Champions League 2026-27 League Phase Draw: Date and Team Pots Explained
The draw for the 2026-27 Champions League league phase will happen on Thursday, 27 August at 17:00 BST in Monaco. This stage features 36 teams. While 29 clubs have already qualified based on last season's results, seven spots will be filled through qualifiers concluding the week before the draw.
Format of the league phase
During the league phase, each team plays eight matches, facing eight different opponents once each, split evenly between home and away games. The draw divides the 36 teams into four pots ranked by UEFA club coefficients over five seasons ending with 2025-26. Each club will face two teams from every pot except their own, avoiding matches against teams from their own country.
After all matches, the top eight teams advance directly to the round of 16. Teams finishing ninth through 24th enter a knockout play-off round. Clubs ranked 25th to 36th exit the competition.
Who is in each pot?
While the final seven league phase places await qualifiers, most participating teams know their pot placements already.
Pot 1
- Paris St-Germain (France)
- Bayern Munich (Germany)
- Real Madrid (Spain)
- Liverpool (England)
- Inter Milan (Italy)
- Manchester City (England)
- Arsenal (England)
- Barcelona (Spain)
- Atletico Madrid (Spain)
Pot 2
- Borussia Dortmund (Germany)
- Roma (Italy)
- Sporting (Portugal)
- Aston Villa (England)
- Porto (Portugal)
- Manchester United (England)
- Club Brugge (Belgium)
- Real Betis (Spain)
- PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands)
Pot 3
- Feyenoord (Netherlands)
- Lille (France)
- Napoli (Italy)
- RB Leipzig (Germany)
- Villarreal (Spain)
- Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine)
- Galatasaray (Turkey)
- Winner of Fenerbahce (Turkey) vs Lyon (France)
Pot 3 or Pot 4 (Depending on qualifiers)
- Winner of NEC Nijmegen (Netherlands) vs Bodo/Glimt (Norway)
- Winner of Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) vs Viking (Norway)
- Winner of Celtic (Scotland) vs LASK (Austria)
- Slavia Prague (Czech Republic)
Pot 4
- Winner of Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia) vs Celje (Slovenia)
- VfB Stuttgart (Germany)
- Winner of Levski Sofia (Bulgaria) vs AEK Athens (Greece)
- Como (Italy)
- Lens (France)
- Winner of Hapoel Be'er Sheva (Israel) vs Sabah (Azerbaijan)
Details on uncertain placements
The final four spots' distribution depends on qualifier outcomes. For example, if Bodo/Glimt beat NEC Nijmegen, they take the last pot 3 place, and the other three winners, including Slavia Prague, go to pot 4. If NEC Nijmegen win, then Dinamo Zagreb could move into pot 3 if they also progress. Celtic and Slavia Prague are tied on coefficients, but Celtic earned more points in 2024-25, which could grant them a pot 3 spot if certain conditions are met.
These decisions are settled by club coefficient rankings and match results from the qualifying rounds.
