Liverpool's Champions League campaign is just around the corner, with Andoni Iraola set to discover tomorrow morning who his team will play in the coming league phase
Andoni Iraola manager / head coach of Liverpool applauds the fans at full time following the Premier League 2026/27 match between Newcastle United and Liverpool FC
Liverpool will learn its fate in the Champions League soon(Image: (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images))
The Champions League is almost back for the 2026/27 season, as Liverpool looks set to discover who it will face off against for the coming campaign.
It is the third season of the new format, where teams get sorted by a league table that covers the entire competition, replacing the old group stages that used to exist.
Teams will be drawn against eight opponents, two from each coefficient pot, one home and one away. Those fixtures will make up the entire first phase of the competition, with results then being sorted through the league table. The top eight will receive an automatic pass to the round of 16, while those from ninth to 24th will have to phase off in an extra two-legged round of fixtures to progress. Any team 25th and below will be automatically knocked out of the Champions League.
In 2024/25, Liverpool topped the table for the league phase, but were knocked out of the competition in the round of 16 by PSG. The following campaign, the Reds finished third, but were once again beaten by PSG, this time at the quarter-final stage.
Andoni Iraola will be hoping to avoid that fate when he gets his first taste of Champions League football in the Anfield dugout, as the draw for the league phase moves closer.
So, with that said, here's a look at the potential opponents for Liverpool in this season's Champions League league phase.
Pot One
Marquinhos centre-back of PSG and Brazil lifts the Champions League trophy during the UEFA Champions League Final 2026 match between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal FC at Puskas Arena on May 30, 2026 in Budapest, Hungary. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
PSG won the Champions League last year, beating Arsenal in the final(Image: Jose Breton/NurPhoto)
PSG
Bayern Munich
Real Madrid
Inter Milan
Barcelona
Atletico Madrid
Kickstarting with pot one, where Liverpool is allocated, the Reds have six potential opponents they could face, because the team cannot face others from its own league - ruling out clashes with Arsenal and Manchester City here.
Clashes with two teams from the same nation are not possible either, meaning only one of the Spanish teams could be drawn out, but it is a strong group nonetheless.
Pot one will undoubtedly be Liverpool's biggest challenge, as PSG, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid can all provide quality in key moments.
Pot Two
Fabio Silva celebrates scoring for Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund remain a top team in Germany(Image: Christina Pahnke - sampics/Getty Images)
Borussia Dortmund
Roma
Sporting
Porto
Club Brugge
PSV Eindhoven
Real Betis
Pot two contains some European giants, albeit Liverpool won't be able to draw Manchester United and Aston Villa in this group because of the same nation rule.
Sides like Borussia Dortmund, Roma, Sporting, and others can cause plenty of challenges on their day, but may lack some of the superstar power of pot one.
Pot Three
Scott McTominay signing for Napoli
Scott McTominay is one of just nine players sold by Manchester United for more than £25million(Image: SSC NAPOLI/SSC NAPOLI via Getty Images)
Feyenoord
Lille
Napoli
RB Leipzig
Villarreal
Shakhtar Donetsk
Galatasaray
Pot three is similar to pot two, in the fact that there are teams who can cause plenty of problems for a side like Liverpool, but without the same consistency as those top teams.
As it stands, seven of the nine teams have been drawn for this group, with the rest to be decided once the final qualification matches are over.
Pot Three or Four teams
Bodo/Glimt
LASK Linz
Sabah
Slavia Prague
Stuttgart
Como
Lens
Fenerbahce or Lyon
Dinamo Zagreb or Viking
Slovan Bratislava or Celje
Levski Sofia or AEK Athens
Similar to pot three, pot four has seven of the nine teams drawn so far, with four final matches to be played that will determine the final groupings.
There are some potential problems among those currently qualified, as Bodo/Glimt, Como, and Lens are just a few sides who could cause problems, despite the pot being viewed as the weakest group.