phase draws are scheduled for Friday, 28 August. This will complete the draw schedule for all three major UEFA club competitions for the 2026-27 season. The knockout-phase draws for the Champions League will be confirmed at a later date.
Key Facts
- The draw takes place on Thursday, 27 August 2026 at 18:00 CET in Monaco
- 36 teams will compete in the league phase, comprising 29 automatic qualifiers and seven play-off winners
- Each team plays eight league phase matches: four home and four away
- Top eight teams qualify for the round of 16; teams ranked 9-24 enter play-offs; teams 25-36 are eliminated
- Teams are seeded into four pots based on UEFA club coefficient rankings from 2021-22 to 2025-26
