Liverpool have been drawn against Real Madrid in the league phase of the 2024-25 Champions League, while Arsenal will play Paris Saint-Germain.
Madrid will also face Borussia Dortmund in a repeat of last season’s final, which the Spanish side won 2-0 to claim a record-extending 15th title.
In addition to a repeat of the 2018 final against Madrid, Liverpool will play AC Milan, their opponents from the famous 2005 final. Former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen will also travel to Anfield in the league phase.
Aston Villa, competing in the tournament for the first time since 1982-83, have been drawn against Bundesliga champions Leverkusen in a repeat of the 1982 European Cup final, and will also play 2017 beaten finalists Juventus.
Barcelona will play Bayern Munich and Premier League Champions Manchester City will face Serie A winners Inter Milan in two of the standout fixtures from the league phase draw.
The 2024-25 Champions League marks the first season of the competition under a new format. It has been expanded from 32 teams to 36 and the group stage has been replaced by a league phase, where each team will play eight different opponents.
The top eight teams in the league will automatically progress to the last-16, and the teams who finish between ninth and 24th will compete in a two-legged play-off to determine the remaining eight knock-out stage spots.
The match calendar for the 2024-25 Champions League will be released on Saturday August 31.
✅ Home and away opponents for Pot 1 teams 🏠✈️#UCLdraw pic.twitter.com/4bwEU4zCqq
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 29, 2024
2024-25 Champions League draw
Manchester City: Inter Milan (H), PSG (A), Club Brugge (H) Juventus (A), Feyenoord (H) Sporting CP (A), Sparta Praha (H) Slovan Bratislava (A)
Inter: RB Leipzig (H), Man City (A), Arsenal (H), Leverkusen (A), Red Star Belgrade (H), Young Boys (A), Monaco (H), Sparta Praha (A)
Bayern Munich: PSG (H), Barcelona (A), Benfica (H), Shakhtar Donetsk (A), GNK Dinamo, (H), Feyenoord (A), Bratislava (H), Aston Villa (A)
RB Leipzig: Liverpool, (H), Inter (A), Juventus (H), Atletico Madrid (A), Sporting CP (H), Celtic (A), Aston Villa (H), Sturm Graz (A)
Borussia Dortmund: Barcelona (H) Real Madrid (A), Shakhtar (H), Club Brugge (A), Celtic (A), GNK Dinamo (H), Sturm Graz (A), Bologna (H)
Barcelona: Bayern Munich (H), Dortmund (A), Atalanta (H), Benfica (A), Young Boys (H), Red Star Belgrade (A) Brest (H), Monaco (A)
Real Madrid: Dortmund (H), Liverpool (A), Milan (H), Atalanta (A), RB Salzburg (H), Lille, (A), Stuttgart (H), Brest (A)
Liverpool: Real Madrid (H), RB Leipzig (A), Bayer Leverkusen (H), Milan (A), Lille (H), PSV (A) Bologna (H), Girona (A)
PSG: Manchester City (H), Bayern Munich (A), Atletico Madrid (H), Arsenal (A), PSV (H), Salzburg (A), Girona (H), Stuttgart (A)
Atletico Madrid: RB Leipzig (H), PSG (A) Bayer Leverkusen (H), Benfica (A), Lille (H), Salzburg (A), Bratislava (H), Sparta Praha (A)
Atalanta: Real Madrid (H), Barcelona (A), Arsenal (H), Shakhtar (A), Celtic (H), Young Boys (A), Sturm Graz (H), Stuttgart (A)
Club Brugge: Dortmund (H), Manchester City (A), Juventus (H), Milan (A), Sporting CP (H), Celtic (A), Aston Villa (H), Sturm Graz (A)
Bayer Leverkusen: Inter Milan (H), Liverpool (A), Milan (H), Atletico Madrid (A), RB Salzburg, (H), Feyenoord (A), Sparta Praha (H) Brest (A)
Arsenal: PSG (H), Inter (A), Shakhtar (H), Atalanta (A), GNK Dinamo (H), Sporting CP (A), Monaco (H), Girona (A)
Benfica: Barcelona (H), Bayern Munich (A), Atletico Madrid (H), Juventus (A), Feyenoord (H), Red Star Belgrade (A), Bologna (H), Monaco (A)
Milan: Liverpool (H), Real Madrid (A), Club Brugge (H), Leverkusen (A), Red Star Belgrade (H), GNK Dinamo (A), Girona (H), Bratislava (A)
