The 36 clubs for this season’s UEFA Champions League league phase have been seeded into four pots ahead of tonight’s draw (streams from 18:00 CET on UEFA.com and the UCL app). Below, we break down the full pots, the newcomers making history, the big returns, and the draw mechanics and key dates.
The pots:
Pot 1: Paris, Real Madrid, Man City, Bayern, Liverpool, Inter, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona.
Pot 2: Arsenal, Leverkusen, Atlético, Benfica, Atalanta, Villarreal, Juventus, Frankfurt, Club Brugge.
Pot 3: Tottenham, PSV, Ajax, Napoli, Sporting CP, Olympiacos, Slavia Praha, Bodø/Glimt, Marseille.
Pot 4: Copenhagen, Monaco, Galatasaray, Union SG, Qarabağ, Athletic Club, Newcastle, Pafos, Kairat Almaty.
Who’s here for the first time?
- Kairat Almaty (KAZ) – stunned Celtic on penalties to reach the league phase for the first time in the club’s history.
- Bodø/Glimt (NOR) – first-ever UCL league phase; Norway’s first appearance at this stage since Rosenborg in 2007/08.
- Union Saint-Gilloise (BEL) – debut in Europe’s elite after winning their first Belgian title in 90 years.
- Pafos (CYP) – historic first UCL league phase for the Cypriot champions.
Notable returns
- Athletic Club (ESP) – back in the Champions League for the first time since 2014/15.
- Slavia Praha (CZE) – first league-phase campaign since 2019/20.
- Ajax (NED) – return to the UCL after missing last season.
How tonight’s draw actually works
UEFA uses a hybrid draw: a ball is drawn for a team, then certified software assigns eight opponents respecting competition constraints:
- Each club plays 8 matches (four home, four away) against two teams from each pot.
- No games against teams from the same association, and a maximum of two opponents from any one country.
- After all 36 teams are processed, UEFA publishes the full fixture grid.
What the “Swiss model” means for progression
- Top 8 in the league table advance directly to the Round of 16.
- 9th–24th enter two-legged knockout play-offs to fill the remaining last-16 slots.
- 25th–36th are eliminated from Europe.
Key dates
League phase:
MD1: 16–18 Sep 2025 • MD2: 30 Sep–1 Oct • MD3: 21–22 Oct • MD4: 4–5 Nov • MD5: 25–26 Nov • MD6: 9–10 Dec • MD7: 20–21 Jan 2026 • MD8: 28 Jan 2026.
Knockouts: Play-offs 17/18 & 24/25 Feb 2026 • R16 10/11 & 17/18 Mar • QF 7/8 & 14/15 Apr • SF 28/29 Apr & 5/6 May • Final: 30 May 2026, Budapest.
Why this draw feels different
This is the second season using the revamped league-phase format, and the field blends super-clubs with compelling storylines from new markets: Kazakhstan, Cyprus and Norway each provide fresh entrants, while traditional names like Athletic Club and Ajax restore historic flavour. Expect heavyweights to eye Pot 3/4 landmines (Napoli, Ajax, Marseille, Newcastle), and neutral fans to circle debutants Kairat, Pafos, Union SG and Bodø/Glimt to see who becomes this season’s surprise package.
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