However, Luis Enrique’s men’s path to the final, which will be played at Atletico Madrid’s Metropolitano Stadium, will be far from straightforward. We take a look at the winners and losers from Thursday’s Champions League draw. The road to Madrid begins on September 8, with the 2026-27 UEFA Champions League league phase set to get underway. Two-time defending champions Paris Saint-Germain are bidding to become only the second team to win Europe’s premier club competition three times in a row, after Real Madrid’s treble between 2016 and 2018.
UEFA Champions League Draw In Full: Who Are The Winners And Losers?
AEK (A) Liverpool : Among the five English teams competing in the Champions League this season, Liverpool have been handed the easiest draw. Atletico Madrid at Anfield and Inter Milan at the San Siro will be their biggest challenges of the league phase, while the other six fixtures are theirs to lose. The remaining five matches should not be much of a concern for the six-time champions. Viking FK (A) Barcelona : With fixtures against former champions Manchester City and PSG, and debutants Como and Sabah, Barcelona have a lopsided draw. Sabah (A) PSG : Bidding for a third straight title, PSG face a stern test in the league phase, with fixtures against Barcelona, Manchester City and Roma. Como (A) Manchester City : Meetings with two former champions in Barcelona and PSG, and tricky fixtures against Napoli, Sporting and Leipzig, leave City with little room for slip-ups. Lens (A) Manchester United : Apart from fixtures against debutants Como and Sabah, Michael Carrick ‘s Red Devils would need a miracle to finish in the top eight. Facing Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Napoli makes their draw one of the toughest among the English clubs. Real Madrid (H) Bayern Munich (A) Dortmund (H) Napoli (A) Betis (A) Lille (H) Sabah (H) Slavia Prague (A)
Real Madrid : A couple of tough matches against Arsenal and Inter Milan, but 15-time champions Real Madrid have one of the most favourable draws this season. 1. Inter (H) 2. Arsenal (A) 3. PSV (H) 4. Roma (A) 5. Leipzig (H) 6. Shakhtar (A) 7. LASK (H) 8. 1. Atletico (H) 2. Porto (H) 4. Club Brugge (A) 5. Villarreal (H) 6. Fenerbahce (A) 7. Lens (H) 8. LASK (A) Bayern Munich : A home fixture against runners-up Arsenal and away trips to Atletico Madrid and Manchester United could decide whether Bayern Munich secure direct passage to the Round of 16. 1. Man United (A) 4. Betis (H) 5. Lille (A) 6. Bodo/Glimt (H) 7. Red Star Belgrade (H) 8. However, Barcelona remain favourites to secure an automatic Round of 16 berth, with Aston Villa and Sporting both in transition. 1. Man City (H) 2. PSG (A) 3. Villa (H) 4. Sporting (A) 5. Feyenoord (H) 6. Galatasaray (A) 7. Como (H) 8. 1. Barcelona (H) 2. Slovan Bratislava (H) 8. 1. Napoli (H) 6. RB Leipzing (A) 7. AEK (H) 8. 1. Bayern Munich (H) 2. Atletico Madrid (A) 3. Sabah (H) 8. Como (A) Arsenal : Arsenal have arguably the hardest combination of teams in Pots 1, 2 and 3.
