Barca, Man City in Champions League's top seed group

Barcelona takes AS Roma's place in Champions League pot 1. Photo: Reuters .

According to UEFA regulations, the reigning Champions League champions along with the eight clubs with the best results in Europe over the past five seasons will be placed in pot 1.

In the UEFA rankings, AS Roma is ranked 9th, while Barcelona is ranked 10th. However, Roma only finished 5th overall in Serie A and could not be present in the Champions League next season, helping Barcelona qualify for the number 1 seed.

Man City are also confirmed to be in Pot 1 after finishing 3rd in the Premier League this season. Pep Guardiola's team just had a 2-0 victory over Fulham on May 25.

Chelsea, who will face Real Betis in the UEFA Conference League final on May 29, will also be in Pot 1. In the final round of the Premier League, "The Blues" won 1-0 against Nottingham Forest and finished 4th overall.

From the 2024/25 season, teams in the same seeding pot can meet each other in the Champions League qualifying round. The draw will be done entirely by computer.

The 36 teams in the Champions League will be divided into four seeding pots. Each club will be drawn against two opponents from each pot, with one home and one away match. Each club will play eight matches, four home and four away, during the qualifying phase.

The top eight teams in the qualifying round will advance directly to the round of 16, while places 8 to 24 will enter a two-legged playoff. Teams 25 to 36 will be eliminated, and no teams will drop into the Europa League.

The draw for the Champions League qualifying round will take place on August 28.