Arsenal’s eight opponents in the 36-team group phase of the 2026/27 Champions League have been confirmed by UEFA following this afternoon’s draw in Monaco, with the highlight a visit of Real Madrid to the Emirates.
The Gunners will face two teams from each of the four seeding pots, with one fixture at home and one away. The draw has handed Mikel Arteta’s side the following games:
HOME GAMES
Real Madrid
Borussia Dortmund
Lille
Sabah
AWAY GAMES
Bayern Munich
Real Betis
Napoli
Slavia Prague
The specific match dates and kick-off times will be confirmed by UEFA in the next 48 hours.
Arsenal’s impressive progress since returning to Europe’s top table in 2023/24, reaching the quarter-finals, then the semi-finals and finally last season’s final, has seen the club’s coefficient rise sufficiently to earn promotion to the top tier of seeds. That said, with every team required to face two opponents from each pot, the advantage of being in Pot 1 is fairly negligible.
UEFA rules prevent clubs from the same country facing each other during the group phase, while a new regulation designed to stop the same fixture being played at the same venue three seasons in succession meant another trip to Inter Milan was also off the cards.
As usual, the teams finishing in the top eight will qualify automatically for the last 16. Those placed ninth to 24th will enter the knockout phase play-offs, while the bottom 12 will be eliminated from the competition.
In truth, it’s pretty difficult not to make it through. Two years ago, 11 points from a possible 24 was enough to progress, while last season Benfica and Bodo/Glimt squeezed into the play-offs with just nine.
Arsenal’s record in the league phase since UEFA adopted the new format has been impressive. In 2024/25, the Gunners won six of their eight games to finish third behind Liverpool and Barcelona. Last season, they became the first side to navigate all eight matches with a perfect record and finished top of the 36-team standings.
As well as avoiding two additional play-off fixtures at an already busy point in the domestic calendar, finishing first also ensured Arsenal played the second leg at home throughout the knockout phase.
This season’s final will be staged at Atletico Madrid’s Metropolitano Stadium, which has a capacity of more than 68,000.
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Champions League Matchdays 2026/27
Group phase
Matchday 1: 8–10 September 2026 (note: we could play on a Thursday)
Matchday 2: 13/14 October 2026
Matchday 3: 20/21 October 2026
Matchday 4: 3/4 November 2026
Matchday 5: 24/25 November 2026
Matchday 6: 8/9 December 2026
Matchday 7: 19/20 January 2027
Matchday 8: 27 January 2027
Knockout phase
Knockout phase play-offs: 16/17 & 23/24 February 2027
Round of 16: 9/10 & 16/17 March 2027
Quarter-finals: 6/7 & 13/14 April 2027
Semi-finals: 27/28 April & 4/5 May 2027
Final: 5 June 2027 (Madrid)