Paris Saint-Germain, the defending champions, secured a challenging draw in the Champions League league phase on Thursday, facing Barcelona, Manchester City, and Aston Villa among their eight matches. Last season, PSG triumphed over Arsenal in a dramatic penalty shootout to claim their first title in 2025. Their group includes home fixtures against Barcelona, Roma, Turkish giants Galatasaray, and Slovakia’s Slovan Bratislava, while also traveling to England to confront City and Villa twice, Spain to face Villarreal, and Italy to take on Como under coach Xavi Hernandez.
The league phase commences between September 8–10, with UEFA expected to finalize the full fixture schedule by Saturday. Last year’s runners-up, Arsenal, will host Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, alongside Lille and Azerbaijani side Sabah, who advanced through four two-legged play-offs. The Gunners face tough away fixtures against Bayern Munich, Real Betis, Napoli, and Slavia Prague.
Liverpool, managed by Andoni Iraola, will play Atletico Madrid, Porto, Villarreal, and Lens at home, with away games against Inter Milan, Club Brugge, Fenerbahce, and debutants LASK. Manchester United, seeded in the second pot, hosts Bayern Munich, Roma, RB Leipzig, and Sabah, and travels to face Atletico, Sporting CP, Villarreal, and Como.
Manchester City versus Barcelona and Real Madrid’s clash with Inter highlight other key fixtures. Villa, last season’s Europa League winners, visit Barcelona and host Dortmund, Galatasaray, and Fenerbahce. Both Galatasaray and Fenerbahce return to the competition after defeating Lyon in the play-offs, while newcomers Sabah, Como (who disrupted Serie A), and LASK (who overturned Celtic) make their debuts. Norwegian champions Viking, also debuting, face Bayern, Atletico, Villa, and Napoli.
This marks the third edition of the revamped Champions League format, featuring a single league phase of 36 teams playing eight matches each. The final will occur at Madrid’s Metropolitano Stadium on June 5, 2027.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
