The Bayern Munich match at Old Trafford immediately becomes one of the most anticipated fixtures of the opening phase.

Aston Villa Get PSG and Barcelona

Aston Villa's return to Europe's elite competition has produced one of the most difficult draws.

Villa will play:

• Paris Saint-Germain — Home

• Barcelona — Away

• Borussia Dortmund — Home

• Club Brugge — Away

• Fenerbahçe — Home

• Galatasaray — Away

• Viking — Home

• Slavia Prague — Away

PSG, Barcelona and Dortmund make Villa's league phase particularly demanding.

For a club trying to establish itself among Europe's elite, however, these are exactly the types of matches that can define a Champions League campaign.

Barcelona Get Manchester City

Barcelona will welcome Manchester City to Spain in one of the biggest games of the league phase.

Their eight opponents are:

Home

• Manchester City

• Aston Villa

• Feyenoord

• Como

Away

• Paris Saint-Germain

• Sporting CP

• Galatasaray

• Sabah

The Barcelona–Manchester City meeting is arguably one of the headline fixtures of the entire draw. Barcelona will also travel to PSG, giving them two heavyweight tests.

Real Madrid's Route

Real Madrid will face:

• Inter Milan — Home

• Arsenal — Away

• PSV Eindhoven — Home

• Roma — Away

• RB Leipzig — Home

• Shakhtar Donetsk — Away

• LASK — Home

• AEK Athens — Away

The biggest match is obviously Arsenal away.

Real Madrid have also avoided a repeat of the Liverpool-at-Anfield fixture because of UEFA's new restriction on repeating the same fixture in the same venue across three consecutive league phases.

Bayern Munich Also Face Arsenal and Manchester United

Bayern's draw is hardly straightforward.

The German giants will play:

• Arsenal — Home

• Atlético Madrid — Away

• Real Betis — Home

• Manchester United — Away

• Bodø/Glimt — Home

• Lille — Away

That gives Bayern two huge encounters against Arsenal and Manchester United.

Atlético Madrid Draw Liverpool, Bayern and Manchester United

Atlético have arguably one of the most interesting Pot 1 schedules.

They will face:

• Bayern Munich — Home

• Liverpool — Away

• Manchester United — Home

• PSV Eindhoven — Away

• Fenerbahçe — Home

• Bodø/Glimt — Away

• Viking — Home

• Stuttgart — Away

Three heavyweight fixtures immediately stand out: Bayern, Liverpool and Manchester United.

PSG Begin Their Title Defence Against Barcelona and Manchester City

Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain have no easy ride either.

Their opponents are:

• Barcelona — Home

• Manchester City — Away

• Roma — Home

• Aston Villa — Away

• Galatasaray — Home

• Villarreal — Away

• Slovan Bratislava — Home

• Como — Away

PSG will therefore meet both Barcelona and Manchester City during the league phase.

The New Champions League Format Explained

For fans who still think of the competition as eight groups of four, the format has changed significantly.

There is now one 36-team league table.

Each club plays eight matches:

• 2 opponents from Pot 1

• 2 opponents from Pot 2

• 2 opponents from Pot 3

• 2 opponents from Pot 4

• 4 matches at home

• 4 matches away

Clubs cannot play another team from their own country, while UEFA's draw system also limits how many clubs from the same foreign association a team can face.

The result is that every club has its own unique eight-match schedule rather than being placed into a traditional four-team group.

What Happens After the League Phase?

This is where the league table becomes extremely important.

Positions 1–8

The top eight teams qualify directly for the Round of 16.

Positions 9–24

These 16 clubs enter a two-legged knockout play-off.

The winners then advance to the Round of 16.

Positions 25–36

Their European campaign is over.

Unlike the old system, teams eliminated from the Champions League do not drop into the Europa League.

Champions League 2026/27 Match Dates

The league phase will be played across eight matchdays.

Matchday	Date
Matchday 1	September 8–10, 2026
Matchday 2	October 13–14, 2026 Advertisement JUMIA.COM.NG Jumia — Shop phones, electronics, fashion and more at up to 70% off Nigeria's largest online marketplace. Daily deals, free delivery on selected items and pay on delivery. Ad. Offers and pricing subject to availability on Jumia.
Matchday 3	October 20–21, 2026
Matchday 4	November 3–4, 2026
Matchday 5	November 24–25, 2026
Matchday 6	December 8–9, 2026
Matchday 7	January 19–20, 2027
Matchday 8	January 27, 2027

UEFA says the exact fixture list, including match dates and kick-off times, will be released no later than Saturday, August 29.

What Happens in the Knockout Stage?

The knockout phase begins in February.

• Knockout play-offs: February 16/17 and 23/24, 2027

• Round of 16: March 9/10 and 16/17

• Quarter-finals: April 6/7 and 13/14

• Semi-finals: April 27/28 and May 4/5

• Final: June 5, 2027

The final will be played at the Estadio Metropolitano in Madrid, Spain.

The Biggest Winners and Losers of the Draw

Looking at the fixtures as a whole, several clubs immediately stand out.

Toughest schedules

Arsenal have Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Dortmund and Napoli.

Manchester City have PSG, Barcelona, Napoli and Leipzig.

Aston Villa have PSG, Barcelona and Dortmund.

Atlético Madrid have Bayern, Liverpool and Manchester United.

Interesting schedules

Liverpool have Atlético and Inter but also Porto, Villarreal and Fenerbahçe.

Manchester United have Bayern, Atlético, Roma and Sporting.

Barcelona have City and PSG but also Aston Villa and Sporting.

The underdogs

Several clubs will be making history.

Como, LASK, Sabah and Viking are Champions League debutants, while clubs such as Slovan Bratislava, Bodø/Glimt and AEK Athens will also be looking to make an impression on Europe's biggest stage.

For Sabah in particular, the draw is daunting. The Azerbaijani debutants face Barcelona, Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund, Manchester United, Napoli and Villarreal among their eight opponents.

So, Who Got the Hardest Champions League Draw?

There is no perfect way to rank the schedules, but Arsenal's draw looks particularly demanding on paper.

Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Napoli represent four serious tests, while Manchester City's meetings with PSG and Barcelona are arguably the two most glamorous individual fixtures of the league phase.

Liverpool may have a slightly more balanced route, while Manchester United will need to deal with Bayern and Atlético.

But that is precisely what makes the new Champions League format fascinating.

There is no hiding in a traditional group.

Every club has eight different opponents, every point matters, and a poor run can leave even a European heavyweight fighting simply to finish inside the top 24.

The road to Madrid is officially open.

Final Verdict

The 2026/27 Champions League draw has delivered exactly what supporters wanted: heavyweight clashes, difficult away trips, historic debuts and very little room for complacency.

Arsenal have Madrid and Bayern. City have PSG and Barcelona. Liverpool have Atlético and Inter. United have Bayern and Atlético. Villa have PSG and Barcelona.

And with the league phase beginning on September 8, the countdown to another European season has officially begun.

For the latest official draw information and subsequent fixture announcements, follow UEFA Champions League official coverage.

Sources used for this article

• UEFA — 2026/27 Champions League draw pots and dates

• UEFA — 36 Champions League league-phase teams

• FourFourTwo — Every 2026/27 league-phase fixture

• The Guardian — Live Champions League draw coverage

• Manchester City — City’s eight Champions League opponents