Mikel Arteta guided Arsenal to the Champions League semi-final last season
Arsenal Football Newsletter
Last season, the Gunners did not have too many issues with a brand new format after UEFA’s radical shake-up to the competition.
The previous group stage of eight groups consisting of four teams each was ditched in favour of a new league format and the north London outfit finished third en route to reaching the semi-final.
Once again, all of the 36 teams will be separated into four pots and two will be drawn from each. They will face eight different opponents, playing four matches at home and four away.
Arsenal are in Pot 2 for the draw, meaning they could face the likes of holders Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid - whom they beat comfortably in the quarter-final stage last season - from Pot 1.
The draw takes place on Thursday, August 28, 2025 at 5pm BST and much of it will be automated due to the sheer number of fixtures to be organised.
Play-off ties on Tuesday and Wednesday will decide the remaining qualifiers and complete the subsequent pots before Mikel Arteta learns who will be heading to the Emirates Stadium as he looks to take the team one step further than last season.
Which pot are Arsenal in for the Champions League draw?
Arsenal have been placed in Pot 2, as their current coefficient has them sat 15th in UEFA’s rankings for European teams.
Who can Arsenal face in the Champions League draw?
The ceremony will produce eight opponents for every team, two from each pot. That means Arsenal will play two of the top-ranked clubs.
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They cannot play a team from their own country (Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham, Newcastle or Manchester City) at this stage and can only play a maximum of two teams from a different association.
Pot 1: PSG, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona
Pot 2: Bayer Leverkusen, Atletico Madrid, Atalanta, Villarreal, Juventus, Eintracht Frankfurt
Pot 3: PSV, Ajax, Napoli, Sporting, Olympiacos, Slavia Prague, Marseille
Pot 4: Galatasaray, Union Saint-Gilloise, Athletic Club
Dream scenario for Arsenal
Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund, Villarreal, Frankfurt, PSV, Slavia Prague, USG, Athletic Club.
Nightmare scenario for Arsenal
PSG, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, TBC, Napoli, Marseille, Galatasaray, TBC.
Champions League group-stage matchdays
The exact make-up of each week in terms of kick-off times and match dates will be provided by UEFA.
Matchday 1: September 16-17, 2025
Matchday 2: September 30-October 1, 2025
Matchday 3: October 21-22, 2025
Matchday 4: November 4-5, 2025
Matchday 5: November 25-26, 2025
Matchday 6: December 9-10, 2025
Matchday 7: January 20-21, 2026
Matchday 8: January 28, 2026