Aston Villa have been handed a mouth-watering return to the Champions League after Unai Emery’s side were drawn against European heavyweights Barcelona and reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain in the new league phase.
Villa, who lifted the Europa League in Istanbul in May, will travel to Spanish champions Barcelona as well as hosting PSG once again - the side they narrowly lost to in the European Super Cup earlier this month and also in the Champions League quarter-finals 16 months ago.
PSG knocked Villa out at the quarter-final stage 5-4 on aggregate in their previous Champions League campaign before going on to lift the trophy, while the sides also met in August’s UEFA Super Cup, when the French champions won 2-1.
Villa beat Barcelona in the 1983 version of the Super Cup.
Villa will travel to the Nou Camp in the Champions Leagueplaceholder image
Villa will travel to the Nou Camp in the Champions League | Getty Images
Villa will also visit Belgium’s Club Brugge - who they also played in 2025 - Turkey’s Galatasaray and Czechia’s Slavia Prague.
As well as PSG, Viking Stavanger, Borussia Dortmund and Fenerbahce will visit Villa Park.
The top eight clubs in the league stage qualify automatically for the last 16, while teams finishing ninth to 24th enter a knockout play-off.
The league phase begins in September, with the exact fixtures and kick-off times to be confirmed by UEFA by Saturday.