All eyes may be on the start of the new Premier League season, but it's already time to start thinking about the UEFA Champions League too.
The league phase draw will be held this Thursday, Aug. 27, in Monaco. 36 teams will be drawn with each club playing eight games -- four home, four away -- against different opponents.
Back-to-back champions Paris Saint-Germain will be aiming to win their third consecutive title, a feat not achieved since Real Madrid, the competition's most successful side, managed it in 2018.
29 teams booked their place in the league phase automatically, with the remaining seven entering the draw after winning their two-legged playoff ties.
Here is everything you need to know about the draw.
Key details:
When: Thursday, Aug. 27, at 5 p.m. BST.
Where: Monaco.
Who: 36 teams will be drawn from four pots.
How to watch UEFA Champions League draw in UK
The draw will be broadcast on TNT Sports in the UK.
ESPN will also have live updates of the event.
What teams are involved in the league phase draw?
Defending champions PSG are the team to beat once again in this year's competition. They are joined in Pot 1 by three English sides: defeated finalists Arsenal, six-time champions Liverpool and a new-look Manchester City.
Pot 1 is completed by Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Atlético Madrid.
There are two more English sides in the tournament this season -- Manchester United and Aston Villa. Both appear in Pot 2 alongside the likes of Borussia Dortmund and Roma.
Napoli and RB Leipzig are among the pick of the Pot 3 sides, while Pot 4 will include Norwegian outfit Bodo/Glimt and Azerbaijani side Sabah, who were founded just nine years ago.
Pot 1
Paris Saint-Germain (France)
Bayern Munich (Germany)
Real Madrid (Spain)
Liverpool (England)
Inter Milan (Italy)
Manchester City (England)
Arsenal (England)
Barcelona (Spain)
Atlético Madrid (Spain)
Pot 2
Borussia Dortmund (Germany)
Roma (Italy)
Sporting (Portugal)
Aston Villa (England)
Porto (Portugal)
Manchester United (England)
Club Brugge (Belgium)
Real Betis (Spain)
PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands)
Pot 3
Feyenoord (Netherlands)
Lille (France)
Napoli (Italy)
RB Leipzig (Germany)
Villarreal (Spain)
Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine)
Galatasaray (Turkey)
Fenerbahçe (Turkey)
Bodo/Glimt (Norway)
Pot 4
Slavia Prague (Czechia)
VfB Stuttgart (Germany)
AEK Athens (Greece)
Como (Italy)
LASK Linz (Austria)
Lens (France)
Viking (Norway)
Sabah (Azerbaijan)
Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia)
How does the draw work?
The four pots, which are determined by each club's UEFA club coefficient ranking, ensure that every side will play opponents of varying quality.
Each team will play eight matches, facing two rivals from each pot -- one at home, and one away. For now, teams from the same country cannot play each other.
For example, Arsenal will face two of PSG, Bayern, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Atlético, because they cannot play against Liverpool or Manchester City yet.
After each team has played eight games, the top eight teams will qualify directly to the round of 16. The next 16 sides will contest the playoff, while the remaining 12 will be eliminated altogether.
Interestingly, a fixture that will not happen in the league phase Liverpool vs. Real Madrid at Anfield -- which has occured in each of the last two Champions League editions.
Per a UEFA ruling, the same fixture cannot take place for three consecutive years. However, the two could meet in the Spanish capital during this stage of the competition.
- 2026-27 European soccer predictions: Premier League, Champions League, LaLiga
- Why Rodri is key to Barcelona's quest for LaLiga three-peat, Champions League glory
- Arsenal 2026-27 predictions: Top scorer, biggest concern, Premier League finish, more
When does the league phase start?
The action kicks off on Tuesday Sept. 8 and, after the international break, returns on Tuesday, Oct. 13.
From then, teams will be in action roughly once per fortnight until matchday six on Dec. 8 and 9.
After a Christmas break, the last two matchdays are in late January, with the final games all being played simultaneously.
Matchday 1: Sep. 8-10 2026
Matchday 2: Oct. 13-14 2026
Matchday 3: Oct. 20-21 2026
Matchday 4: Nov. 3-4 2026
Matchday 5: Nov. 24-25 2026
Matchday 6: Dec. 8-9 2026
Matchday 7: Jan. 19-20 2027
Matchday 8: Jan. 27 2027