ไทย
English
中國人
The Champions League League Phase draw is scheduled for Thursday, with Europe's elite clubs finding out their opponents for the opening stage of the 2026–27 competition.
Following the format restructure introduced before the 2024–25 campaign, each of the 36 participating clubs is drawn against eight sides (four at home, four away), with all results feeding into a single unified table—replacing the traditional group stage format used in prior editions.
The top eight clubs on points advance directly to the Round of 16, while those finishing between 9th and 24th enter a preliminary playoff round.
Specific regulations govern which teams can be paired together in the League Phase. Clubs cannot be drawn against sides from the same nation, and each team must face two opponents from every Pot (1–4), which ranks clubs according to their UEFA coefficient—a metric based on competitive results over the past five seasons.
Beyond those restrictions, an additional rule means one highly anticipated matchup is completely ruled out when the draw takes place in Nyon, Switzerland on Thursday.
Why Can't Liverpool Play Real Madrid at Anfield?
Liverpool are barred from hosting Real Madrid during this season's League Phase, owing to a regulation designed to promote variety across the fixture schedule.
In each of the two seasons since the Champions League's format overhaul, Liverpool welcomed Real Madrid to Anfield during the League Phase, but a third consecutive home fixture against the Spanish club will not be permitted.
Paragraph 16.03 of last season's Champions League regulations outlines the rule preventing the same fixture from being repeated for three straight seasons.
"The UEFA Club Competitions Committee has determined an additional condition that may be applicable to the UEFA Champions League draw for the 2026–27 season, deciding that any individual fixture between the same two teams may not be repeated in the same competition with the same home team for three consecutive seasons.
"This means that if any teams that already played against each other in the league phase of the UEFA Champions League in the 2024/25 season are again drawn against each other, with the same home team, in the league phase of the UEFA Champions League in this 2025/26 season, those teams will not be able to be drawn against each other with the same home team in the 2026/27 season."
Real Madrid Can Still Meet Familiar Foe
Although the UEFA regulation prevents Liverpool from hosting Madrid, nothing stands in the way of the Spanish powerhouse clashing with Manchester City once more this season.
Madrid and City have locked horns 13 times since 2019–20, yet have not accumulated the same pattern of League Phase encounters that would trigger a UEFA restriction.
During 2025–26, the two clubs met on three occasions across both the League Phase and the Round of 16, and they have faced each other in the knockout rounds of the last five tournaments.
Both clubs are placed in Pot 1 for this year's League Phase draw, and given Real Madrid cannot be paired with Barcelona or Atlético Madrid, Los Blancos carry a 40% probability of drawing City either at home or away.
When and Where Could Liverpool Face Real Madrid?
The two European heavyweights, who share 21 titles between them, can still be drawn together in the League Phase—but only with the Bernabéu as the venue.
Once the knockout phase begins, all restrictions are lifted, and there would be nothing stopping Liverpool and Real Madrid from meeting at Anfield if they are drawn against one another.
Liverpool claimed victory in both of their previous League Phase encounters with Madrid under the revamped Champions League format.
In 2024–25, Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo netted in a 2-0 win, and Mac Allister got on the scoresheet once more last season as the Reds defeated Madrid at home.