All roads lead to Monaco: Champions League draw looms with PSG eyeing historic treble

European club football's showpiece competition is gearing up for another campaign, with the 36-team line-up for the 2026-27 UEFA Champions League due to be finalised and sorted on Thursday evening in Monaco.

Paris Saint-Germain arrive as the team everyone wants to topple. Having lifted the trophy in successive seasons, the French champions are targeting a third consecutive crown, a feat that would etch their name even deeper into the history books. Standing in their way are the continent's heavyweights, among them Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester City, Liverpool and Bayern Munich, all determined to end PSG's reign.

The draw itself takes place at the Grimaldi Forum in the Principality, with proceedings scheduled to begin at 6pm local time (17:00 GMT) on August 27.

Most of the participants already know they will be involved. Twenty-nine of the 36 berths were allocated automatically according to final positions in the various domestic leagues across Europe. The other seven places had to be earned through a qualifying pathway that kicked off earlier this month and wraps up barely a day before the ceremony.

Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt, Austria's LASK and Azerbaijan's Sabah are the most recent clubs to secure passage, meaning only eight sides remain alive fighting for the final four slots when play resumes on Wednesday.

The confirmed field blends familiar aristocracy with fresh faces. Alongside perennial contenders such as Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund and Atletico Madrid sit newcomers like Italian surprise package Como and first-timers Sabah, while English football supplies four entrants: Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and Aston Villa making five, underlining the Premier League's strength.

Once paired, every club faces eight different opponents rather than a traditional group of six. Each side meets two teams drawn from each of the four seeding pots, hosting half of those fixtures and travelling for the remainder.

The pot structure rewards recent continental performance. Pot 1 contains holders PSG alongside Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Manchester City, Arsenal, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. Pot 2 features Aston Villa, Manchester United, Borussia Dortmund, Roma, Sporting CP, Porto, Club Brugge, PSV Eindhoven and Real Betis. Feyenoord, Lille, Napoli, RB Leipzig, Villarreal, Shakhtar Donetsk, Galatasaray and Bodo/Glimt occupy Pot 3, joined by the eventual League Path qualifier, while Slavia Prague, VfB Stuttgart, LASK, Como, Lens and Sabah make up Pot 4 together with three Champions Path winners.

The league phase stretches from early autumn deep into winter. Matchday 1 runs September 8-10, followed by rounds on October 13-14 and October 20-21, November 3-4 and November 24-25, and December 8-9, before a two-leg finish comprising January 19-20 and January 27.

From there, the knockout brackets take over. Playoffs are slated for February 16-17 and 23-24, the Round of 16 for March 9-10 and 16-17, quarterfinals for April 6-7 and 13-14, and semifinals for April 27-28 and May 4-5. The season reaches its climax on June 5 at the Estadio Metropolitano in Madrid, home ground of Atletico.

PSG claimed last year's trophy in dramatic fashion, edging Arsenal 4-3 from the penalty spot after a tense final in Budapest finished level at 1-1 following extra time. Gunners defender Gabriel skied his attempt over goalkeeper Matvey Safonov's crossbar, sealing a second straight triumph for the Parisians, something no club had managed since Real Madrid's three-year run between 2016 and 2018.

Luis Enrique's squad have carried that momentum into the new term, too. Earlier this month they retained the UEFA Super Cup by overcoming Aston Villa 2-1, with Desire Doue's 61st-minute effort, converted after he raced onto Ousmane Dembele's pass, surviving an offside flag that video review overturned when Matty Cash was judged to have kept him just onside.

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