Juventus: Manchester City (H), RB Leipzig (A), Benfica (H), Club Brugge (A), PSV (H), Lille (A), Stuttgart (H), Aston Villa (A)
Shakhtar: Bayern Munich (H), Dortmund (A), Atalanta (H), Arsenal (A), Young Boys (H), PSV (A), Brest (H), Bologna (A)
Young Boys: Inter (H), Barcelona (A), Atalanta (H), Shakhtar (A), Red Star (H), Celtic (H), Aston Villa (A), Stuttgart (H)
PSV: Liverpool (H), PSG (A), Shakhtar (H), Juventus (A), Sporting CP (H), Red Star Belgrade (A), Girona (H), Brest (A)
Feyenoord: Bayern Munich (H), Man City (A), Leverkusen (H), Benfica (A), RB Salzburg (H), Lille (A), Sparta Praha (H), Girona (A)
Dinamo Zagreb: Dortmund (H), Bayern Munich (A), Milan (H), Arsenal (A), Celtic (H), RB Salzburg (A), Monaco (H), Bratislava (A)
Red Star Belgrade: Barcelona (H), Inter (A), Benfica (H), Milan (A), PSV (H), Young Boys (A), Stuttgart (H), Monaco (A)
Celtic: Leipzig (H), Dortmund (A), Club Brugge (H), Atalanta (A), Young Boys (H), Dinamo Zagreb (A), Bratislava (H), Aston Villa (A)
Sporting CP: Manchester City (H), Leipzig (A), Arsenal (H), Club Brugge (A), Lille (H), PSV (A), Bologna (H), Sturm Graz (A)
Stuttgart: PSG (H) Real Madrid (A), Atalanta (H), Juventus (A), Young Boys (H), Red Star Belgrade (A), Sparta Praha (H), Bratislava (A)
Girona: Liverpool (H), PSG (A), Arsenal (H), Milan (A), Feyenoord (H), PSV (A), Bratislava (H), Sturm Graz (A)
Bologna: Dortmund (H), Liverpool (A), Shakhtar (H), Benfica (A), Lille (H), Sporting CP (A), Monaco (H), Aston Villa (A)
Brest: Real Madrid (H), Barcelona (A), Bayer Leverkusen (H), Shakhtar (A), PSV (H), Salzburg (A), Sturm Graz (H), Sparta Praha (A)
Aston Villa: Bayern Munich (H), RB Leipzig (A), Juventus (H), Club Brugge (A), Celtic (H), Young Boys (A), Bologna (H), Monaco (A)
Sparta Praha: Inter (H), Manchester City (A), Atletico Madrid (H), Bayer Leverkusen (A), RB Salzburg (H), Feyenoord (A), Brest (H), Stuttgart (A)
Monaco: Barcelona (H), Inter (A), Benfica (H), Arsenal (A), Red Star (H), Dinamo Zagreb (A), Aston Villa (H), Bologna (A)
Sturm Graz: RB Leipzig (H), Borussia Dortmund (A), Club Brugge (H), Atalanta (A), Sporting CP (H), Lille (A), Girona (H), Brest (A)
The new format has a ‘league phase’ rather than a ‘group phase’. It ditches eight groups of four and crams all the competing clubs together in one massive table. The format is based on the Swiss system used in chess, and does not require every team to play all of the others.
The number of teams participating increases by four, to 36, with each participant now playing eight matches in the first phase, instead of six in previous iterations. But instead of just three different opponents twice, home and away, teams will face a different team in every game.
The new automated software for the Champions League league phase draw had to follow two UEFA rules. The first was that no club would face another from the same nation, and the other is that it will only be possible to face a maximum of two teams from another association.
In total, there will be 189 matches in the competition proper, capped by the final in Munich on May 31, up from the previous 125.
Once the league phase has been completed, which will now take until late January, the top eight sides in the table will qualify directly for a 16-team knockout round, with the other eight places decided by a newly introduced set of two-leg play-offs contested by the teams who finish between ninth and 24th in the league.
The round of 16 and beyond will now be seeded, so the teams who finish first and second in the league phase cannot face each other until the final.
(Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images)
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