With Europe's top leagues gearing up to restart this weekend, it's time to start drumming up excitement for the 2023/24 Champions League. This year's tournament promises to be another epic battle of European heavyweights like Manchester City, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Real Madrid but also re-welcoming old diehards like Arsenal. Newcastle, Lens, and Union Berlin are the newest faces. But when is the Champions League group stage draw for 2023/24? Let's look at all the critical dates, seeds, and other important details.
When is the Champions League group stage draw 23/24?
The Champions League draw takes place on August 31, 2023. UEFA expects to host the event at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland, as they did for the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League playoff round draw.
In the Champions League draw event, organizers will select 32 teams from four pots, dividing them into eight groups of four. The organizers choose one team from each pot to make up each group, forming eight well-balanced groups for the competition.
Here are the pots:
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester City (Champions League) | Real Madrid (La Liga) | Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukrainian PL) | Union Berlin (Bundesliga) |
| Sevilla (Europa League) | Manchester United (Premier League) | RB Salzburg (Austrian Bundesliga) | Lens (Ligue 1) |
| Barcelona (La Liga) | Inter Milan (Serie A) | AC Milan (Serie A) | TBC |
| Napoli (Serie A) | B. Dortmund (Bundesliga) | Lazio (Serie A) | TBC |
| Bayern Munich (Bundesliga) | Atletico Madrid (La Liga) | Red Star Belgrade (Serbian SL) | TBC |
| PSG (Ligue 1) | RB Leipzig (Bundesliga) | TBC | TBC |
| Benfica (Primeira Liga) | Porto (Primeira Liga) | TBC | TBC |
| Feyenoord (Eredivisie) | Arsenal (Premier League) | TBC | TBC |
| Key: | TBC: | To be Confirmed |
Manchester City secure their position in Pot 1 of the UEFA Champions League as the reigning champions, joining Europa League winners Sevilla.
Additionally, Pot 1 will host the champions from the top six leagues, including Eredeivise victors Feyenoord who take on spot 3 in replacement of Man City, who completed the Treble.
Using an algorithmic formula, the UEFA club coefficient rankings assess a club's performance in domestic and continental competitions over the previous five-year period. This system organizes Pots 2, 3, and 4 in the UEFA Champions League.
Five teams are in Pot 3, with the remainder pending the qualifying process. The six clubs that advance through the summer's playoff qualifying process will fill out the bracket alongside Newcastle, Celtic, and Real Sociedad shoe-ins.
The UEFA Champions League group stage begins on September 19, with the season culminating in the final at Wembley Stadium, London, on Saturday, June 1, the following year. You can stream the group stage draw on the UCL website.
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