The draws for the new 36-team league format of the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League season were held at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco on Thursday.
The new Champions League format ushers in the single 36-team league phase. Each team is expected to face eight different teams (four at home, four away) in a round robin format.
The top eight overall advance directly to the round of 16, while sides finishing from ninth to 24th will have to faceoff in a knockout round play-off, with the winners going through to the last 16.
Defending champions Real Madrid were drawn against a number of familiar foes as the record holders will entertain Borussia Dortmund, the Bundesliga side they defeated in last season’s final to clinch their 15th title, and Italian giants AC Milan as well as Liverpool in a repeat of the 2019 Champions League final.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side will also travel to Italy to take on Europa League holders Atalanta, and French sides Lille and Brest, with home fixtures against RB Salzburg and VfB Stuttgart completing their group phase fixtures as they hunt for a record-extending 16th title.
Premier League champions Manchester City were the first team to know their opponents having been drawn by Juventus legend Gianluigi Buffon, with the competition’s all-time leading scorer highest Cristiano Ronaldo, pressing a button to decide the rest of their League phase games.
The 2023 UCL champions were handed away games against Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus, Sporting Lisbon, and Slovan Bratislava, with home fixtures against Serie A champions Inter Milan, Club Brugge, Sparta Praha and exciting Dutch side Feyenoord, representing tough tasks for Pep Guardiola’s side.
Meanwhile, Liverpool will face exciting group fixtures against Madrid, Lille, Bologna, and Bayer Leverkusen, which will see club legend Xabi Alonso on the sidelines for the first time against his former club. The Reds have away visits to RB Leipzig, Milan, PSV Eindhoven, and Girona to contend with.
Five-time winners Barcelona will rekindle their rivalry with a home test against German heavyweights Bayern Munich. The Catalan side will also host Atalanta, Young Boys, and Brest, while also visiting Dortmund, Benfica, Crvena Zvezda and Monaco to complete their Group phase outing.
Elsewhere, Arsenal, in Pot 2, were handed home fixtures against French giants PSG, Shakhtar Donetsk, Dinamo Zagreb, and AS Monaco. Mikel Arteta’s side will also navigate away fixtures against Italian sides Inter and Atalanta, with other ties against Sporting and Girona completing their Group phase fixtures.
Seven-time winners Milan, on the other hand, will battle Liverpool, Club Brugge, Crvena Zvezda, and Girona at the San Siro, while the Italian powerhouse will head to the Santiago Bernabeu for a blockbuster clash against Madrid, where they will reunite with former manager Ancelotti, as well as away matches against Leverkusen, Dinamo Zagreb, and Bratislava.
In Pot 3, Sporting face a herculean task as they host Man City, Arsenal, Lille and Bologna at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, while tripes to Leipzig, Club Brugge, PSV and Sturm Graz are also on the books for the Portuguese champions.
Meanwhile, in Pot 4, 1982 European champions Aston Villa, who are making a storied return to the world’s grandest club football competition, will welcome Bayern, Juventus, Celtic, and Bologna to Villa Park, with Unai Emery’s men geared up for visits to Leipzig, Club Brugge, Young Boys, and Monaco.
When are the 2024/25 Champions League league phase matches?
Matchday 1: 17–19 September 2024
Matchday 2: 1/2 October 2024
Matchday 3: 22/23 October 2024
Matchday 4: 5/6 November 2024
Matchday 5: 26/27 November 2024
Matchday 6: 10/11 December 2024
Matchday 7: 21/22 January 2025
Matchday 8: 29 January 2025
