Champions League draw set for league phase and knockout rounds

European football’s biggest stage is getting a makeover, and the curtain rises on August 27, 2026, when UEFA holds the draw for the Champions League league phase at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. Thirty-six teams will find out who they face across eight matchdays, in a format that looks nothing like the tournament most fans grew up watching. The draw is scheduled for 18:00 CET, with fixtures and kick-off times expected to follow by August 29. That two-day window between draw and fixture release reflects just how complex the scheduling math has become under the new structure. How the new format actually works Gone is the traditional group stage, replaced by a single-table league phase involving all 36 participating clubs. Every team plays eight matches against eight different opponents, drawn from four separate pots. The field breaks down to 29 direct qualifiers and 7 clubs arriving through qualifying play-offs, the final rounds of which conclude on August 25 and 26, just one day before the draw. Each team plays two opponents from each pot. Pot 1 for the 2026/27 season includes Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Manchester City, Arsenal, Barcelon...