The 2023/24 UEFA Champions League group stage draw will mark the first step for many of the 32 clubs dreaming of making a run in the next edition of Europe's elite club competition.
That group of teams includes several of the heavyweights like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester City, and Bayern Munich, plus returning Premier League sides Arsenal and Manchester United. Among the 32 there will also be six clubs qualifying via the summer's playoff round.
Only the top two teams from each Champions League group will advance to the knockout rounds, so the results of the draw will have some teams dreaming big, while others will have their work cut out for them to achieve the prestige and financial rewards that come to those who can survive their group.
The Sporting News brings you everything you need to know about the 2023/24 Champions League draw and how it works, including the date, time, venue, and qualified teams so far.
LIVE: Champions League draw updates and results
When is the Champions League group stage draw 2023/24?
The Champions League group stage will take place on Thursday, August 31, 2023 with a time and venue yet to be confirmed by European governing body UEFA.
The draw will see 32 teams split into eight groups of four. During the draw, UEFA will select one team from each of four pots to make up each group.
How to watch the Champions League draw 2023/24
As in the case of the time and venue, the broadcasters of the event are also still taking shape.
For many regions, UEFA's channels will be the go-to destination.
| Country | Date | Time | TV channel | Streaming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Thu, Aug. 31 | TBC | — | Stan Sport |
| Canada | Thu, Aug. 31 | TBC | — | DAZN |
| Hong Kong | Thu, Aug. 31 | TBC | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| India | Thu, Aug. 31 | TBC | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| Malaysia | Thu, Aug. 31 | TBC | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| New Zealand | Thu, Aug. 31 | TBC | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| Singapore | Thu, Aug. 31 | TBC | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| UK | Thu, Aug. 31 | TBC | — | UEFA.tv, UEFA YouTube |
| USA | Thu, Aug. 31 | TBC | CBS Sports Network | Fubo, Paramount+ |
Teams in the Champions League group stage draw
For purposes of the draw, all 32 teams will be grouped in four pots based on their country or club ranking. The top teams will be in Pot 1, and the lowest-ranked sides in Pot 4, which will also include the last teams to qualify via the playoffs.
Pot 1 automatically includes the UEFA Champions League (Manchester City) and Europa League (Sevilla) title winners, plus the reigning league champions of each of the top six nations as ranked by UEFA country coefficient list.
Since Man City are the English Premier League champions (one of the top-six nations) and defending UEFA Champions League holders, the Pot 1 spot reserved for the English champions is instead assigned to the next best nation in the coefficient list. In this case, the Netherlands and reigning Eredivisie champions Feyenoord move into Pot 1.
As for Pots 2, 3, and 4, these are based on the UEFA club coefficient list, which is a mathematical formula to evaluate a specific club's performance in domestic and continental competitions over the last five years.
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester City (Champions League) | Real Madrid (SPA) | Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR) | Union Berlin (GER) |
| Sevilla (Europa League) | Manchester United (ENG) | RB Salzburg (AUS) | Lens (FRA) |
| Barcelona (1st, Spain) | Inter Milan (ITA) | AC Milan (ITA) | Newcastle United (ENG) |
| Napoli (1st, Italy) | B. Dortmund (GER) | Lazio (ITA) | Real Sociedad (SPA) |
| Bayern Munich (1st, Germany) | Atletico Madrid (SPA) | Red Star Belgrade (SER) | Galatasaray (TUR) |
| PSG (1st, France) | RB Leipzig (GER) | Sporting Braga (POR) | Celtic (SCO) |
| Benfica (1st, Portugal) | Porto (POR) | FC Copenhagen (DEN) | Young Boys (SWI) |
| Feyenoord (1st, Netherlands) | Arsenal (ENG) | PSV Eindhoven (NET) | Antwerp (BEL) |
One club is selected from each pot to make up the eight groups of four teams.
Clubs from the same country cannot be drawn in the same group and must be moved to the next available group.
