The group stage draw is the moment when the new UEFA Champions League season feels like it's really here with a new set of memorable matchups, thrilling comebacks, and great goals in store for fans.
With Real Madrid crowned champions last season, teams are gearing up to challenge Los Blancos in the defense of their European title.
Manchester City, PSG, and Tottenham are seeking their first Champions League crown, and Liverpool aim to avenge their latest final loss to Real. Meanwhile, Bayern Munich are equipped to make another deep run, and Barcelona want to show the world they're back to being a continental force with Robert Lewandowski leading the way.
There are a total of 32 teams in the group stage, and the draw will split them up into eight groups of four. The top two finishers in each group advance to the knockout round, while the third-place finisher drops to the Europa League.
The Sporting News brings you all the information you need to watch and follow the event from Istanbul, Turkey.
MORE: Here is the dream UEFA Champions League group stage draw
Where to watch Champions League draw
Viewers across the world will be able to watch the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League group stage draw as it unfolds on Thursday, Aug. 25 in Istanbul.
Champions League broadcasters in several countries will be carrying the draw broadcast. For other regions where a rightsholder is not picking it up, fans can watch the stream live on UEFA's YouTube channel and on the official UEFA website.
| Country | Date | Time | TV channel | Streaming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Fri, Aug. 26 | 02:00 AEST | — | Stan Sport |
| Canada | Thurs, Aug. 25 | 12:00 ET | — | DAZN |
| Hong Kong | Fri, Aug. 26 | 00:00 HKT | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| India | Thurs, Aug. 25 | 21:30 IST | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| Malaysia | Fri, Aug. 26 | 00:00 MYT | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| New Zealand | Fri, Aug. 26 | 04:00 NZST | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| Singapore | Fri, Aug. 26 | 00:00 SST | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| UK | Thurs, Aug. 25 | 17:00 BST | BT Sport 1 | BT Sport site/app |
| USA | Thurs, Aug. 25 | 12:00 ET | TUDN | fuboTV, Vix+, Paramount+, CBS Sports HQ |
How does the Champions League group stage draw work?
The draw will see the 32 participating teams — 26 automatic entrants and six playoff qualifiers — split into eight groups of four teams each.
To accomplish this, UEFA allot each team to one of four pots before the draw. Then during the draw officials will select one team from each of the four pots to make up each group.
Pot 1 consists of the defending Champions League holders (Real Madrid) and Europa League title winners (Eintracht Frankfurt), plus the reigning league champions from each of the top six nations as ranked by UEFA country coefficient list.
Since Real Madrid are both the Spanish league champions (Spain is one of the top-six nations) as well as defending UEFA Champions League winners, the Pot 1 spot reserved for Spain's league winner is instead assigned to the next best nation in the coefficient list (Netherlands and Dutch champions Ajax).
As for Pots 2, 3, and 4, those are based on the UEFA club coefficient list, which is a mathematical formula that measures a specific club's performance in domestic and continental competitions over the past five years. Teams with the highest coefficient ranking end up in Pot 2, while those with the lowest ranking are assigned to Pot 4.
MORE: Who will win the 2023 UEFA Champions League? Betting odds
Champions League pot assignments for group draw
Each club's UEFA club coefficient ranking is included for Pots 2-4 since club seeding in those pots is based on that ranking.
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Real Madrid (Champions League) | 2-Liverpool | 19-Borussia Dortmund | 33-Rangers |
| Eintracht Frankfurt (Europa League) | 5-Chelsea | 21-RB Salzburg | 34-Dinamo Zagreb |
| Manchester City (1st, England) | 6-Barcelona | 22-Shakhtar Donetsk | 38-Olympique Marseille |
| AC Milan (1st, Italy) | 8-Juventus | 23-Inter Milan | 41-FC Copenhagen |
| Bayern Munich (1st, Germany) | 9-Atletico Madrid | 25-Napoli | 44-Club Brugge |
| PSG (1st, France) | 12-Sevilla | 27-Benfica | 51-Celtic |
| Porto (1st, Portugal) | 13-RB Leipzig | 28-Sporting CP | 55-Viktoria Plzen |
| Ajax (1st, Netherlands) | 14-Tottenham | 30-Bayer Leverkusen | 169-Maccabi Haifa |
One club is selected from each pot to make up the eight groups of four teams.
