sports
Champions League draw LIVE as Man Utd, Liverpool, Arsenal learn opponents
The return of the Champions League is almost upon us as the 36 teams in the league phase of the competition prepare to learn their opponents. The draw, which under the new UEFA format sees every team given eight opponents, with four at home and four away, takes place this evening in Nyon, Switzerland. Manchester United will return to the Champions League for the first time since 2023/24 when they crashed out in the group stages under then-manager Erik ten Hag.
TL;DR
- 36 teams will participate in the new Champions League league phase, with each team playing eight opponents (four home, four away).
- The draw ceremony begins at 5 PM, with the draw expected around 5:30 PM in Nyon, Switzerland.
- Five Premier League clubs are involved: Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Aston Villa, and Manchester United.
- Teams finishing in the top eight automatically qualify for the last 16; those between ninth and 24th enter knockout-phase play-offs.
- Teams finishing 25th or lower are eliminated from European competition.
- Newcomers to the competition include Viking FK from Norway and Sabah FK from Azerbaijan.
- UEFA rules prevent certain fixture repeat pairings from occurring at the same venue in consecutive seasons (e.g., Liverpool vs. Real Madrid at Anfield, Inter Milan vs. Arsenal at San Siro).