The draw ceremony for the 26/27 UEFA Champions League league phase will kick off at 18:00 CEST. This marks the third campaign of the competition under the new 36‑team single league format. This article reviews the Champions League format and draw rules, alongside key schedule dates, offering you a full breakdown ahead of the draw. A new season brings new narratives, and it all begins tonight!
Draw Schedule
The UEFA Champions League league‑phase draw will commence at 18:00CEST on August 27, hosted at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco.
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26/27 UEFA Champions League Final Date and Venue
The Metropolitano Stadium will stage the final, scheduled for June 5, 2027, Beijing Time.
This will be the second time the Metropolitano Stadium hosts the Champions League final, previously holding the showpiece in 2019 when Liverpool beat Tottenham Hotspur 2‑0 to claim the trophy. Serving as Atlético Madrid’s home ground since 2017, the stadium is located in the Rosas neighbourhood of Madrid.
This will also be the sixth occasion that Madrid hosts the Champions League final; only London has hosted more finals. The Santiago Bernabéu previously hosted the European Cup finals in 1957, 1969, 1980 and 2010.
League phase draw pots
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paris (FRA) | B. Dortmund (GER) | Feyenoord (NED) | Slavia Praha (CZE) |
| Bayern München (GER) | Roma (ITA) | Lille (FRA) | S. Bratislava (SVK) |
| Real Madrid (ESP) | Sporting CP (POR) | Bodø/Glimt (NOR) | Stuttgart (GER) |
| Liverpool (ENG) | Aston Villa (ENG) | Napoli (ITA) | AEK Athens (GRE) |
| Inter (ITA) | Porto (POR) | Leipzig (GER) | LASK (AUT) |
| Man City (ENG) | Man Utd (ENG) | Villarreal (ESP) | Como (ITA) |
| Arsenal (ENG) | Club Brugge (BEL) | Fenerbahçe (TUR) | Lens (FRA) |
| Barcelona (ESP) | Real Betis (ESP) | Shakhtar (UKR) | Viking (NOR) |
| Atleti (ESP) | PSV (NED) | Galatasaray (TUR) | Sabah (AZE) |
Match Schedule
| Stage | Match Round | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| League Phase | Matchday 1 | 8‑10 September 2026 |
| League Phase | Matchday 2 | 13/14 October 2026 |
| League Phase | Matchday 3 | 20/21 October 2026 |
| League Phase | Matchday 4 | 3/4 November 2026 |
| League Phase | Matchday 5 | 24/25 November 2026 |
| League Phase | Matchday 6 | 8/9 December 2026 |
| League Phase | Matchday 7 | 19/20 January 2027 |
| League Phase | Matchday 8 | 27 January 2027 |
| Knockout Phase | Knockout‑phase play‑offs | 16/17 & 23/24 February 2027 |
| Knockout Phase | Round of 16 | 9/10 & 16/17 March 2027 |
| Knockout Phase | Quarter‑finals | 6/7 & 13/14 April 2027 |
| Knockout Phase | Semi‑finals | 27/28 April & 4/5 May 2027 |
| Knockout Phase | Final | 5 June 2027 (Madrid) |
Draw Principles
The draw adheres to the following league‑phase principles:
1. Teams cannot be paired against opponents from their own football association, known as the same‑association protection rule.
2. A club may be drawn against a maximum of two opponents originating from any single association.
For example, a La Liga side can face no more than two Premier League opponents (or opponents from any other league) across its eight league‑phase matches.
Detailed Draw Procedure
The draw combines manual draws with automated software random selection, commencing with Pot 1 teams:
1. One team is manually drawn from the nine Pot 1 sides.
2. Software automatically selects two opponents from each of Pot 1, Pot 2, Pot 3 and Pot 4 for the picked club.
3. Home and away assignments are determined automatically by the software, with one home fixture and one away fixture against the two opponents drawn from each pot.
This process repeats until every club has been assigned its opponents.
Following this workflow, opponents are allocated to all nine Pot 1 teams first. The procedure then cycles through Pot 2, Pot 3 and Pot 4 until each of the 36 teams has been given eight distinct opponents. UEFA states the software guarantees full randomness within the defined draw constraints and ensures the draw can be completed without conflict.
Upon draw completion, every club will know its eight league‑phase opponents. Exact fixture dates and kick‑off times will be finalised afterwards and published no later than August 29.
