To help you follow every step on the road to the final in June, we explain all you need to know about the 2026/27 Champions League season below, from the key dates to the draws and the format of the competition.
How did the qualifying phase work?
29 teams directly qualified for the league phase of the Champions League based on their results in the 2025/26 season. The remaining seven spots were decided via the qualifying phase, with clubs participating according to the coefficient ranking of their respective federations. All knockout rounds were played over two legs and finished in late August.
Which teams qualified?
The following 36 teams qualified for the Champions League proper:
Arsenal (England); Manchester City (England); Manchester United (England); Aston Villa (England); Liverpool (England); Real Madrid (Spain); FC Barcelona (Spain); Atletico Madrid (Spain); Villarreal (Spain); Real Betis (Spain); Inter Milan (Italy); Napoli (Italy); AS Roma (Italy); Como (Italy); Bayern Munich (Germany); Borussia Dortmund (Germany); RB Leipzig (Germany); VfB Stuttgart (Germany); Paris Saint-Germain (France); RC Lens (France); LOSC Lille (France); PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands); Feyenoord (Netherlands); FC Porto (Portugal); Sporting CP (Portugal); Club Brugge (Belgium); Galatasaray (Turkey); Fenerbahce (Turkey); Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine); Slavia Prague (Czechia): Bodo/Glimt (Norway); Viking (Norway); LASK (Austria); Sabah Baku (Azerbaijan); Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia); AEK Athens (Greece)
When are all the Champions League draws?
First qualifying round: June 16th, 2026
Second qualifying round: June 17th, 2026
Third qualifying round: July 20th, 2026
Play-offs: August 3rd, 2026
League phase: August 27th, 2026
Knockout phase play-offs: January 29th, 2027
Round of 16 and final bracket: February 26th, 2027
How did the league phase draw work?
The draw for the Champions League main phase took place on Thursday, August 27th, at 18:00 CET in Monaco and was streamed on UEFA.com.
For the draw, the 36 teams that qualified for the tournament were placed into four pots of nine teams, with one being the highest-ranked and four being the lowest. The pot placements were based on UEFA's club coefficient ranking from the five-season period ending at the conclusion of 2025/26.
The draw determined each side's eight fixtures for the league phase, with every team drawing two teams from each of the four pots. However, they couldn't face a team from the same country as themselves.
See the results of the league phase draw here!
Which teams were in each pot?
Pot 1: PSG; Bayern Munich; Real Madrid; Liverpool; Inter; Manchester City; Arsenal; Barcelona; Atletico Madrid
Pot 2: Dortmund; Roma; Sporting; Aston Villa; Porto; Manchester United; Club Brugge; Real Betis; PSV
Pot 3: Feyenoord; Lille; Napoli; RB Leipzig; Villarreal; Shakhtar Donetsk; Bodo/Glimt; Galatasaray; Fenerbahce
Pot 4: Slovan Bratislava; Stuttgart; Slavia Prague; AEK Athens; Como; Lens; Sabah; LASK; Viking
The format of the Champions League
The teams who finish in the top eight of the league phase after the eight Matchdays qualify for the Champions League's Round of 16. Those between ninth and 24th will enter the play-off knockout round. The 12 teams ranked between 25th and 36th will exit the competition when the league phase is concluded.
When are the league phase matchdays?
Matchday 1: September 8th-10th, 2026
Matchday 2: October 13th-14th, 2026
Matchday 3: November 20th-21st, 2026
Matchday 4: November 3rd-4th, 2026
Matchday 5: November 24th-25th, 2026
Matchday 6: December 8th-9th, 2026
Matchday 7: January 19th-20th, 2027
Matchday 8: January 27th, 2027
When are the knockout rounds played?
Knockout play-offs: February 16th-17th and 23rd-24th, 2027
Round of 16: March 9th-10th and 16th-17th, 2027
Quarter-finals: April 6th-7th and 13th-14th, 2027
Semi-finals: April 27th-28th and May 4th-5th, 2027
Final: June 5th, 2027
When and where is the Champions League final?
The Estadio Metropolitano, home of Atletico Madrid, will host the final of the 2026/27 Champions League on Saturday, June 5th, 2027, where the winner will be crowned.
This will be the second time this stadium hosts the Champions League final. The first was in 2019, when Liverpool beat Tottenham 2-0 in an all-English decider.
When were the qualifying rounds?
First qualifying round: July 7th/8th and 14th/15th, 2026
Second qualifying round: July 21st/22nd and 28th/29th, 2026
Third qualifying round: August 4th/5th and 11th, 2026
Play-offs: August 18th/19th and 25th/26th, 2026