According to tournament regulations, clubs from the same country cannot be drawn in the same group and must be moved to the next available group. The first stage in which clubs from the same country can meet is in the quarter-finals.
| No. of clubs | Nation | Clubs |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Germany | Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen, RB Leipzig, Eintracht Frankfurt |
| 4 | England | Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham |
| 4 | Italy | AC Milan, Inter Milan, Napoli, Juventus |
| 4 | Spain | Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Sevilla |
| 3 | Portugal | Benfica, Porto, Sporting CP |
| 2 | France | PSG, Olympique Marseille |
| 2 | Scotland | Celtic, Rangers |
| 1 | Austria | RB Salzburg |
| 1 | Belgium | Club Brugge |
| 1 | Croatia | Dinamo Zagreb |
| 1 | Czech Rep | Viktoria Plzen |
| 1 | Denmark | FC Copenhagen |
| 1 | Israel | Maccabi Haifa |
| 1 | Netherlands | Ajax |
| 1 | Ukraine | Shakhtar Donetsk |
In addition, UEFA pairs together certain clubs from the same nation to ensure they don't play at the same time during the group stage (to optimise viewership audience). As such, when any of the teams below are drawn into groups A-D, their paired team will automatically be assigned to one of groups E-H, and vice-versa:
- Real Madrid and Barcelona
- Eintracht Frankfurt and RB Leipzig
- Manchester City and Liverpool
- AC Milan and Napoli
- Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund
- Paris Saint-Germain and Marseille
- FC Porto and Benfica
- Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur
- Juventus and Inter Milan
- Atletico Madrid and Sevilla
Champions League playoff round qualifiers
From the aforementioned list of 32 teams, six only officially qualified to be part of the group stage a few days before the draw following the conclusion of the qualifying playoffs.
- Croatia: Dinamo Zagreb
- Czech Republic: Viktoria Plzen
- Denmark: FC Copenhagen
- Israel: Maccabi Haifa
- Portugal: Benfica
- Scotland: Rangers
The table below shows the scorelines by which they advanced to the lucrative group stage.
The first team listed hosted the first leg, and the team in bold advanced.
| Match | 1st Leg | 2nd Leg | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maccabi Haifa (Israel) vs. Red Star Belgrade (Serbia) | 3-2 | 2-2 | 5-4 |
| FC Copenhagen (Denmark) vs. Trabzonspor (Turkey) | 2-1 | 0-0 | 2-1 |
| FK Bodo/Glimt (Norway) vs. Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) | 1-0 | 1-4 | 2-4 |
| Qarabag (Azerbaijan) vs. Viktoria Plzen (Czech Rep.) | 0-0 | 1-2 | 1-2 |
| Rangers (Scotland) vs. PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) | 2-2 | 1-0 | 3-2 |
| Dynamo Kyiv (Ukraine) vs. Benfica (Portugal) | 0-2 | 0-3 | 0-5 |
MORE: Where is the 2023 Champions League final?
Champions League dates for 2022/23
With the six teams emerging from the playoffs officially confirmed, the 2022/23 Champions League will commence in earnest with the 32-team group stage.
All six group matchdays will wrap up before the World Cup break with the knockout rounds kicking off in February 2023. The Round of 16 draw happens on Monday, Nov. 7.
Group stage schedule
The draw for the 2022/23 Champions League group stage will take place on Aug. 25, 2022 in Istanbul, Turkey. Only the top two teams from each group will advance to the knockouts.
All six group stage matchdays will take place over a tight eight-week window between Sept. 6 and Nov. 2 as the club calendar takes into account the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in November.
| Matchday | Dates |
|---|---|
| 1 | Sept. 6-7, 2022 |
| 2 | Sept. 13-14, 2022 |
| 3 | Oct. 4-5, 2022 |
| 4 | Oct. 11-12, 2022 |
| 5 | Oct. 25-26, 2022 |
| 6 | Nov. 1-2, 2022 |
Knockout schedule
The draw for the 2022/23 Champions League Round of 16 will take place on Nov. 7, 2022. The teams that finish in first place in their group will be matched up against a group runner-up.
The draw for the remainder of the 2022/23 Champions League knockout bracket (quarterfinals and semifinals) will take place on March 17, 2023.
The final will be held at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey on June 10, 2023.
| Round | 1st Leg | 2nd Leg |
|---|---|---|
| Round of 16 | Feb. 14-22, 2023 | Mar. 7-15, 2023 |
| Quarterfinals | Apr. 11-12, 2023 | Apr. 18-19, 2023 |
| Semifinals | May 9-10, 2023 | May 16-17, 2023 |
| Final | June 10, 2023 | |
