The draw for the UEFA Champions League 2025-26 has provided a glimpse of the blockbuster league stage, with 36 teams discovering their fixtures last night. Title holders Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) will confront several European heavyweights, and big boys Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Liverpool have also been given challenging fixtures. The final this year will take place in Budapest, Hungary.
According to the draw regulations, every club plays eight matches two from every seeding pool. No team can play more than two teams from a single country. The new system guarantees one 36-team table after the league stage, with the leading eight advancing directly to the round of 16.
PSG Receive A Harsh Draw
Defending champions PSG will host Bayern Munich, travel to Barcelona, Atalanta at home, Bayer Leverkusen away, host Tottenham, Sporting Lisbon away, Newcastle United at home, and Athletic Bilbao away.
Marathon Fixtures for Real Madrid
Record 15-time champions Real Madrid will host Manchester City, travel to Liverpool, Juventus at home, Benfica away, Marseille at home, Olympiacos away, Monaco at home, and face a challenging journey to Kairat Almaty away in Kazakhstan.
English Clubs Undergo Mixed Tests
- Manchester City: Dortmund (home), Madrid (away), Leverkusen (home), Villarreal (away), Napoli (home), Bodø/Glimt (away), Galatasaray (home), Monaco (away).
- Liverpool: Madrid (home), Inter (away), Atletico Madrid (home), Eintracht Frankfurt (away), PSV (home), Marseille (away), Qarabag (home), Galatasaray (away).
- Chelsea: Barcelona (home), Bayern (away), Benfica (home), Atalanta (away), Ajax (home), Napoli (away), Pafos (home), Qarabag (away).
- Arsenal: Bayern (home), Inter (away), Atletico (home), Brugge (away), Olympiacos (home), Slavia Prague (away), Kairat (home), Athletic Bilbao (away).
- Tottenham Hotspur: Dortmund (home), PSG (away), Villarreal (home), Frankfurt (away), Slavia Prague (home), Bodø/Glimt (away), Copenhagen (home), Monaco (away).
- Newcastle United: Barcelona (home), PSG (away), Benfica (home), Leverkusen (away), PSV (home), Marseille (away), Athletic Bilbao (home), Union SG (away).
Other Big European Giants
Bayern Munich: PSG, Chelsea, Arsenal feature in a challenging draw.
- Barcelona: PSG (home), Chelsea (away), Frankfurt (home), Brugge (away), Olympiacos (home), Slavia Prague (away), Copenhagen (home), Newcastle (away).
- Inter Milan: Liverpool (home), Dortmund (away), Arsenal (home), Atletico (away), Slavia Prague (home), Ajax (away), Kairat (home), Union SG (away).
- Borussia Dortmund: Inter (home), City (away), Villarreal (home), Juventus (away), Bodø/Glimt (home), Spurs (away), Athletic Bilbao (home), Copenhagen (away).
- Juventus: Dortmund (home), Madrid (away), Benfica (home), Villarreal (away), Sporting (home), Bodø/Glimt (away), Pafos (home), Monaco (away).
Dangerous Outsiders
- Napoli: Chelsea (away), City (home), Frankfurt (home), Benfica (away), Sporting (home), PSV (away), Qarabag (home), Copenhagen (away).
- Galatasaray: Liverpool (home), City (away), Atletico (home), Frankfurt (away), Bodø/Glimt (home), Ajax (away), Union SG (home), Monaco (away).
- Club Brugge: Barcelona (home), Bayern (away), Arsenal (home), Atalanta (away), Marseille (home), Sporting (away), Monaco (home), Kairat (away).
- Benfica: Madrid (h), Chelsea (a), Leverkusen (h), Juventus (a), Napoli (h), Ajax (a), Qarabag (h), Newcastle (a).
Newcomers Add Spice
Debut appearances are made this year by Bodø/Glimt (Norway), Kairat Almaty (Kazakhstan), Pafos (Cyprus) and Belgian champions Union Saint-Gilloise. Some of the longest and coolest away journeys in tournament history will be provided by matches in Bodo and Almaty.
The league phase begins on September 16, 2025, with the final round of fixtures on January 28, 2026, when all 36 teams will be in action simultaneously. From there, the top eight teams will progress to the round of 16, while clubs finishing between ninth and 24th will battle in February playoffs.
With the groups loaded with European powerhouses and long-distance journeys to boot, this campaign promises to be one of the most intense and dramatic Champions League seasons ever.
