The 2025–26 season is drawing closer and that means we’re preparing to hear the famous Champions League anthem ring out around stadiums across the continent.
Paris Saint-Germain produced a scintillating Champions League final performance to cap another enthralling edition of the fabled competition in 2024–25, with another campaign of drama and shocks inevitable.
Qualification for Europe’s premier competition is already underway and we will soon know our full cast for the league phase, which was first introduced by UEFA last term as part of their tournament revamp.
But when will Champions League sides discover their opponents for next season’s competition? Here’s the latest news on the league phase draw.
When Did 2025–26 Champions League Qualifying Start?
An array of European giants have already booked their place in the Champions League based on last season’s performances, but there remain some vacancies for 2025–26. Many clubs must go through the qualification process to compete in the league phase, with these crucial qualifiers having commenced on 8 July.
There are three rounds of qualifying in the Champions League’s preliminary stage, followed by a play-off to decide the seven teams that will join the 29 clubs already certain of their league phase place.
The qualifying play-offs will be staged across two legs from August 19-27.
When Is the 2025–26 Champions League League Phase Draw?
The league phase draw for the 2025–26 competition will take place on Thursday, August 28, with the format unchanged from last season.
Each of the 36 teams will be placed into one of four seeded pots and then drawn against two clubs from each pot, playing half their fixtures at home and the other half on the road.
At the end of the league phase, the top eight teams automatically qualify for the last 16, while those who finished ninth to 24th compete in a two-legged play-off. Clubs that come 25th or lower are eliminated completely and don’t drop into the Europa League.
Which Teams Have Qualified for the 2025–26 Champions League?
Of the 36 teams competing in next season’s league phase, 29 have already booked their spot. England have the most clubs involved with six in total following Tottenham Hotspur’s Europa League triumph, while Spain have a grand total of five participants.
Italy and Germany boast four clubs fighting for European domination, while France have three teams in the league phase, including reigning champions PSG. The Netherlands have two sides featuring, and, as things stand, Portugal, Belgium, Turkey, Czechia and Greece all have just one club guaranteed to play in Europe’s premier competition.
When Does the 2025–26 Champions League League Phase Start?
The opening round of league phase fixtures will take place three weeks after the draw has been completed, with Matchday 1 games played on 16-18 September. For most teams, that will be approximately a month after the start of their domestic campaigns.
The first six league phase matchdays will take place before the end of the calendar year and the final two will be played in January 2026.
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