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
- Manchester City and Manchester United
- AC Milan and Napoli
- Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund
- FC Porto and Benfica
- Atletico Madrid and Sevilla
Champions League playoff round
The winners of the following six aggregate-goal playoff series will join the 26 automatic entrants in the Champions League group stage draw.
| Match | 1st Leg | 2nd Leg | Final Result |
| Maccabi Haifa (ISR) vs Young Boys (SUI) | Maccabi Haifa 0-0 Young Boys | Young Boys 3-0 Maccabi Haifa | Maccabi Haifa 0-3 Young Boys |
| Antwerp (BEL) vs AEK Athens (GRE) | Antwerp 1-0 AEK Athens | AEK Athens 1 Antwerp 2 | Antwerp 3-1 AEK Athens |
| Rakow Czestochowa (POL) vs FC Copenhagen (DEN) | Rakow Czestochowa 0-1 FC Copenhagen | FC Copenhagen 1-1 Rakow Czestochowa | Rakow Czestochowa 1-2 FC Copenhagen |
| Molde (NOR) vs Galatasaray (TUR) | Molde 2-3 Galatasaray | Galatasaray 2-1 Molde | Molde 3-5 Galatasaray |
| Rangers (SCO) vs PSV Eindhoven (NED) | Rangers 2-2 PSV Eindhoven | PSV Eindhoven 5-1 Rangers | Rangers 3-7 PSV Eindhoven |
| Sporting Braga (POR) vs Panathinaikos (GRE) | Sporting Braga 2-1 Panathinaikos | Panathinaikos 0-1 Sporting Braga | Sporting Braga 3-1 Panathinaikos |
Champions League fixtures 2023/24
Preliminary & qualifying rounds schedule
| Round | Draw | 1st Leg | 2nd Leg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preliminary qualifying round | June 13, 2023 | June 27, 2023 | June 30, 2023 |
| First qualifying round | June 20, 2023 | July 11-12, 2023 | July 18-19, 2023 |
| Second qualifying round | June 21, 2023 | July 25-26, 2023 | Aug 1-2, 2023 |
| Third qualifying round | July 24, 2023 | Aug. 8-9, 2023 | Aug. 15, 2023 |
| Playoff round | Aug. 7, 2023 | Aug. 22-23, 2023 | Aug. 29-30, 2023 |
Group stage schedule
The draw for the 2023/24 Champions League group stage will take place on August 31, 2023.
Below is the schedule for each of the six matchdays in the group stage.
| Matchday | Dates |
|---|---|
| 1 | Sept. 19-20, 2023 |
| 2 | Oct. 3-4, 2023 |
| 3 | Oct. 24-25, 2023 |
| 4 | Nov. 7-8, 2023 |
| 5 | Nov. 28-29, 2023 |
| 6 | Dec. 12-13, 2023 |
Knockout stage schedule
The draw for the 2022/23 Champions League Round of 16 will take place on December 18, 2023.
The draw for the remaining rounds (quarter-finals and semi-finals) of the 2023/24 Champions League knockout stage will take place on March 15, 2024.
| Round | 1st Leg | 2nd Leg |
|---|---|---|
| Round of 16 | Feb. 13-21, 2024 | Mar. 5-13, 2024 |
| Quarterfinals | Apr. 9-10, 2024 | Apr. 16-17, 2024 |
| Semifinals | Apr 30-May 1, 2024 | May 7-8, 2024 |
| Final | June 1, 2024 | |
How to watch Champions League around the world
| TV channel | Streaming | |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | — | Stan Sport |
| Canada | — | DAZN |
| Hong Kong | beIN Sports | beIN Sports Connect |
| India | Sony TEN | JioTV, Sony LIV |
| Malaysia | beIN Sports | beIN Sports Connect, sooka |
| New Zealand | — | Spark Sport |
| Singapore | beIN Sports | beIN Sports Connect, StarHub TV+ |
| UK | BT Sport | BT Sport site/app |
| USA | CBS, CBSSN, Univision, TUDN, UniMas | Fubo, Paramount+, ViX or ViX+ |
UK: Matches are broadcast on BT Sport and streamed on BT Sport’s site and app platforms.
USA: Matches are available to stream on Paramount+ (English) and ViX (Spanish) for subscribers, and when matches are televised on CBS or Univision channels, those are also streamed on Fubo.
Canada: Every Champions League game streams live on DAZN.
Australia: Every match of the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League streams on Stan Sportad-free, live and on demand on Stan Sport.