The new Champions League season for 2025/26 is officially about to begin, with the qualifying and play-offs ending tonight. As you remember from last season, the traditional group stage was transformed into a league phase with 36 teams, eight matches before round of 16 instead of six, and more varied encounters.
The last four places are up for grabs, and will be decided tonight, Wednesday, August 27, with Benfica or Fenerbahçe, Qarabağ or Ferencváros, Copenhagen or Basel, and Club Brugge or Rangers.
On Tuesday, Norway's Bodo/Glimt defeated Sturm Graz 6-2 in aggregate, Cyprus' Pafos defeated Crvena Zvezda 3-2 on aggregate and Kairat eliminated Celtic on penalties (eliminated teams were dropped to Europa League).
All teams qualified for Champions League 2025/26
After that, on Tuesday, August 28, the draw for Champions League 2025/26 will take place in Monaco, at 18:00 CEST, 17:00 BST. The current list for qualified teams (minus the four spots still for grabs) are:
England: Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur
Italy: Napoli, Inter, Atalanta, Juventus
Spain: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atlético de Madrid, Athletic Club, Villarreal
Germany: Bayern München, Bayer Leverkusen, Eintracht Frankfurt, Dortmund
France: Paris Saint-Germain, Marseille, Monaco
Netherlands: PSV, Ajax
Portugal: Sporting CP
Belgium: Union Saint-Gilloise
Türkiye: Galatasaray
Czechia: Slavia Praha
Greece: Olympiacos
Norway: Bodø/Glimt
Cyprus: Pafos
Kazakhstan: Kairat
How does the Champions League draw work
Teams have been placed in four different pots, with each team facing two opponents from each pot, eight games in total. However, teams from the same country are not allowed to face each other in the league phase (not Barcelona vs. Real Madrid or Liverpool vs. Arsenal, for example).
That assures that each team will have a balanced path during the league phase, as pots also acts as ranks (the best teams, those with higher UEFA coefficient, are in pot team, and the lower-ranked teams, including those that qualify through play-offs, are in the lower pots). And those are:
Pot 1
Real Madrid
Manchester City
Bayern München
Liverpool
PSG
Inter
Chelsea
Dortmund
Barcelona
Pot 2
Arsenal
Leverkusen
Atlético Madrid
Benfica
Atalanta
Villarreal
Juventus
Eintracht Frankfurt
Club Brugge
Pot 3
Tottenham Hotspur
PSV
Ajax
Napoli
Sporting CP
Olympiacos
Slavia Praha
FK Bodo Glimt
Olympique Marseille
Pot 4
Copenhage
Pafos
Monaco
Ferencvaros
Galatasaray SK
Kairat Almaty
Union Saint-Gilloise
Athletic
Newcastle